Animation Greats!

Rating:
Summary: A Classic
Review: A very funny compilation of animations. Any animefan would like to have it in his archive. I already do.

Rating:
Summary: 4 stars for this excellent find!
Review: I don't know why this DVD is getting hard to find all of a sudden. My copy arrived today, but it looks like you can no longer order it.

First off, this DVD isn't really for American kids. With that in mind, please read the following review. Anyway, this is a more entertaining selection of National Film Board of Canada animated shorts than the Leonard Maltin Animation Favorites DVD. The Maltin selections were good too but too arty for the average viewer (I nearly fell asleep throughout "Pas de Deux" on that video).

In "Animation Greats!" we see a variety of crowd pleasers, beginning with the surprising "Special Delivery" and ending with "Blackfly", an animated adaptation of a Canadian folk song. True, there is still "The Lump" after that one, but "The Lump" is just so STUPID and boring. An overlong pixilation/collage short with unappealing characters.

The thing about this DVD is that unlike a lot of short film collections, the ratio of actual GOOD shorts is higher. The best ones are "Special Delivery", Richard Condie's "Getting started" (which is also on the Maltin DVD but the sound is better on this print), "The big snit" (also by Condie, an amazing display of Condie's unique humour), the rarely-seen, albeit excellent musical comedy "Get a Job" starring Bob Dog...and of course, "The Cat Came Back" which seems to be in nearly every single compilation of NFB shorts (It's on the Maltin DVD as well as on any number of past, present and future compilations).

The only shorts I had no love for were "The Lump" and "Juke Bar", a pre-"Joe's Apartment" cockroach-infested stop-motion escapade. It just wasn't funny enough. Overall I recommend getting this if you plan on watching the cartoons with friends, and the Leonard Maltin DVD if you want some beautiful visuals.

This would've got 5 stars from me if they replaced "The Lump" with McLaren's "Neighbours" and "Juke Bar" with "What on Earth".

Rating:
Summary: I've had this for years.
Review: I go back and view this one about once a year. I've often wished there were more, and now I see that there are. I am a long time fan of the Canadian Film Board. They pay for the most bizarre things. I love 'Black Fly', 'The Cat Came Back'. I love the guy who can't practice the piano, the dead mailman, the guy inside the egg. Not appropriate for children. Some are really creepy.

Rating:
Summary: Great Animation!
Review: Many of these animation shorts are among the best from the past 25 years. The video transfer is very good, but they all have an aspect ratio of 1.33:1. Worth getting just for The Cat Came Back.

Rating:
Summary: Great Animation!
Review: Many of these animation shorts are among the best from the past 25 years. The video transfer is very good, but they all have an aspect ratio of 1.33:1. Worth getting just for The Cat Came Back.

Rating:
Summary: Superb Compilation
Review: This is a wonderful collection.

I can't think of a finer compilation for someone interested in exploring the diverse uses of animation (defintely non-Disney, thank God) and adult always in theme and occassionally frontal nudity (a couple very brief seconds in "Special Delivery") and this is most assuredly not porn (soft or hard.) But what happens in some of these classics may be bit too harsh for children or outside their understanding. Parents or guardians should decide for themselves.

(1) I consider "Special Delivery" a masterpiece. A murder ( that is not at all murder) that is a very incisive take on hypocrisy and immorality (or is that amorality.) A sterling example of how a "cartoon" can do a lot more than get an hysterical laugh out of you. It's black-humor, will probaby give most anyone a knowing smile, chuckle or roar.

(2)"Getting Started" is one of Richard Condie's first films and another masterpiecce. Condie seems incapable of not making a masterpiece. His take on everyday delusions of grandeur and reality is a charmer with his wonderful off-center sense of humor. Beautifully animated and executed. Once you adjust to Condie's humor and style, you'll be coming back for more. This is original individualist creation at its best.

(3) "The Big Snit" is another Condie masterpiece of a much higher order. Here Condie makes a statement on the unthinkable that is hilarious until literally the end. This isn't one of the best animated films, it belongs in the company of the greatest films ever made. Condie is an absurdist in the W.C. Fields tradition. The couple in this at first seem unreal, but their bizarre eccentricities make them somehow, more realistic, believable and, even, lovable, while maintaining a giddy swipe at "normalcy.

(4)"Get A Job" is an exceedingly entertaining and probably successful effort using rock 'n roll to show how to do what the title and classic song demand. With plenty of bright, almost Looney-Toonish animation, it is just plain fun to watch and delievers it's message without bludgeoning. Would that all public service messages were this kewl and knowing. A classic.

(5) "The Cat Came Back" is a film I had heard about for years, and I was afraid it wouldn't live up to its praise. It more than lived up to the kudos it has justly received. It is about a guy, who makes the mistake of taking in a cat on his doorstep and comes to,uh, regret it. He keeps tossing out the cat. The cat returns and as only a cat can demolishes the guys house and life. Never has there been such sunny black humor. This is as funny as the best Loony Tunes and better than the average. Pure gold with an ending that makes it a gem. Masterpiece every moment of the way.

(6) "Juke Bar" combines live action with animation as cockroaches live it up in a newly delivered old-style juke box to a greasy spoon hot dog joint. The fancifully conceived and animated roaches turn the juke box into a bar. And then the partying begins. A colorful delight. But all parties must end and this one has a first-rate double surprise ending. Actually, not surprising if you've ever battled the little SOBs. Great character animation. A classic.

(7) "Blackfly" is an animation based on a song written by the Canadian who wrote and sings about his experiences as a lumberjack. Another classic. After 6 and 7, you may feel like scratching.

(8) "The Lump" is a cautionary fable on wanting everything to look perfect and how insisting on perfection that is cosmetic show can lead to disaster, i.e. seeing only the beauty and not the reality, which is spun to look beautiful. Another masterpiece to make one contemplate a very real blind-spot in all of us. More relevant than ever in today's unbelievably corrupt new regime of politicians

If you are a mature (in all ways) adult, this is a good one for taking a peek at "alternative" animation and its riches--artstic and content.