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I don't know if it was poor marketing or my own ignorance towards this film, but not only did I have zero interest in it, I had no idea it was an adventure movie. I was more under the impression it would be about our lead character transporting the "Missing Link" back to New York for proof of his existence and that would be it. The film pivots from that story into a wonderful and fully realized adventure film that crosses the globe, showcasing the true talents behind the stop motion animation at Laika.
There has always been something about a Laika film that felt missing to me. I should love all their films a lot more than I do. The amount of attention to detail, love and dedication they put into these movies is astounding. Just check out some of their behind the scenes stuff to see how they put these movies together. Their talent has grown over the years and Missing Link really showcases that, specifically with the environments we find ourselves in. We are globe trotting in this story and the imagery they present to us is truly beautiful stuff. Their previous film Kubo & The Two Strings had some striking imagery as well and the fluidity of the animation here is almost flawless.
Like their other efforts, the film has a few laughs but most certainly could have used a lot more. Galifianakis brings an innocent child like charm to the role of Link and Jackman does well as the adventurous Sir Lionel Frost. The former infuses the story with some comedy, but I only found myself chuckling here or there and not really laughing. Olyphant's Stenk is a decent antagonist hired by the underwhelming bigger villain; Stephen Fry's Lord Piggot-Dunceby. His motivations are very basic and screen time limited to the point that I kept forgetting he was in the film. A more involved villain could have really elevated this piece. Stenk fills that role for the most part, but he feels like a puppet for most of the film. (ha...)
Laika always brings something unique and creative to the table, I wish them nothing but more success and hopefully one of these projects I can really fall head over heels for, but for now I'll just settle for liking a lot.
Missing Link
The people we don't want here are leaving! Force them to stay!
The people we don't want here are leaving! Force them to stay!
I don't know if it was poor marketing or my own ignorance towards this film, but not only did I have zero interest in it, I had no idea it was an adventure movie. I was more under the impression it would be about our lead character transporting the "Missing Link" back to New York for proof of his existence and that would be it. The film pivots from that story into a wonderful and fully realized adventure film that crosses the globe, showcasing the true talents behind the stop motion animation at Laika.
There has always been something about a Laika film that felt missing to me. I should love all their films a lot more than I do. The amount of attention to detail, love and dedication they put into these movies is astounding. Just check out some of their behind the scenes stuff to see how they put these movies together. Their talent has grown over the years and Missing Link really showcases that, specifically with the environments we find ourselves in. We are globe trotting in this story and the imagery they present to us is truly beautiful stuff. Their previous film Kubo & The Two Strings had some striking imagery as well and the fluidity of the animation here is almost flawless.
Like their other efforts, the film has a few laughs but most certainly could have used a lot more. Galifianakis brings an innocent child like charm to the role of Link and Jackman does well as the adventurous Sir Lionel Frost. The former infuses the story with some comedy, but I only found myself chuckling here or there and not really laughing. Olyphant's Stenk is a decent antagonist hired by the underwhelming bigger villain; Stephen Fry's Lord Piggot-Dunceby. His motivations are very basic and screen time limited to the point that I kept forgetting he was in the film. A more involved villain could have really elevated this piece. Stenk fills that role for the most part, but he feels like a puppet for most of the film. (ha...)
Laika always brings something unique and creative to the table, I wish them nothing but more success and hopefully one of these projects I can really fall head over heels for, but for now I'll just settle for liking a lot.