Review: Waltz with Oscar
A brilliant and visually stunning new movie strengthens the case for animations as serious best picture contenders at the next Academy Awards.
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"The state of international animation today"? Does it matter? What's this obsession with taking the pulse of every art form every five minutes? Who cares? People either do art or they don't. It's expression not exercise. The fact that there IS so much animation right now says to me NOT "wow, animation is thriving as an art form - isn't that fabulous?" It says WE, as a world, are increasingly unable to deal with reality. We prefer reality graphics to graphic reality.
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Guttersnipe - Just because a film is animated does not necessarily mean that the film is unrealistic. 'Waltz With Bashir' appears to be a good example of that - it is the artist's chosen art form, as he believes it gives him the best means of telling the story. Imagine attempting a live action version of 'Wall:E'!
I would also argue that both films deal starkly with reality. We have, I believe, been collectively desensitized by constant news footage of death and war that in order for films dealing with these issues to resonate (after ‘Lions For Lambs’, ‘Rendition’, ‘In The Valley of Elah’, ‘Battle For Haditha’, ‘Stop-Loss’, etc. all received muted responses) they need to do something different and offer a fresher, more original perspective that captivates an audiences attention.
Incidentally, after ‘Lust, Caution’ and ‘The Diving Bell and the Butterfly’ were ruled out of Oscar contention last year, will the change in the Academy’s rules permit ‘Waltz With Bashir’ to be nominated?
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I think it is also a reflection that with so much in "real films" being digital they become less real and so less fascinating.
We used to be amazed by the ingenuity required to do the impossible. Now with a computer anyone can do anything.
What we are now appreciating is the ability to use "unreal formats" to give us a deeper insight into the human mind.
Cubism anyone?
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WillOrpin and Takethree - I take on board both of your comments and am swayed.
I guess if you ask the question, which is more shocking - a dead body or a picture of a dead body? the answer would have to be - it depends on the artist
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Not only are rotoscoped movies not unrealistic, they seem to contain to me a weird hyper-realism, by capturing and animating the little tics, obscurities and moments of the real world they present them in a new way that traditional animation cannot do. It is also, as Richard Linklater demonstrated with "Waking Life", a way to make a great-looking movie for very little money. You just need time, patience, imagination and Apple Macs.
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GAAAAAHHH!!!
Animation isn't a GENRE, it's a FORMAT.
Why am I commenting on something this old?
Saw WWB earlier in Coventry, damn good film.
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