Written for the blogathon hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. Join us (we regulars are a friendly group!) by picking three movies that meet the week's theme and telling everyone about them.
I love animated movies. Always have. They have the ability to do much more, to be more creative, than live-action movies, because of the simple fact that they aren't tethered to reality in any way shape or form. This week I wanted to shine a light on some lesser-known films that should be just as beloved as any Disney or Pixar classic.
Allegro Non Troppo (Bruno Bozzetto, 1976) This is kind of cheating a little, as there is a live-action "frame story" in this Italian parody of Disney's Fantasia. Bozzetto goes a little meta here, telling the story of an animator who comes up with what he thinks is an original idea (animation set to classical music), and finds out it's already been done by an American. But he decides to make his own version anyway, using an orchestra of old ladies. But the animated sequences are at the heart of the film, and they are each completely different and stunning in their own way. There's the ersatz evolution story set to Ravel's "Bolero", the exploration of mob mentality in Dvorak's "Slavonic Dance No. 7, Op. 46", and a version of the Adam and Eve story accompanied by Stravinsky's "Firebird". And then, my favorite, this sequence set to Sibelius's "Valse Triste". I dare you not to shed a tear.
Mary & Max (Adam Elliot, 2009) I don't think I have the words to express my love of this Australian oddity, except to say that if you haven't seen it, you should drop whatever it is you are doing and do so this instant. I mean it. The story of a young Australian girl and an older Jewish American man who become the most unlikely of pen pals is funny, heartfelt, and wise beyond belief. I love it so, and only partially because the end makes me weep buckets.
Sita Sings the Blues (Nina Paley, 2009) If you haven't seen Sita Sings the Blues yet, why the hell not? It's FREE online! Nina Paley released it under a Creative Commons license, having become a leading member of the free culture movement after experiencing trouble getting the rights to certain Annette Hanshaw songs she wanted to use in the film. Fiendishly clever and devilishly funny, Paley's adaptation of the Hindu epic "The Ramayana" is a gorgeous, flawless piece of animation, encompassing multiple different styles across its two story strands: One the traditional story, told from the point of view of the hero's wife, and the other Paley's own story of how her husband ended their relationship. The two stories have more in common than you might think, and part of the fun is in watching what new, eye-popping things Paley is going to try next to tell her story.
