Allegro Non Troppo - 1976

"Allegro Non Troppo" - 1976
Dir. by Bruno Bozzetto - 1 hr. 25 min.

Clip from the movie

"Allegro Non Troppo" is a sort of a take-off on the classic Disney film, "Fantasia."  Like the original, it's largely dialogue-free animation set to pieces of classical music (with black and white live-action sequences between the seven segments).  And not surprisingly, it's a winning formula.  There are several jokes in the live-action segments that directly allude to where this film's roots lie, which are pretty funny.  And while this is an Italian film, the animation doesn't have any dialogue, and the live-action sequences are very visual in their humor, so you could probably wouldn't lose much if you weren't paying attention to the subtitles.

I'd like to say this is a dirty hippie version of "Fantasia," but that's not exactly dead on.  Granted, there are naked women, a satyr, and some reasonably adult content even beyond that, but it would be more accurate to say that it's a product of the 70's.  There's no drug content in the film, but it's so heavily psychedelic that the intent is clear.  The animation style is also clearly from the 1970's (which isn't necessarily a bad thing - trippy watercolor artwork is more appealing eye-candy to me than anything that has originated from pixels).

This is a really tough film to talk about, chiefly because the bulk of it's appeal lies in it's visuals.  What it is not is a straight narrative film.  It's just an experience, and a good one at that.  In particular, the "Bolero" sequence is fantastic (it's turned into an evolutionary narrative, complete with color-shifting dinosaurs marching to the beat of the song).  Maybe that's the right word for the film: fantastic.

4 / 5 - DVD

L'illusionniste (The Illusionist) - 2010

"L'illusonniste" - 2010
Dir. by Sylvain Chomet - 1 hr. 20 min.

Based on an unproduced screenplay by Jacques Tati, this is a heartbreakingly beautiful animated feature.  It's always much harder to praise something than to see when things are done wrong, but I'll do my best here.  Aside from the story (a magician who's career is on the skids, circa 1959, has a teenage girl start tagging along with him), which isn't really the thrust of movie, nearly everything is perfect.  The animation has a distinct look - which is to say that it's distinctly non-American.  There is surely some computer work done here (animating vehicles from multiple angles is the main culprit, I'd imagine), but the animators still manage to maintain a hand-drawn, linear surface polish.  There's no pixels to be found anywhere, not in the linework, nor in the colors, which has a watercolor look.  And make no mistake, the animation has to carry the film - there's nearly no dialogue whatsoever, nor are there any subtitles when the characters do happen to say something (it's intentionally mumbled, although you can still make out some things here and there).

Another heap of praise for the animation:  each city that is in the movie feels distinctly real, and distinct from one another.  Most of the movie is set in Edinburgh, a city I've been to, and this film absolutely nails it.  There is also a coastal Scotland town that feels exactly right, and is distinct from Edinburgh.  It's a rare feat in an animated film to have a real sense of place.  Also, the characters are sufficiently cartoony (read: exaggerated, in a really pleasing sense) so as not to suggest rotoscoping or motion-capture, which always grates on my eyes.

And while it's easy to praise the technical and performance aspects of this film, the emotion behind it really latches on and won't let go.  It's one thing to have an entertainer on the skids, but watching him try to keep up appearances for the sake of his young friend (all while watching his contemporaries failing, as well) and keep his dignity at the same time is rending.  It doesn't get easier from there - it's difficult to watch someone have their dreams get crushed, but seeing people who are unquestionably good at what they do have even surviving (in some cases) slip just out of reach is a gut punch.  It doesn't get easier from there, either.

Basically, this is "Up" in reverse.  Instead of starting with a crushing sequence and rebuilding from there, "L'illusionniste" is a downhill ride that will kick your ass, roll credits, and leave you in the theatre hoping no one sees you wipe the tears from your eyes as the lights go up.  But it's a beautiful ride, unlike anything I've seen in quite a while, too.

5 / 5 - Theatre
Official Site

Heavy Metal - 1981

"Heavy Metal" - 1981
Dir. by Gerald Potterton - 1 hr. 26 min.

Official Trailer

by Clayton Hollifield

I'm in the odd position of having seen the brilliant South Park episode that borrows heavily from this movie before having seen the movie itself.  Fortunately, it didn't really distract from my enjoyment of this movie.  Based on several characters from the comics magazine of the same name, this is sort of an anthology of a movie.  There's a macguffin that allows us to bounce from world to world with little explanation, which is fine, since the movie itself isn't exactly about coherence in the first place.

I'm always fascinated with relatively low-budget animated features.  It's one thing to blow $100 million and get beautiful results (for that price, you damned well ought to have beautiful results), but that also usually keeps animated features from presenting individual personalities.  HM reportedly cost a shade under $10 million to make, which is pretty reasonable in the realm of animation.  At this point, HM looks like the product of not just another time, but of another world as well.  In stark contrast to the computer (over-) rendered animation of today, Heavy Metal is clearly the result of ink and paint - real world materials.  The characters are rendered with extensive linework - also rare for animation.  Compare the smoothed-out Disney features, or the angular, modernist UPA animation against the almost itchy texture of Heavy Metal.

There's a lot I could say about the animation (it's a little clunky - the rotoscoping wasn't particularly smoothed out), but there are two bigger things to mention.  I respect the effort to do something different than other animated features, and this is a movie better seen through hazy eyes.  It's short-attention span theatre with tits and aliens, and on that basis exactly meets what it aims to do.  It's a late night movie, and I should have had a couple of drinks before starting it.  But it's still a fun romp, and I'll probably watch it again.

3.5 / 5 - NF Streaming