The wrong trousers

December 31st, 2007

Directed by Nick Park, written by Nick Park and Bob Baker.

Description (Rob Hartill): Plasticine animation of the loveable duo of Wallace and Gromit; inventors of all manner of useful devices. In this Oscar winning story, Gromit (a dog) finds himself being pushed out of his room and home by a new lodger who is actually a ruthless criminal (and a small penguin). The penguin is planning a robbery and needs to use Wallace and his mechanical remote controlled trousers to pull off the raid. However, Gromit is wise to the penguin and comes to the rescue. A must see for all ages.

IMDB link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0108598/

Posted in wallace and grommit, animals, claymation, funny | No Comments »

When the day breaks

November 6th, 2007

Directed by Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby, written by Wendy Tilby.

Description: This Oscar nominee will seem strange at first seeing as it’s about people, but represented as animals, in a daily human environment, performing typical human actions. The point of the animation, as far as I can tell is to illustrate the interconnections between the lives in a big city, lives that even though at first sight may seem totally uninfluenced by one another, are actually connected, and sometimes in quite meaningful ways. However, I have not been able to elucidate the mystery of why the characters in this animation are animals. Maybe you have an idea?

IMDB link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0200282/

Posted in urban life, minimalist, animals, conceptual, weird, classic animation | 1 Comment »

Yozhik v tumane (Hedgehog in the fog)

November 4th, 2007

Directed by Yuriy Norshteyn, written by Sergei Kozlov .

Description: This is yet another wonderful piece of russian animation, and it has that specific feel to it too. It is the story of a little hedgehog that embarks on a journey to see his friend, the bear, but gets lost in the fog and has to face his fear of the unknown, while enjoying the momentary company and assistance of a friendly dog, an strange owl and a helpful fish. This is a very cute and touching piece of animation that brings back memories of childhood experiences and quests for new and unknown things. Make sure to share this with the kids, they will surely enjoy it.

IMDB link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0073099/

Posted in touching, stop-motion, animals, fairytale | No Comments »

Creature comforts (1989)

October 21st, 2007

Written and directed by Nick Park.

Description: This cute claymation piece is a series of interviews with animals in a zoo, who speak about their conditions and surroundings and how some miss their natural habitat. It’s sort of serious and philosophical in a sense, but it’s all made funny by the way the animals are portrayed and their voices and manner of speech, as well as the fact that the animals opinions in the animation were actually real answers from residents of a new housing development. A very nice watch for the little ones and an enjoyable one for the bigger kids as well.

IMDB link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0099317/

Posted in animals, claymation, funny | No Comments »