Take the Disney logo off of any poster for one of their animated features. How interested are you in seeing that film now? Maybe not as much as you would be with that comfortable brand recognition.
And so, welcome to Feature Animation Un-Branded! In a culture where moviegoers put an inordinate amount of faith in familiar brands, it is ever-important to celebrate independent animation that lives off the mainstream radar. As film critic Michael Phillips puts it, some feature animation "has a way of resetting a moviegoer's internal rhythm to a calmer, more contemplative beat." So take a dive into some sumptuous animation old and new, American and international, traditional and stop-motion!
This entry's theme is France, perhaps the most frequent producer of feature animation behind the United States and Japan:
And so, welcome to Feature Animation Un-Branded! In a culture where moviegoers put an inordinate amount of faith in familiar brands, it is ever-important to celebrate independent animation that lives off the mainstream radar. As film critic Michael Phillips puts it, some feature animation "has a way of resetting a moviegoer's internal rhythm to a calmer, more contemplative beat." So take a dive into some sumptuous animation old and new, American and international, traditional and stop-motion!
This entry's theme is France, perhaps the most frequent producer of feature animation behind the United States and Japan:
1. FANTASTIC PLANET
Year: 1973
Form: Hand-Drawn, Cut-Out
Director: Rene Laloux
Country: France
What Is It?: Fantastic Planet is a science fiction tale of human revolution against an alien race of oppressors: Draags, 100-foot tall blue humanoids who domesticate 'Oms', yet are wary enough of their intelligence to keep their population at a minimum. When a teenage Om named Terr escapes his captors and steals valuable information from them, a war ensues across a surreal alien landscape.
The film, adapted from the novel Oms en serie by Stefan Wul, represents the most ambitious collaboration between cut-out animator Rene Laloux and famed illustrator Roland Topor, and the sci-fi world they envision in Fantastic Planet is one of few who's social and cultural structures feel fundamentally rooted in the unfamiliar, as opposed to simply being dressed with fantastical elements. Meditation is a practical means of ensuring reproduction, and taking drugs in front of children is normalized. Most enchanting of all are the small details, chiefly wild crystals that grow like grass, but burst when you whistle at them. The film is endlessly revisitable, though not uplifting.
Who Should Watch It?: Ages 16 and up (violence, gore, nudity, sexual references, drugs).
How Can I Find It? DVD/Blu-Ray, iTunes/Amazon (Criterion edition available).
2. KIRIKOU AND THE SORCERESS
Year: 1998
Form: Hand-Drawn
Director: Michel Ocelot
Country: France
What Is It?: Kirikou And The Sorceress is the first of many Kirikou films, following the adventures of a baby small yet clever enough to emerge from his mother's womb himself. When Kirikou discovers that Karaba, an evil sorceress, is robbing his village of water, money, and men, he goes on an epic quest to discover what motivates Karaba prickly demeanor and what he can do to calm her.
Not released in the States until the early 2000s due to nervousness with the film's normalized nudity, this is a film that jumps right into the narrative with comical energy, surprising due to some of the unsettling character designs and animation. The story borrows from west African folklore and imagery, depicting much of the action from side or front profile. And the resolution with the sorceress makes an interesting comment on the virtue of living a life of neutrality vs. a life of extremes.
Who Should Watch It?: Ages 12 or 13 and up (mature depictions of nudity, unsettling imagery).
How Can I Find It? DVD/Blu-Ray, Amazon.
3. A CAT IN PARIS
Year: 2010
Form: Hand-Drawn
Director: Jean-Loup Felicioli and Alain Gagnol
Country: France
What Is It?: A Cat In Paris centers around Jeanne, a cop out for revenge against the jewel thief who took the life of her husband, another member of the force. But when her silent daughter Zoe is caught catching whiff of the thief's scheme, she, a third-party burglar named Nico, and his black cat are on the run and on a mission to stop the thief and help Jeanne emotionally recover from the tragedy.
Barely over an hour long, this caper is light, easygoing, and really all about the production design,
which offers a depiction of Paris that recalls the Cubist art movement and plays fast and loose with the laws of perspective. Felicioli's and Gagnol's characters all have unnerving faces (which suits the mystery genre well) but are gleefully unbound by anatomical reality and drift through scenes like sheets of paper. The aesthetic is singular, attractive, and definitely worth checking out.
Who Should Watch It?: Ages 6-8 and up (Completely suitable for kids).
How Can I Find It? DVD/Blu-Ray, iTunes/Amazon.
Caricaturist Sylvain Chomet's second feature is adapted from a decades old, autobiographical, previously-unproduced screenplay by famed French comedian Jacques Tati. Chomet's aesthetic recalls the xerography age of Disney animation at first glance, and yet is wholly his own, as are his musical stylings for the seductive, jazzy score. The story is melancholy from beginning to end but never less than absorbing.
4. THE ILLUSIONIST
Year: 2010
Form: Hand-Drawn
Director: Sylvain Chomet
Country: France
What Is It?: The Illusionist tells of Tatischeff, an old, down-on-his-luck magician who travels across Europe in search of both an audience an an affirmation of his relevance in a world gripped by '60s counterculture. He finds both in Alice, a teenage girl he unofficially adopts and enchants with his magic for as long as he can before she feels the lure of adulthood on the horizon.
Caricaturist Sylvain Chomet's second feature is adapted from a decades old, autobiographical, previously-unproduced screenplay by famed French comedian Jacques Tati. Chomet's aesthetic recalls the xerography age of Disney animation at first glance, and yet is wholly his own, as are his musical stylings for the seductive, jazzy score. The story is melancholy from beginning to end but never less than absorbing.
Who Should Watch It?: Ages 12 or 13 and up (occasional drinking and smoking).
How Can I Find It? DVD/Blu-Ray, iTunes/Amazon.
5. ERNEST AND CELESTINE
Year: 2012
Form: Hand-drawn
Director: Stephanie Aubier, Vincent Patar, Benjamin Renner
Country: France
Director: Stephanie Aubier, Vincent Patar, Benjamin Renner
Country: France
What Is It?: Ernest And Celestine are fugitives in a world where mice and bears coexist maliciously. When Ernest the bear and Celestine the mouse reluctantly exchange favors, a father/daughter bond steadily grows, and the risk of capture only unite them more as enforcements draw near...
'Sweet' is the most apt adjective for this easygoing adventure story. Digitally animated against watercolor backgrounds, directors Aubier, Patar, and Renner stay true to the source material by the late Gabrielle Vincent while taking a few stylistic leaves from Ghibli, ranging from an inclination toward key poses over fluid animation to the quieter, less-exposition heavy manner by which the narrative proceeds. A particular sequence halfway along takes us from winter to spring entirely with watercolor, and it is a lovely sight.
'Sweet' is the most apt adjective for this easygoing adventure story. Digitally animated against watercolor backgrounds, directors Aubier, Patar, and Renner stay true to the source material by the late Gabrielle Vincent while taking a few stylistic leaves from Ghibli, ranging from an inclination toward key poses over fluid animation to the quieter, less-exposition heavy manner by which the narrative proceeds. A particular sequence halfway along takes us from winter to spring entirely with watercolor, and it is a lovely sight.
Who Should Watch It?: Ages 6-8 and up (completely suitable for kids).
How Can I Find It? DVD/Blu-Ray, iTunes/Amazon, Netflix streaming.
No comments:
Post a Comment