April 21st in Chicago, IL. Wes Anderson's 9th directorial effort is his 2nd foray into stop motion animation. The film is set in the Japanese city of Megasaki. A dog flu has spread through the city and Mayor Kobayasi, a cat lover, decrees that all remaining dogs are to be sent to Trash Island. The mayor's youthful ward and nephew Atari steals a plane to in order to rescue his dog Spots, the first dog sent over to Trash Island.
Atari is injured during a crash landing and is helped by a reasonably friendly group of canines (Chief, Boss, King Duke and Rex). As they journey across Trash Island to try and find Spots, Mayor Kobayashi is tightening his grip on Megasaki by eliminating political rivals and setting a plan in motion to put down all the dogs on Trash Island. A plucky exchange student, Tracy Walker, is skeptical of the mayor so she and a student group begin to investigate (meddling kids). Atari and Spots are reunited and the mayor's plans are thwarted. Atari is made mayor and orders that the dogs are to be reintegrated into society.
Anderson received some criticism from some critics about cultural stereotypes and "whitewashing." Japanese characters speak in their native tongue and there are no subtitles. The humans that speak in English are white (Tracy and an interpreter delivering news updates) and of course the dogs speak English to each other. Subtitles would have helped for sure. Tracy is a "white savior" cliche but I was more bothered by the fact that she was high school aged, develops a crush on 12 year old Atari and they become an item at the end of the film.
A standard theme in Anderson's films is family. This film is not different. Atari steals a plane in order to locate his faithful dog whom he had grown to love. Spots was devoted to Atari. Then there's the fact that Spots and Chief are from the same litter, unbeknownst to Chief. When Chief's identity is revealed, he asks Spots if he was the "runt" of the litter and Spots replies, "not anymore." Great line. Spots bestows upon Chief the role of Atari's protector, a position he once held and raises his family with Peppermint. Chief gets together with Nutmeg to start their own family.
The picture received an 89% Rotten Tomatoes rating which is maybe a few points, but not many, too high but none the less a good film. I liked The Fantastic Mr. Fox a little better. The dialogue is what I expect from an Anderson film. Technically, there are few directors that pay as much attention to detail as Anderson does. It's not just the stop motion of the characters, it's the detailed sets. Lighting and color also play a big factor, another Anderson staple. The cast of voice talents is extensive and it feature several Anderson veterans like Bill Murray and Jeff Goldblum. Harvey Keitel, Greta Gerwig, Scarlett Johansson, Liev Schreiber and Bryan Cranston are also involved.
If you're an Anderson fan, as I am, then this is a must see. If you're not an Anderson fan or not a fan of stop motion animation then this is not a film for you. The criticisms are not wrong but I liked the film and will continue to view Anderson features.
No comments:
Post a Comment