I don't have huge attachment to Jack Stauber, whose bizarre retro and strange animations and music don't resonate especially strongly with me. But an overtly horror-themed film with a reputation for a strong emotional impact? I wanted to see.
The short is an uncanny and grotesque blend of clay stop-motion, live-action, and 3D and 2D animation, done with a humble and disconcerting messy style that feels like a lost scary TV show where thirties cartoons mixed with Tim Burton and Stephen Gammell. The story begins with a young girl, Opal, in a weird but seemingly cheery home, being told to disregard the creepy house across the street whose attic window calls to her. Opal sneaks out to investigate, and meets with stylized but ultimately mundane horrors in the form of adults with deep dysfunctions.
In terms of storytelling, the short is an abbreviated musical, with characters getting brief and memorable musical numbers, and has similarities to fairy tales like Coraline or even Alice in Wonderland and The Phantom Tollbooth in its metaphorical caricatures of flawed adult figures. Thematically, the short is crushing and tragic, as we see the adults Opal meets as differing portraits of abusive, neglectful narcissism, all living off the back of a child in their family who cannot really help them. The second character, a horribly insecure narcissist father surrounded by a ring of circular mirrors on spindles mounted to his head, is the most compelling to me, given his metaphorical and stylized character design with mirrors obscuring and fragmenting his face. It doesn't hurt that he has an excellent song with magnetic visual direction. I almost wish the other two monsters had more stylization in this way, but they're effective and memorable nonetheless. The characters feel richly sketched and specific and authentic—the roles of the ghoulish mother and father in particular are counter to how abusive mothers and fathers are commonly gender-stereotyped, which helps them feel much more real. There is no happy ending to the things Opal discovers in the neighboring house, just an unpeeling of how damaged a childhood can truly be.
Tonally, I couldn't think of changing a thing. The grimy, creepy side is just right, but the moments of goofy weirdness and more energetic flair fit their way in as well. It's a compelling allegory and animation that never feels undermined by its lighter elements.
The only thing I'd critique is that I'm greedy for the musical numbers and a longer short would have done them more justice by increasing their runtime. They're such good songs that more of each could have improved the project.
This short film is a sad but artful and poignant exploration of abuse that could be going unaddressed anywhere. It's really well done.
WesternAnimation The surreal explores *too real*.
I don't have huge attachment to Jack Stauber, whose bizarre retro and strange animations and music don't resonate especially strongly with me. But an overtly horror-themed film with a reputation for a strong emotional impact? I wanted to see.
The short is an uncanny and grotesque blend of clay stop-motion, live-action, and 3D and 2D animation, done with a humble and disconcerting messy style that feels like a lost scary TV show where thirties cartoons mixed with Tim Burton and Stephen Gammell. The story begins with a young girl, Opal, in a weird but seemingly cheery home, being told to disregard the creepy house across the street whose attic window calls to her. Opal sneaks out to investigate, and meets with stylized but ultimately mundane horrors in the form of adults with deep dysfunctions.
In terms of storytelling, the short is an abbreviated musical, with characters getting brief and memorable musical numbers, and has similarities to fairy tales like Coraline or even Alice in Wonderland and The Phantom Tollbooth in its metaphorical caricatures of flawed adult figures. Thematically, the short is crushing and tragic, as we see the adults Opal meets as differing portraits of abusive, neglectful narcissism, all living off the back of a child in their family who cannot really help them. The second character, a horribly insecure narcissist father surrounded by a ring of circular mirrors on spindles mounted to his head, is the most compelling to me, given his metaphorical and stylized character design with mirrors obscuring and fragmenting his face. It doesn't hurt that he has an excellent song with magnetic visual direction. I almost wish the other two monsters had more stylization in this way, but they're effective and memorable nonetheless. The characters feel richly sketched and specific and authentic—the roles of the ghoulish mother and father in particular are counter to how abusive mothers and fathers are commonly gender-stereotyped, which helps them feel much more real. There is no happy ending to the things Opal discovers in the neighboring house, just an unpeeling of how damaged a childhood can truly be.
Tonally, I couldn't think of changing a thing. The grimy, creepy side is just right, but the moments of goofy weirdness and more energetic flair fit their way in as well. It's a compelling allegory and animation that never feels undermined by its lighter elements.
The only thing I'd critique is that I'm greedy for the musical numbers and a longer short would have done them more justice by increasing their runtime. They're such good songs that more of each could have improved the project.
This short film is a sad but artful and poignant exploration of abuse that could be going unaddressed anywhere. It's really well done.