Distributed Mind

I think the last few years many of the animated films have been showing up "real" films. While their message or messages may often be simpler, I think in every other way they have shown themselves to be worthy competitors. All of the ones I would cite as competitors for top spots have been distirbuted, ironically, by one of my corporate nemeses, Disney, though they were not all produced by Disney. The ones I am thinking of are all of the Pixar films, especially Monsters, Inc. and the Toy Story films, Lilo & Stitch, and the Disney imported Hayao Miyazaki film Spirited Away. None of these are traditional Disney fare, which, it should be obvious, I am inclined to think works immensely to their advantage.

Spirited Away is not an American film, and it shows. There are many "odd" things in it, and I think many Americans would have a hard time "getting it," especially younger children. The film's great length (for a children's film) of over two hours does not help. But, for the patient, this is a rewarding film. It is beautiful visually and the characters are lovable, if not always completely believeable. The main character, Chihiro, especially, occasionally seems to act far beyond what it seems she should be capable of; she does come off as an epic hero though, so to some extent this is forgivable, in so far as her role in the film perhaps is not supposed to be believable. She is a very sympathetic character; very likable. (In the American version, her part is voiced by Daveigh Chase, who also did the voice of Lilo in Lilo & Stitch.)Spirited Away also deviates from Disney clone movies in that the main character does not through ambition and pride succeed against the odds, but rather is called upon to save her parents and herself from a situation she did not invite. This film is less didactic than many animated films; but not so much in that it does not make certain points (the river spirit who has become clogged with garbage, for example) but that a single overriding point seems more elusive. I could point to many themes in the film (e.g. people are not always what they seem, like Haku, here, or greed is dangerous, which is repeated in several motifs), but I think the one thing I took away the most was Chihiro's willingness to let others be themselves; she always looked for the good in others, and this is ultimately led to her success. Whether you buy that approach is another story, but I thought it was well protrayed. (Princess Mononoke is another excellent film by the same director; more confusing and for more mature audiences, it is nonetheless worthwhile, and probably superior in beauty.)

The excellent Lilo & Stitch is the only true Disney film on this list, but it deviates so much from the usual Disney cliches that it manages to stand well above its peers, and rate on my scale. Of all these films mentioned here, it is my personal favorite. In Lilo & Stitch we have not one, but several outcasts the most important of whom are of course Stitch/Experiment 626 and Lilo. The outcase forumla is common enough for Disney; where this film deviates is in its emphasis on "ohana:" "no one gets left behind." It goes the furthest of any Disney film in showing that personal ambition is not enough, principles and community are the true key to success; on that topic it is a beautiful statement. I doubt most of its younger viewers will pick up entirely on this message, but it has to be better than them listening to Ariel or Belle's arrogant, ambitious arias. Besides its uniquely (for a Disney production, anyway) principled stance, Lilo & Stitch is another beautiful film. The animation, somewhat stylized and colorful, is attractive. The script features some clever writing, with some humorous references (including Tarantula - one of my favorite monster movies - for the obdervant), lovable characters, and the right mix of pathos and humor (and a priceless line about a chainsaw). I cried when I first saw it - don't laugh; Stitch's plight is sad. The ending is also different than most; compare, for example to Monsters, Inc. for a different approach. Lilo & Stitch goes for the absurd, and carries the right amount of impact with that. This is such a wonderful film, I think everyone should see it, though it seems most people don't want to take this advice; see it, you won't regret it.

I know almost everyone has seen the Pixar films, but I will summarize briefly, nonetheless: The Pixar films are perhaps not as deep as Spirited Away, but they excel in several other areas. They are, of course, again beautiful visually. The characters are not quite as deep, but the writing is mostly top rate, and the films are very funny. Toy Story 2 (full of "in" movie references) is probably the funniest; Toy Story is probably the best made and most even of the films. A Bug's Life is by far the weakest, which is saying a lot given how good of a film it is; but I think it tries too hard and does not go deep enough. The smug demise of its villain is indicative of its low aim textually (which is opposite in many ways the much more sensitive approach of Toy Story). Monsters, Inc. is excellent in writing and design and very funny, though again it gives into some cliches; the ending fights between absurdist humor and sentimentality, but it still manges to rise above most animated films in this area (I would say it manages to meet many live action films in this area - unless you are the anti-sentimentalist type, in which case you surely will not be satisfied). Finding Nemo, which I have finally watched today, is also very good; not as funny or as deep as some of their other films, it is still very good (the character of Dory especially was worth it), and the animation was incredible. These films in some way all break the Disney conventions; there is no lone-wolf heroine fighting society in an attempt to secure her ambitions. All feature outcasts in some manner, but they all place much more emphasis on community than the usual Disney fare.

What all of these films have in common is that they are every bit as entertaining (or more, in most cases) as all the live action movies released in the last few years. While they may not be able to discuss some "adult themes" (which do need to be addressed as well), they do manage to raise some important issues as well, and they are films that adults and children can both see, and get somethign out of, and maybe discuss. If films are a dialogue, these are ones open to all participants, and I think we need that sometimes, just as much as we need the films that will go after issues only adults can (or should) understand. Finally, they are all beautiful cinema. Pixar has opened some doors, but I wish more people would give animated films a chance. Just as importantly, I hope the film studios will continue to give us animated films of such quality, and not drag us back to the days of The Little Mermaid.