Audio Reviews - The Illusionist - Audio Review

Tags:  movie review, audio, spill, spill.com, the illusionist, 2010, french, animated

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  March 26, 2011 at 11:36 AM, matenzo said ...

  I loved this movie but let's face it: It's just too French for most audiences, even European ones. Perhaps we've become too accustomed to the whole "feel-good" pixar routine. As delightful and fresh as it is animation-wise, the Illusionist is a major bummer story-wise.

   

  I can't help but wonder if the arc about the illusionist handing over his magic hat has something to to do with the animators worrying (or facing) that the prominent era of 2D western animation is over. I dunno, the whole illusionist vs "Beetles" thing felt kinda lika a 2D animation vs Pixar routine to me. Probably cause I'm a 3D artist myself.

   

  God them French know how to animate. This film was gorgeous. Every single frame was an illustration, and a stellar one for that matter. For me the animation is on par with the works of Holly monsters of animation such as Chuck Jones. It was simply flawless. 

• February 27, 2011 at 4:29 PM, said ...

  @Michael Ross

  ...what an asshole. Haha!

  
  
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  February 27, 2011 at 4:11 AM, Terastas said ...

  Okay, first and foremost, let me get this out of the way: I'm that asshole who hated Toy Story 3. It was dull and predictable, and the fact that the Oscars gave it a Best Picture nod (and in effect, an invitation to the people who made this and How To Train Your Dragon an invitation not to even bother showing up) is going to be a sore spot for me for life.

   

  But I am NOT the asshole that thought THIS movie was better than Toy Story 3. I am absolutely with Cyrus on this one. This was a good, artistic movie. It knows exactly what it wants to do, and it does it very well. . . To a fault. The message is negative, but they hammer that message down SO HARD that by the time it's reaching its climax, the audience is shouting "OH MY GAWD LET UP A LITTLE!!!"

   

  There are two movies that I could think to compare this to: Pom Poko, and Graveyard of the Fireflies. By comparison, I would put the Illusionist in between those two movies. It wasn't NEARLY as anviliciously depressing as Graveyard of the Fireflies, but at the same time, it made absolutely no secret of the direction it was going to take right from the get go, so there's still a tendency to watch it and think "why the hell am I torturing myself like this?" no hope for a future like the one Pom Poko so masterfully teased its audience with all throughout. Five minutes into it, you know how it's going to end.

   

  So I guess you could say that the big problem I had with The Illusionist was the same big problem I had with Toy Story 3 -- it was so ridiculously predictable that I almost got kicked out of the theater for yelling "See, told you!"

• February 23, 2011 at 12:47 AM, Eugenio Padilla said ...

  i always though it was more of a 5 point rating system,

  5-better than sex

  4-full price

  3-matinee

  2-rental

  1-some ol' bullshit

  and well 0-fuck you

  
  
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  February 18, 2011 at 3:57 PM, Jack Gattanella said ...

  Guess I got to be the film snob here and give a shout out to Jacques Tati, which is what the script for this movie is from and the movie basically has the same style as M. Hulot's Holiday, Mon Oncle, and his epic Playtime.

• February 17, 2011 at 9:57 PM, Mekklesack said ...

  "BETTER THAN TOY STORY 3!" /sits on paint brush. 

  I'm interested, I have to know what gets said at the end! Nice review guys.

  
  
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  February 17, 2011 at 9:01 PM, said ...

  I thought I had seen the trailer at one point and then nothing else.  Wow, I've got to see this now after this review.

• February 17, 2011 at 6:45 PM, said ...

  i love WATERSHIP DOWN!

   

  i DEFNITLY WANNA WATCH THIS MOVIE

   

  my rabbit is evil like that, but only cuz he's so spoiled

   

  ja ja ja

   

  :P

  
  
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  February 17, 2011 at 11:52 AM, ghostwriter said ...

  Looks like a beautiful film....it's coming to the Red River Theare in Concord NH....that's our Indi theatre so I'll check it out.

• February 17, 2011 at 1:48 AM, Star250 said ...

  Someone may have said this already but, like the triplets movie a lot of what they do is 3D cell shaded in such a way that blends into the 2D stuff (ex. the cyclist in "triplets" are 3D). 

   

  Oh and all vehicles/objects with no real character are 3D when done by these guys.

  
  
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  February 17, 2011 at 12:32 AM, C.H. Gorog said ...

  Cyrus, a 10-point rating system is pretty much saying "Here's my well articulated thoughts on the film oversimplified into a number." With Spill's system, it's more intrinsic to your gut reaction as in 'how much are you willing to shell out for this film?'

   

  Good review!

• February 17, 2011 at 12:20 AM, said ...

  I dug it. It would've been better as a short in my opinion.

  
  
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  February 16, 2011 at 11:00 PM, said ...

  I had the same reaction to this movie Co-Host did. I thought everyone was talking about the now five-year old period film starring Edward Norton.

• February 16, 2011 at 9:59 PM, Guitaro Man said ...

  And hopefully I don't sound like a snob when I say "because its traditionally animated". 2D is just such a rarity nowadays that I think it deserves some recognition kinda like Secret of Kells last year.

  
  
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  February 16, 2011 at 9:50 PM, Guitaro Man said ...

  Well, I guess I have a paintbrush up my ass lol Thanks, guys. The only reason I'd rather see this win over Toy Story 3 is because its traditionally animated and winning Best Animated film would give it more exposure.

• February 16, 2011 at 8:30 PM, Liam Maguren said ...

  I loved the hell out of this movie. Plus, at the film fest I went to, the theater was packed for it.

  
  
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  February 16, 2011 at 8:02 PM, said ...

  I agree with Leon. I think both 3D and 2D are great and enjoy them both.

• February 16, 2011 at 7:42 PM, jochem brak said ...

  Good review but i find it a bit strange that korey isnt in this review he is the animation expert.

  
  
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  February 16, 2011 at 7:25 PM, Leon said ...

  @Jake Z- "3D animation feels so sterile compared to 2D animation." You need to attach to that statement "...in my  opinion..."

  I'd watch it on those blanket statements if I were you. I've seen plenty of sterile 2D animation and plenty of Pixar movies that bought audiences to tears.  I'm a huge aficionado of 2D animation but I'm not a snob about it.

• February 16, 2011 at 6:42 PM, Haron Dick said ...

  I bet if Pixar had made this moive nothing less than a Full Price would have been given. Maybe Better than Sex. HA, HA.

  
  
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  February 16, 2011 at 6:41 PM, Benoit Grogan Avignon said ...

  @thespacemonkey that's all well and good but it's a french word and is pronounced KNEESH in the language. ALso, the first two examples there are KNEESH and the second is nitch. So i dunno, maybe say it as the french do because it's french? Can't see why not.

• February 16, 2011 at 5:55 PM, Maciek said ...

  jakeZ - Actually there is entire backstory why this movie was made in animation. Orginally this script was writen by the great comedy director and comedy actor Jacques Tati (sort of Charli Chaplin of France) However Tati die and never made this movie. For decades many movie directors wanted to film this movie as a tribiute to Tati. However since Tati was supose to play (and be) the the main character and his doughter didn't wanted anybody to play her father until Sylvain Chomet sugested to make this movie in animation.

  This movie is in fact full of homages to Tati's movie (this is way the entire movie is in master-shots, or the slapstic humor during the scene in the car-wash) and in-joke (most notalby the scene in cinema theatre)

  For Sylvain Chomet this movie is basically like "Ed Wood" to Tim Burton.

  
  
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  February 16, 2011 at 4:53 PM, Kevin Carollo said ...

  Might netflix later.  Thanks for sharing!

• February 16, 2011 at 4:27 PM, Dominic Longo said ...

  could one of you 3 please message me what the ending note says

  
  
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  February 16, 2011 at 4:10 PM, Witten said ...

  @ jakeZ

   

  too right, mate

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