The eccentric stop-motion film A Town Called Panic was screening for a week at the Landmark Theatre in Cambridge, and thank goodness I got to see it in time because it is so good. Belgian writers/directors Stéphane Aubier and Vincent Patar adapt their television series into a full-length feature starring bickering housemates Horse, Cowboy, and Indian and featuring a wide variety of shenanigans. The childish Cowboy and Indian decide to build Horse a brick barbecue for his birthday, but after accidentally ordering 50 million bricks instead of just 50, they launch a spectacular and hilarious chain of events involving sea creatures, catapulted farm animals, music lessons, burning lava, mad scientist overlords, and a giant robotic penguin.
This movie is pretty much amazing in every aspect. The animation is incredibly playful and dynamic, and the sets look like they jumped out of a Dr Seuss illustration. The characters, modeled in clay to resemble plastic action figures, move around with jerky movements and detailed smaller motions, propelling the film forward with an insane energy. No matter what is happening on screen, it is extremely fun to watch, as well as an impressive technical achievement. Also, the music is rad- there are some really fun rock songs towards the end.
It's immensely funny, and chock-full of surrealistic imagery and wacky surprises. Many of the voices are high-pitched to match the rapid, anxious dialogue. The story is pretty crazy, but somehow it all makes sense within the parameters of this imaginary world that's been created. It totally fits that when a house is crushed by a mountain of bricks, it just flips upside down and hangs underwater, or that falling down a deep crevice would lead you to the earth's molten core. Once you're in the swing of things, you can just sit back and allow the insanity, cartoon violence, and non sequiturs to unfold across this unplanned epic journey. While the script is a little out there, it's quite smart and well-thought-out, with various cute details and references that create a good balance between the physical comedy and dialogue.
A Town Called Panic is an amazing movie, but its US release is extremely limited. It's playing short engagements around the country so definitely look and see if it'll be near you any time soon! I wish this would win Best Animated Feature or something.
4.5/5
PS There are a lot of cute shorts on youtube, presumably from the original television show.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Panique au Village (A Town Called Panic) (2009)
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I'm very 50/50 on stop-motion. When it works I love it, but I sometimes feel it can hold back a film. I may have to check this out though :).
ReplyDeleteYou should give it a shot, it's quite funny and does some great things with the animation. Then again, I absolutely adore stop-motion so it's hard for me to tell if it would annoy someone who's not 100% into it. But I do think this movie's hilarious script and general oddness would be likable in any medium.
ReplyDeleteJust saw this last week (it's on Netflix streaming - yay!) and loved it. Watched as many of the original eps on YouTube as I could (in French only; I don't want to watch them in English). I need to buy a boxed set or something - I can't get enough!
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