Quasi at the Quackadero: time travel and psychological self-study in a fun fair
Sally Cruikshank, “Quasi at the Quackadero” (1975) Here’s a great little cartoon about a mismatched couple, Anita and Quasi, living in a science fantasy future and…
Fantasy
Jumping (dir. Osamu Tezuka): experimental short snapshot of the human condition through a child’s viewpoint
Osamu Tezuka, “Jumping” (1984) Boing! BOING! BOI-I-I-ING-G-G!!! Here comes “Jumping” by the legendary Osamu Tezuka, creator of Astroboy, who made a fair few experimental anime film…
True demon movie hiding in “Kakurenbo: Hide and Seek” but weak story and characters need more work to bring out the monsters
Shuhei Morita, “Kakurenbo: Hide and Seek” (2004) A very lavish short film that uses cel-shaded animation to render the CG imagery three-dimensional, “Kakurenbo” has a definite…
Cat Soup: surreal meditation on life and death, time, religion and the universe
Tatsuo Sato, “Cat Soup” / “Nekojiru-so” (2003) Here is a beautifully animated surreal short film which superficially looks like a children’s film but is clearly intended…
Russian Ark: visual travelogue through art and culture meditating on identity, history and time
Alexander Sokurov, “Russian Ark” (2002) At last a film was made with just one take and a well-executed and visually gorgeous film it is too. “Russian Ark” is…
The Cathedral: search for life’s purpose and oneness with God isn’t fulfilling in this little film
Tomasz Baginski, “The Cathedral” / “Katedra” (2002) It’s a short film – less than seven minutes – created entirely with 3D computer animation but Baginski’s “The Cathedral”…
Northern European Films, Russian and Soviet Films
The Sampo: good-looking film with a moral let down by watered-down story and wooden acting
Risto Orko and Alexander Ptushko, “The Sampo” (1959) A joint Finnish-Soviet fantasy production aimed at a family audience, “The Sampo” is a very loose retelling of…
Ashik Kerib: flat plot and hammy acting wreck ethnographic survey / travelogue of Azerbaijani culture
Sergei Parajanov and David Abashidze, “Ashik Kerib” (1988) The last completed film by Georgian / Armenian director Sergei Parajanov before his death in 1990, “Ashik Kerib”…
Viy: Gothic fairy-tale horror film of Cossacks and seminarians threatened by witches, vampires and demons
Georgiy Kropachyov and Konstantin Yershov, “Viy” (1967) A rare 1960s Soviet film in the horror genre, “Viy” is more Gothic fairy tale than a straight horror…
Chinese and Chinese-language Films
Princess Iron Fan: first Asian full-length animated movie is an overstretched “short cartoon”
Wan Guchan and Wan Laiming, “Princess Iron Fan” / “Tian Shan Gong Zhu” (1941) This retelling of a Chinese folk tale “Journey to the West” featuring…