Re: Best Animated Film: 2007
Posted: Tue Dec 06, 2022 12:19 pm
I had no idea Surf's Up was a mockumentary. It's less in the Christopher Guest mold and more a sendup of Riding with Giants. I spent the first five minutes or so giggling. Pretty soon, it settles into a Karate Kid mold as brash young Cody (Shia LeBoeuf) has to learn to become the best after a gnarly wipeout from exiled legend Z (Jeff Bridges). Both of these molds are enjoyable on their own; the latter is very familiar but it gains quite mileage from those two voice performances. There's also a bit more to admire in the animation than I'm used to seeing from Sony Pictures Animation. The Rockhopper Penguins look good. The water animation and effects used to carry the mockumentary format are fun. And you get the impression that the filmmakers are always looking for new ways to film the surfing to keep it interesting. But that's the problem. It's a bit stretched out even at 85 minutes. Surf's Up is a kiddie satire and we don't really care about Cody's father issues. We've seen it many times before. I'm also truly interested in whether or not kids got this film. Certainly, Chicken Joe is aimed at them.
I'm mixed on Surf's Up but it's probably as successful at what it's trying to do as it could pull off.
Both Persepolis or Ratatouille would be perfectly fine winners in my opinion but I'm going with Persepolis both for what it represents to the category (it's a rare adult film) and for its quality. It makes the case for more coming of age stories being told in this format. And what a gorgeous format it is! I savored every frame. I can't imagine Marjane Satrapi's story being told in any other fashion. It just speeds along, perfectly capturing the changing world around her as well as her leaps in personality. I also love it as a depiction of righteous indignation fading into world weariness that comes with the oldness that the still-young can feel. If I have one criticism it's that it doesn't quite end strongly. I was fairly surprised, had to rewind, and then look up on wikipedia to really grasp why it ended at that point. In that sense, it's an inverse of Ratatouille which ends on a high but I'd imagine most who claim to love the film forget that a major plot-point hangs on Linguini discovering his secret parentage.
My vote is Persepolis. Viewing it is reason enough to do this series of polls.
I'm mixed on Surf's Up but it's probably as successful at what it's trying to do as it could pull off.
Both Persepolis or Ratatouille would be perfectly fine winners in my opinion but I'm going with Persepolis both for what it represents to the category (it's a rare adult film) and for its quality. It makes the case for more coming of age stories being told in this format. And what a gorgeous format it is! I savored every frame. I can't imagine Marjane Satrapi's story being told in any other fashion. It just speeds along, perfectly capturing the changing world around her as well as her leaps in personality. I also love it as a depiction of righteous indignation fading into world weariness that comes with the oldness that the still-young can feel. If I have one criticism it's that it doesn't quite end strongly. I was fairly surprised, had to rewind, and then look up on wikipedia to really grasp why it ended at that point. In that sense, it's an inverse of Ratatouille which ends on a high but I'd imagine most who claim to love the film forget that a major plot-point hangs on Linguini discovering his secret parentage.
My vote is Persepolis. Viewing it is reason enough to do this series of polls.