So here is part two of my review of films that are nominated but most people don't get to see:
the nominations for best animated short.
Sunday/Dimanche
A young boy in Canada spends his Sundays putting coins on the railroad track, going to church, and going to Grandma's house to visit with the relatives.
Yes, that's the plot. This is a very primitive animated short with little color; the entire pastel is black, white, grey, and beige. I believe the creators were trying to depict the ennui and boredom of a typical Sunday in a town that the train passes by. Sorry, didn't get it.
A Morning Stroll
A young man is walking down the street and bumps into a fat guy. He continues on down the street and sees a chicken come around the corner. The chicken then goes up a staircase, pecks on a door, and enters the house when the door is opened. This scenario goes on three times over the course of 100 years.
The three segments in this film were done in three different ways. The first segment is black and white and drawn in a very linear fashion with a simple storyline. The second section is in color. The guy walking down the street is now playing a zombie game on an Iphone, and when he bumps into the fat guy, he spills his milkshake on him. The third section is CGI, and the guy walking down the street is a zombie. Now when he bumps into the fat guy he literally knocks the guys head off. And when the chicken arrives, it turns into a bit of a bloodbath. Then comes the "funny" coda.
Once again, didn't get it. I admired the three different techniques of the segments, but the story was lame. And my husband Ken fell asleep during this one.
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore
A young man, surrounded by books, is reading on his balcony in Louisiana. Suddenly there is a hurricane which wisks him to another place, a place that is dreary and grey. As he is walking down the road he notices a woman flying by hanging onto strings of flying books. He follows her to a building made of books, and discovers that the library inside is a colorful room filled with flying and living books. He communicates with a book on Humpty Dumpty, helps save an old book, and winds up staying in the town as the book custodian, handing out books to the grey children and bringing color into their lives.
Another great homage to film! The lead character is patterned after Buster Keaton and the tornado scenes are reminiscent of "The Wizard of Oz." This film utilizes a variety of techniques, from CGI to old fashioned animation (as in flipping the pages of a book to make the drawings move) to actual claymation sets. Absolutely charming with an "Up" wistfullness.
Wild Life
A young privileged man leaves England to find his way in the Canadian wilderness. Although his letters home are optimistic, they do not detail the travails he is experiencing. His story is interspersed with title cards describing the life and death of a comet.
An interesting Canadian (again) film. This was another film with old school animation (i.e. no CGI that I could tell.) The story was intriguing and sad, but what I really liked was the artwork. At times I thought to myself that if Van Gogh made an animated film, this is what it would look like.
La Luna
A little boy is taken out on a boat with his father and grandfather to learn the family business. After he drops the anchor and a ladder is raised, he realizes that the family business is taking care of the moon.
A very charming short, with a cute ending. However, it's a Pixar film so we expect it to be breath-taking. And it is.
So, just when we thought it was over, the film continued with four "highly commended" shorts. In other words, those that weren't nominated:
Nullarbor
Two men engage in road rage traveling the longest road in Australia.
Another CGI film with a great story and characterization. Warning....definitely not a child's cartoon.
Skylight
A very humorous story depicting penquins dealing with the depleting ozone layer.
Hybrid Union
Three robots trying to out-run an ominous cloud. A CGI film from the Ukraine. Not exceptional.
Amazonia
A young frog tries to get a meal. An older frog befriends him and the two of them try to eat while not being eaten. Very engaging with colorful CGI animation.
So, CinaJim's views:
Thanks to the MidTown Cinema we were able to see this year's nominations for short films. I preferred the live action shorts over the animated ones. There were a few that should not have been nominated ("Sunday," "A Morning Stroll") while some of the "commended" ("Skylight," "Amazonia," "Nullarbor") should have made the cut.
However, without a doubt in my mind, the best animated short was "The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore." What a wonderful homage to "old school" film and a valentine to bibliophiles everywhere. I hope this one will be available on dvd because I absolutely loved it!
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