The Animation Show
Rated: NOT RATED
Website: http://www.animationshow.com/
Release Date: 2005-06-17
Director: Mike Judge, Don Hertzfeldt
WorkNameSort: Animation Show, The
Our Rating: 2.50
Mike Judge and Don Hertzfeldt’s second annual roundup of accomplishments in the animated arts exhibits a weakness that’s typical of such outings: Its eager young contributors don’t have nearly enough ideas of a narrative nature to justify their tedious displays of technical virtuosity. The imbalance even dogs Hertzfeldt himself, who earned a rep for minimalist whimsy with shorts like “Billy’s Balloon”; his new “The Meaning of Life,” which closes the program, pushes its satirical view of a modern-day Babel far past the point of viability. The best clip here, a surrealistic tone poem titled “Pan With Us,” succeeds not just because its black-and-white images are compelling, but because animator David Russo knows when to leave well enough alone. Oh, and Bill Plympton takes a potentially charming scenario about a guy and a dog and turns it into further evidence that he thinks people getting maimed is the funniest thing ever. Thrillsville.
This article appears in Jun 15-21, 2005.