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Catch-Up Capsule Reviews for Christmas Day 2007 Releases:
Who would’ve guessed, in months prior, that the very CGI creature
that would arrive on the 2007 Holiday Film Scene and save families from
the dreadful antics of a certain trio of singing chipmunks would be none
other than the Loch Ness Monster? Sure, The Water Horse: Legend of
the Deep’s version of the mythical figure is a cute
high-pitched-yelper named Crusoe, but the discovery is unexpected
nonetheless. In Crusoe and pal Angus MacMurrow (Alex Etel), a young
Scottish lad who finds the monster’s egg washed ashore and hatches it in
secret, director Jay Russell and writer Robert Nelson Jacobs find a
magical tale sure to appeal to every demographic. The movie is told in a
very old-fashioned manner, but makes wonderful use of technology,
turning Crusoe into one of the most compassionate works of animation
you’ll ever witness. In large part, this is because the story that
surrounds him is so well-defined, beautifully set amidst the
historical-context of World War II. (Troops are stationed at Angus’
home, at the allowance of his Royal Navy sailor of a father who is
meanwhile busy hoarding of U-Boats himself, making it even harder for
the boy to conceal his otherworldly new friend.) But a lot of The
Water Horse’s success is realized solely in the simple pleasures
endowed upon the material by its convictive cast, which is filled with
actors who believe in its magic. Leading the pact, Alex Etel shines even
more than he did in Danny Boyle’s Millions, crafting a
sympathetic gentleness to Angus that is heartwarming. Supporting him are
Ben Chaplin, Brian Cox, Emily Watson, and (an especially devious) David
Morrissey, all turning in fine work of their own. The Water Horse
may not be able to match the aforementioned Alvin at the Chipmunks
in terms of box office take, but it sure deserves to. This is an
elegant, exhilarating, and lovable tale for all ages.
Persepolis was
almost certainly picked up by distributor Sony Pictures Classics based
on their success in American markets with 2003’s The Triplets of
Belleville, another French animated feature. But whereas that
Sylvain Chomet picture was a constant visual and auditory wonder, this
one is often destroyed by its bland delivery. Sure, there’s a lot of
energy to be found in Persepolis, but the film feels senseless
once one realizes that there isn’t much to it. Aesthetically, it is
interesting for all of fifteen minutes, but only because it dares to use
traditional 2-D animation and a primarily black-and-white color palette.
The same thing can be said of the narrative, which only carries its
characters so far. The film tells an intimate version of contemporary
Iranian history, with young protagonist Marjane Satrapi (named after and
based off of one of the film’s two writer/directors) experiencing the
after-effects of the fall of the Shah, the brutality of the Iran/Iraq
War, and eventually her own identity-crisis when she is sent by her
family to study in Austria. As a character, Marjane isn’t especially
interesting, despite her livid perkiness. Furthermore: as a
history-lesson, Persepolis will only enlighten those completely
unfamiliar with Iranian Conflicts of the past fifty years. Sure, the
film has its undeniable charms: its constant tonal jubilance, as
provoked by Marjane’s youthfulness, is particularly striking when
juxtaposed against the bleak history that the story chronicles. On the
whole, however, there isn’t anything extraordinary about Persepolis.
It is often intriguing—sometimes even exciting—but never remarkable.
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