And now, a bit of catching up. . .
FANTASTIC PLANET
(1973, Laloux)
Set in the mysterious planet of Ygam,
Fantastic Planet follows the clashes between the human-like Oms and the giant, blue humanoid Draags that are trying to eradicate the former from their planet, while also keeping them as pets. Terr (Eric Baugin) is a young Om that has been kept as a pet since infancy by Tiwa (Jennifer Drake). But when he accidentally starts to absorb knowledge from his captors, he ends up leaving Tiwa and joining a group of rebel Oms in order to oust their captors.
I found this film both amazing and mesmerizing for so many reasons. I'll start by saying that the opening scene was such a perfect way to capture what this world is about, to expose the themes without spelling them out, but rather with haunting and eerie visuals. Second, the animation was so effective, and you feel like it suits the plot and the era so well. The use of colors and certain angles only helped to amplify the eeriness of this world. Third, the creativity with which director René Laloux and co-writer Roland Topor build this planet and set its environment and rules is nothing short of impressive. Finally, the music is so cool and helps to establish the trippy mood extremely well.
Fantastic Planet was a troubled project to begin with; not only for its themes and ambitions, but also because of the circumstances surrounding its production. While production started in France, it was animated in Czechoslovakia which had more resources in that field. Halfway through, Czechoslovakia was invaded by the Soviet Union in an effort to suppress a reform movement in the country. Casually, co-writer Topor was of Polish-Jewish descent and had to spend his childhood hiding from the Gestapo. All of this adds more weight to the themes of oppression and subjugation that permeate through the film.
I still have some issues with it. Even though I understand it's not the film's goal, but the lack of character development and depth hinders its effect a bit. Plus, the resolution feels somewhat abrupt and a bit too convenient. Still, I would definitely say that this was one of the most interesting film-watching experiences I've had recently.
Grade:
I did not know about the circumstances during productions; thank you for mentioning that. It does add some internal gravitas to the subject matter.
And like @
Captain Terror remarked, getting high for this flick is a bit of a bonus, lol.
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie This is on shaky ground in my Watchlist simply because of my own hesitations, but they have eased nicely after reading your review, @
Hey Fredrick, which I did enjoy in itself. It's still a bit shaky, but I feel that I should brave through it and discover - what I may discover.
La Grande Illusion when I saw that this was nominated for @
Takoma11, I could see this going either way and truly am glad it went on a more enjoyable route for you.
Like you, I truly love a good prison camp escape film and found this to be a wondrously unique experience. Making my introduction to Renoir a marvelous one. Since then, I've explored
La Bête Humaine and have both
Madame Bovary and
The Rules of the Game on my Watchlist.
Day for Night This is one that needs a second viewing for me. Since I found myself enjoying it more afterward as I thought about it than while watching it.
Shoot the Piano Player this does look very worthwhile, but having only seen one Truffaut film, the above mentioned,
Day for Night, it's hard to gauge if I truly desire to make room for it on my Watchlist. I will be watching
400 Blows for this HoF, so that'll be a strong decision-maker for me.
Smiles of a Summer Night With as serious as the few Bergman's I've seen, I am genuinely surprised that he has a comedic endeavor under his belt. Hmm.
With these HoFs, I have been on a gradual introduction to Bergman that has varied for me. Though with all the high praise I've heard from folks that I value their thoughts very highly, this next venture,
Wild Strawberries should be a positive side of viewings.
Contempt I have bounced back and forth on whether or not to watch this film. Having only seen one Goddard,
Pierrot le Fou. BUT, I do have
Alphaville and
Band of Outsiders on my Watchlist, so that should help establish whether I simply respect or enjoy Goddard films. And should I find both, I could very well check this out. I'm already curious about seeing another Brigitte Bardot film after the amazing
Le Vérité and my
REVIEW. Not to mention Fritz Lang's appearance in this film.
Rocco and His Brothers I Have not heard of this, but I am a fan of Alain Delon.
The Marriage of Maria Braun Enjoyed this one during a previous HoF and looked like a good fit for you, @
Thursday Next.
I watched Stray Dog (1949). Directed by the legendary Akira Kurosawa and starring Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, and Keiko Awaji, the film is about a rookie detective whose gun is stolen on a scorching hot day. He spends the rest of the day trying to track down his gun. I thought the film was good, but not great. Acting is good, especially by Mifune, and the story is interesting but not as consistently gripping as I would have expected. I did like the look of the film. I've seen 13 Kurosawa films, and this one would not be in my top 10, but I'm glad I watched it. My rating is a
.
I picked this one for you. With the films in TUS' Movie Roulette, this looked worthwhile for you. I agree it is not a top Kurosawa, but definitely, a very good one, that's worth seeing.
Fitzcarraldo Herzog films, so far, have been more of respect than enjoyment. I have heard of the utter chaos of this film's making, with Herzog and Kinski literally fighting with one another.
Au Revoir Les Enfants I Have not seen this, and with hearing cricket/thief/CR's enjoyment of it, along with reading that it is based on a childhood experience by the Director, Louis Malle, really seals it as an addition to my Watchlist.
The Earrings of Madame De... This was a film that has caught my attention when meandering through French films, and I was quite intrigued by it. Having read CR's review and hearing that sean enjoys it as well, it is now, officially, on my Watchlist.
Thank you, gentlemen!
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