The Falcon Film Files

The Oscars are coming up, and I'm happy to see that Toy Story 3 is in the running for Best Picture. I'm not saying that it's the best choice, but I'm glad to see it up there. Many people think it shouldn't be there because they believe all animated films are just for kids which is definitely not the case. I'm not going to go into explaining the sad parts of Wall-E or the end of Toy Story, but instead give you some examples of unknown animated movies I've recently watched myself.

The first two I viewed were Watership Down and Plague Dogs. I enjoyed Plague Dogs more than Watership Down, but both were entertaining, even though very depressing at times. For older films, the animation is superb. It takes a lot of hard work to put in so much detail in making an animated animal look real that other companies don't want to put the time and money into it. So, they make the cartoony versions you see in films such as Madagascar. If you're going to check these out, let me give you a warning. Even though these movies were meant for children...that is not the case. There are many gory scenes in Watership Down which I kind of like because it takes away the whole cutesy title of rabbits and shows that like all other animals, they shed blood to survive and protect their territories. Plague Dogs is much the same.

Here's an amv someone made with most of the disturbing scenes of Watership Down to a Marilyn Manson song (why would you do that bro)

The next and last film I have to offer to you is an extremely eerie and depressing one: When the Wind Blows. This film here is about an old senile couple living in the time of a nuclear war. The husband, James, begins building a shelter in his home, following instructions from a handbook while Hilda complains about the house being untidy. It's entertaining to see how funny the couple is and just how naive they are. Still, when the second half of the movie comes...it's just depressing and sad to hear them hopefully babble about their situation. They believe that, "everything will be alright, just like after World War II." Still, they are nowhere near prepared or educated enough to survive and the audience helplessly watched them die of radiation sickness.

James promises that Emergency Services will come by with food. ''Will it be like Meals on Wheels, dear?'' asks Hilda. In time they both develop unsightly blotches on their legs and arms, which, James reassures her, ''are a common complaint among the middle-aged.'' Hilda's gums begin to bleed. Says James, ''I'll pop down to the chemist when the crisis pales into insignificance.''

I think the best thing about the movie is the voices. The voice actors do an excellent job of making these cartoony and blotchy charcters feel so real. The whole thing is on YouTube if you want to give it a try. The ending is pretty heartbreaking (I cried like a baby) but it has an excellent soundtrack (Bowie and Roger Waters!)

So, I hope this gave you a new perspective on animated flicks. If you're looking for more, i'm your girl.

"I reject that whole point of view - that animation is a children's medium. The way people talk about it is like 'hey, it's a good thing I have kids, because now I get to see this.' What!? You can just go and see it yourself. There's no other art form that is so narrowly defined. I can't wait for this mindset to die. My cartoons were never made for children. Nor were they made for adults. They were made for me."