Today I continued on my annual web series looking at the animated Oscars and asking- Did the right film win?
In 2017 it is a tricky question because they are all good films. 4 of the films I love and made my top 16 of the year and 1 My Life as a Zucchini I admire greatly. This makes determining what is the correct winner difficult because they all have different strengths.
Kubo and the 2 Strings- This was a stunning film from Liaka about a boy who goes on a journey to find relic from his father’s mysterious past. The stop motion is incredible and I loved Kubo as a character. When he would smile it would make me smile. They should have ended it just a hair sooner and it would have been even better but I still really loved it.
My Life as a Zucchini- An import from Switzerland, this stop motion film I have mixed feelings on. It is impeccably made but I found the cruelty to children hard to stomach. It’s a bold film and I respect that but it was tough to watch and with such cute character designs I found that tough to absorb.
Moana- A quest movie if I’ve ever seen one. Moana will go down as one of the great Disney princesses. She is bold but still cares for her people, which is what inspires her to sail. I love her. I love the songs. I love the story
Zootopia- Amazing world building, great characters, and a hilarious script make this movie work so well. I loved Judy and Nick as characters and love that we have a new modern-day fable for kids
Red Turtle- Stunning animated film with no dialogue about a man on a deserted island. The story is less important than the amazing visuals and music but it still works well. The visual and musical experience blew me away.
So did the right film win? Well, if you are judging just based on my personal preference I would say no. Moana is my favorite of the 5. Red Turtle is objectively the best but Zootopia is still a very worthy winner, so I am glad for it. What a great year for animation 2016 turned out to be!
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Really? The Red Turtle? Granted, it is an Oscar bait movie, but the story is so trite, I actually would have kicked it out from the nomination pool and added something like No Name instead.
I think the right movie won. Zootopia excelled in every single aspect.
I think you mean Your Name and I would certainly take out Zucchini and put Your Name in (Your Name was my favorite movie of 2016). But yes I thought Red Turtle excelled on every level. It was beautiful, lush, moving and I didn’t find the story trite. It was simple but I found it powerful. I certainly disagree it is Oscar bait. It’s just a epic movie especially the way it used music and the animation. Moana is my favorite but I think Red Turtle is objectively the best of the 5.
I loved both Moana and Zootopia, but I think Zootopia was the right film to win. To me it felt more original and unique, and I really loved the message that it sends (especially nowadays I think that it’s super important).
I can see that. It is a wonderful original movie and the message is very important