16. INCREMENTAL BREAKDOWN: Cease-motion movies are onerous to make. Admire that mania at this time.
Alice
Not all movie administrators love stop-motion animation, however the ones who do, like it intensely. You will discover the painstaking methodology snuck into loads of movies—the demon canine in Ghostbusters (1984), the Jaguar Shark in The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004).
Full options, like Czech movie director Jan Švankmajer’s Alice (1988), are extra uncommon, and even this cornerstone instance of stop-motion fantasy and horror combines the actions of taxidermied animals and haunted dolls with the live-action curiosity—and unsettling lip close-ups—of younger little one actor Kristýna Kohoutová.
Everybody looking for a well-rounded information of cinema ought to see Alice no less than as soon as, and people curious about animation will profit from a number of viewings. Like with comics or animated movies, the purpose of utilizing cease movement is to point out what cannot be conveyed via conventional theatrics.
Švankmajer was fired up by the concept that earlier diversifications of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland hadn’t understood the dream-like high quality of Lewis Carrol’s story. So his first characteristic unfolds with slippery, creepy logic and visible interpretations which are each non-representational and very right-on—the movie’s method to the Caterpillar is especially value advantage.
This may be a wonderful movie to re-score earlier than a dwell viewers or have on within the background at events, in bars, or wherever that may profit from its low-context, ultra-weird visuals.
The Stranger is taking part in Scarecrow Video’s Psychotronic Problem all month lengthy! Each October, Scarecrow places collectively a listing of cinematic themes and invitations people to observe alongside and watch a horror, sci-fi, or fantasy flick that meets the factors. This 12 months, Stranger staffers are becoming a member of the enjoyable and we’re sharing our each day suggestions right here on Slog! Learn extra about Scarecrow’s 2024 problem—and get the watch listing—right here. And you’ll observe our each day suggestions right here! 💀
