The Secret of Kells (dir. Tomm More and Nora Twomey, 2009). A delightfully imaginative film, The Secret of Kells is a fictionalized account of the legendary illuminated manuscript from the 9th Century that remains Ireland's greatest national treasure. With its inventive and creative use of animation, perspective, and color, More and Twomey have created a great animated film in the tradition of Miyazaki, Norshteyn, and Ocelot with an impressive visual scheme and well nuanced storytelling to complement it, though the conclusion is regretfully a little rushed. The characters, with the understandable exception of the viking invaders, are refreshingly complex and engaging. A-.
Kirikou and the Sorceress (dir. Michel Ocelot, 1998). Kirikou and the Sorceress, Michel Ocelot's feature film debut, is a brilliant animated film that manages to capture the narrative pacing and lyrical cadence of West African oral tradition, rendered with a sophisticated and captivating use of perspective, color, and character design. Ocelot fills the film with charming details, like the jerky, robotic movement of the sorceress' fetishes, and moments of endearing tenderness, including the scene between Kirikou and his grandfather. The film's moral center, which stresses individual responsibility to the group, intelligence, and forgiveness, is (instructional) icing on the (aesthetic) cake. A.
