I saw this on the Coming Soon list and I was so excited I had to talk about it!
This is one of my favorite cult films because it combines 2D animation and 80's rock and roll. The plot is sort of a deconstruction of the Disney formula, villain threatens damsel, hero sets out to save her, villain is defeated by the power of love. While each of the characters play their intended role, they are not what you would expect for such a story. The hero is a selfish jerk, the damsel is the voice of reason, the villain is charismatic as well as clever and even the goons are sympathetic. Even the setting is different, more of a post-apocalyptic dystopia instead of a magical enchanted kingdom.
This movie has flaws, most notably with the pacing which feels all wrong for this kind of story, but it's one of those movies that doesn't get made much anymore so if you like old school animation and 80's music you'll probably want to check this one out.
I saw this on the Coming Soon list and I was so excited I had to talk about it!
This is one of my favorite cult films because it combines 2D animation and 80's rock and roll. The plot is sort of a deconstruction of the Disney formula, villain threatens damsel, hero sets out to save her, villain is defeated by the power of love. While each of the characters play their intended role, they are not what you would expect for such a story. The hero is a selfish jerk, the damsel is the voice of reason, the villain is charismatic as well as clever and even the goons are sympathetic. Even the setting is different, more of a post-apocalyptic dystopia instead of a magical enchanted kingdom.
This movie has flaws, most notably with the pacing which feels all wrong for this kind of story, but it's one of those movies that doesn't get made much anymore so if you like old school animation and 80's music you'll probably want to check this one out.
I never heard of this movie until I saw the review done by Saberspark. And while the story itself doesn't do much for me, I do like the dark, gritty aesthetic. I don't know why but that kind of grungy urban environment always appealed to me in different kinds of media like Midgar in Final Fantasy VII, or Streets of Fire. Heck I even like just looking at the background of the remake of Total Recall over the original for that same reason.
Full review is up! This is a pretty good movie in my opinion, a prime example of the crazy, more adult oriented animation that was so rare back then and is taken for granted now (even abused in my opinion).
As someone who loves rock music, I'll have to check this movie out. I was completely unaware of it.
The main question I have is: for what reason are they animals? At least from the review there don't seem to be the kind of funny animal gags/slapstick that you'd expect from a Disney movie, but neither is it like Wind in the Willows where the different kinds of creatures are transposed into classes of British country folk. The main characters are, as often happens for works with nonhumans, the most human looking (particularly the attractive female lead, who lacks even the snout that many of the other characters possess). The story would be the same if everyone in the movie was given a slight redesign to look like a cartoony human.
I had somehow managed to never hear about this one, until now. It looks like it was pretty interesting contextually. Some of those faces really reminded me of the evil book in the Care Bears film, so that connection didn't surprise me. It's a shame this experiment didn't continue, as it did have promise.
Not representing myself as an expert on The Dark Knight or anything, but if I recall the Joker robbing the bank fucked up the activities of the mobsters Batman opposed at the beginning.
"I know what you’re thinking now. You’re thinking 'Oh my god, that’s treating other people with respect gone mad!'" When I am writing in this font, I am writing in my moderator voice.
Spam-desu
I like this movie and it sticks with me, but I can't say it is a very deep or amazing movie in any regard. I will say I think I like the music more than Chuck did, the finale really sticks with me I've been humming it for a day since watching Chuck's review. The art and mood are definitely good.
I find it interesting the way different people react to things like Omar being such an unrelenting jerk did not bother me, I was willing to just go along with sure underneath it all he's an okay guy or whatever. Of course I am sure it goes the other way where I don't feel anything for and even find annoying characters other people enjoy.
AquaReggie wrote: ↑Thu Apr 01, 2021 12:57 am
The main question I have is: for what reason are they animals? At least from the review there don't seem to be the kind of funny animal gags/slapstick that you'd expect from a Disney movie, but neither is it like Wind in the Willows where the different kinds of creatures are transposed into classes of British country folk. The main characters are, as often happens for works with nonhumans, the most human looking (particularly the attractive female lead, who lacks even the snout that many of the other characters possess). The story would be the same if everyone in the movie was given a slight redesign to look like a cartoony human.
As noted it was originally conceived of as a sort of expansion on a previous deal with the devil and singing movie they had done that also involved anthropomorphic animals (Chuck even showed a clip from that), of course the motivation for that one having animals is equally obscure. I would think all the examples from animation (the classic Warner Bros. Looney Toons, Mickey Mouse etc. plus the animated Robin Hood with Robin as a fox etc.) suggest that animators find something attractive about using that sort of hybrid human animal style and aesthetic. Whether it is easier for them to communicate emotion via facial expression, easier to come up with distinct character designs or just more fun for them to draw I could not say.
Yours Truly,
Allan Olley
"It is with philosophy as with religion : men marvel at the absurdity of other people's tenets, while exactly parallel absurdities remain in their own." John Stuart Mill
Rock and Rule was originally supposed to be a children's film.
However, according to local legend, gradually everyone involved got high as a kite on a variety of drugs and increasingly made it more adult. The final result being....Rock and Rule. A movie about a sorcerer Mick Jagger trying to destroy the world with the power of Satanic rock in a post-apocalypse ruled ruled by the Rats of Nimh.
So if this movie feels like it was made on drugs, it apparently was.
