Down at Mossy Bottom farm, life has become routine for Shaun and his fellow sheep. Even Bitzer the dog seems to be struggling with the every day.

So starts this feature length adaptation of Aardman Animation's popular stop-motion TV series, itself a spin-off from the stable's well-loved short-feature, Wallace And Gromit: A Close Shave. Shaun comes from good stock.

So when he decides to take a day off and head to the big city, you can be sure that despite best intentions, trouble is not far behind. Nor is Bitzer, the rest of the flock, the farmer, a sinister animal catcher, hi-jinks and high adventure. The heat is turned up when the farmer loses his memory and becomes a celebrity hair-stylist, forcing extraordinary pressure on the inventive Shaun and Bitzer to get everyone home safely.

As with all Aardman films (Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit, Chicken Run), Shaun The Sheep is great fun. Production is crisp in detailing a wide, complicated yet well constructed world, one that refuses CGI polishers that render similar productions devoid of the creator's thumbprint. It's always been their point of difference, and a charming one at that. Consider there's no dialogue beyond a few bleats and grunts – Shaun largely gets his point across through complex, hoof-drawn diagrams – and we're in the world of silent comedy at its wholesome, slapstick best.

What is lacking is the quirky, pun-laden spirit of previous films that gave adult audiences an extra layer of enjoyment. Since Shaun is pitched at pre-teens, it would have been thoroughly welcome. Not that the intended audience will care in the slightest – for them, Shaun The Sheep is everything they came for, and more. Reversing expectation, here is the kind of film where restless chaperones will be told to keep quiet by their enthralled charges.

// COLIN FRASER

Previewed at Sony Theatre, Sydney, on 16 March 2015