Isle of Dogs
2018, Indian Paintbrush et al
Wes Anderson, who brought us the delightful Fantastic Mr. Fox, among others, creates a boldly risky, intensely stylish tale of the fictitious Japanese city of Megasaki, where dog-hating Mayor Kobayashi banishes all dogs to Trash Island, which is exactly what the name implies. Anderson is perhaps a bit more of a purist about stop-motion than Laika (Kubo and the Two Strings, etc.), who strive for a much more technically-polished style; there's a bit of roughness to Isle, which happens to be totally charming and endlessly imaginative. There's room in the world for both styles of animation, because it's the story that ultimately carries a film—and Isle has quite the story to tell. Oh, and a powerhouse voice cast (including Bryan Cranston, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum, Ed Norton, Scarlett Johansson, Harvey Keitel, F. Murray Abraham, Tilda Swinton and others) doesn't hurt, either. A modest box office success, Isle garnered numerous awards and was much lauded by critics.
DKS 2/22/22
GRUMPY OLD FART-O-METER® Rating:
