Animated Short Films (nominated for Oscar)
I just watched the Animated Short Films nominated for this year’s Oscars. Well, four out of the five. I can’t find the 5th one. Google doesn’t have it anywhere.
Watch the other four, though, right here, and then you can read my review, or vice versa, whatever you want to do. Or neither.
Here’s the link to go watch 4/5: http://cinemascopian.com/2009/02/05/watch-the-oscar-nominated-animated-shorts/
When I find the 5th, I’ll update this post.
Lavatory/Lovestory (Russia): It’s about a woman who runs a Russian restroom. She seeks love and romance. In what seems a futile search for the man who keeps putting flowers in her coin jar, she nearly loses her mind. Well, kind of. I won’t spoil the end for you. It’s very simply animated, which means it won’t win, but it’s a good story, and albeit simple, has a neat way of using the almost childlike animation to tell its story.
Oktapodi (France): Extremely short. Less than three minutes, if I remember correctly. Definitely less than five. Two octopi (or are they squid?) are separated, and the orange one goes after the pink one, to save it from imminent death. What ensues is essentially a chase scene, albeit a hilarious one. It’s a fun story, surprising, and absolutely hysterically funny.
Presto (US): If you saw Wall-E, you’ve seen this one. If you haven’t, then here’s what it’s about: a rabbit wants a carrot, which its magician owner won’t give to it. It retaliates by making his show a miserable and painful failure. The audience eats it up, though, and in the end, so does the rabbit. Because it’s Pixar, it has fantastic animation, what we’ve come to expect from them. It might win just for that. The story is very enjoyable and fantastical in a Looney Tunes kind of way. It’s just a lot of fun to watch. I think it’s my pick.
This Way Up (UK): Two men need to transport a dead body in its casket across the world (it seems) to its final resting place. Trouble ensues when their car is destroyed. They must literally carry it to the grave. When they finally arive, they find they are not only carrying her body to the grave, but her soul to the afterlife. It’s a neat and intriguing story that has a chance to win because of great animation, an intersting story, and fun twists. I liked it a lot.
La Maison de Petit Cubes (Japan): I can’t find it. When I do, I’ll let you know.