I will confess right at the beginning that I love animation, and always have. When I was a child, there were only two or three channels – yes, I am of that bygone era. And the BBC and ITV had a slot for kids programmes from about 4pm up to the early evening news. Some of those programmes are seared into my memory, and many that I remember were cartoons: Top Cat, The Flintstones, Wacky Races, Scooby Doo.
At the same time, though, animation in the cinema was going through a poor patch. Some of Disney’s efforts in the late sixties and early seventies were their low point. Watch The Sword in the Stone, or Robin Hood now – endearing as they are – and they seem cheap, tacky and oddly dated. The studio had, I think, tried too hard to make them ‘hip’. They scream ‘SEVENTIES’ at you, particularly musically. Other film makers weren’t even bothering. There were a few individuals making one-off, or low budget films, but it seemed animation had had its day, at least in the Western sphere of film-making. Animation was still going strong in Japan, for example, but that’s for another post.
However, that all changed in the 1990s with the arrival of two companies – Pixar and Dreamworks. I’m not going to relate the history of their birth, but they have rejuvenated the genre almost beyond recognition. (And, of course, with its relationship to Pixar, Disney has also turned its own animation fortunes around.) Animated films from these two companies in particular have regularly topped the high grossing lists year after year, and some of their franchises have become much-loved favourites. Think of Toy Story, Kung Fu Panda, Shrek, Cars, Madagascar.
But some people now ask what the point of animation is. What’s it for? Well originally, it allowed filmmakers to do things they couldn’t do with live action films. In the days when special effects were basic, to say the least, it gave creative minds ways to share their imagination with others. It was also relatively quick and cheap. Animation has been around since the earliest days of ‘moving pictures’. Its always been there. But now?
After all, CGI can do anything, make anything appear real, so why animate? Well, apart from the perhaps unsaid point that CGI is just another form of animation, I think an animated film is perhaps more honest than CGI. I have no quarrel with CGI, although some films do have a tendency to use it instead of actually having a plot. But if a film is wholly animated, then you quickly forget about the process, and concentrate on the story. And what stories.
I would argue that many of the finest animated films would never have worked as live action films, CGI or not. WALL-E, Ratatouille, Up!, Despicable Me, Kung Fu Panda, most of the Ghibli catalogue. All of these could, theoretically, have been made in live action. But why? They are some of the best films made in recent years; they’re fine just as they are. As a test case, you could perhaps look at a classic piece of animation that was recently made into a live-action film – Ghost in the Shell. The original anime version is brilliant; the recent film is okay, but what was the point? It looked good, but added nothing. (Although I do hope that many who hadn’t seen the original were prompted to do so after seeing the remake.)
One other thing needs to be addressed; the condescension that is sometimes thrown at animation. That its ‘second class’, that its ‘only for kids’. This generally from people who cannot accept that its just another way of telling a story. (Yes, as the title of this post implies, my mother was one of them.) They will always associate the genre with children (although if they ever watched some of the animation aimed squarely at adults, they might get a bit of a shock!).
I struggle to understand why this attitude persists. Certainly, if you watch any of the films I’ve previously mentioned, you will find plenty to keep kids of most ages entertained. But nearly all of them have layer upon layer of visual and linguistic humour and homage which few children will understand. Indeed, you need to watch some of these films several times to pick it all up. The other thing that the more recent animated franchises have added is emotion. Traditionally, animation entertained; it was rare that it touched the emotions – the death of Bambi’s mother being one of the rare exceptions. But I defy anyone to watch the first few minutes of Up! without being moved.
But the doubters can’t see this. My guess is they cannot suspend disbelief to allow themselves to enter the world created in the film. I have no problem immersing myself in a world where a panda is the supreme kung fu warrior, where a rat runs a restaurant, or where you really can train your dragon. Clearly I’m not alone; these films would not have had the success they have if children were the only audience. I’m happy to watch animated films without the cover of an accompanying child. As should everyone who likes good story-telling and good films. Animation is for everyone, so go and immerse yourself in a fantasy world for an hour or two. You may well find inner peace …
