Believe it or not, when I was trying to get my children’s book manuscript published oh-so-many years ago, I kept running into a mindset that said that no one publishes “talking animal” stories anymore. They were—and perhaps still are—deemed passé, and regressive, and possibly even reactionary. There is perhaps no greater example of how astonishingly stupid that notion is than this movie, even with it being almost twenty years old as of this viewing. This seems like a simple story, but in fact it examines eternal truths, in a way that is accessible to all. The miracle of White’s work, which shines through in this adaptation, lies in using the form of a fable—a genre as old as stories themselves—to illustrate eternal truths about life and the world, both our human lives and our place in that world of other lives, including our animal cousins, and what this existence means for all of us, in all of its beauty, joy and sadness. This production captures that essence wonderfully, with a script that remains true to the original book, visual effects that are flawlessly executed, a tempered hand when it comes to the “updating” and “comic relief”—the jive talking characters and stunt casting are kept to a minimum—and an emotional tone that resonates without overstepping into something overwrought. I’m tempted to give this film Best of All status, but even without such accolades, this movie is must-see material. “Terrific” and “Radiant" hardly cover it.
No comments:
Post a Comment