Heavy Metal
3/4
Starring (voices): Percy Rodriguez, John Candy, Eugene Levy
"Heavy Metal," the cult animated film from Canada (of all places) is all 80's. From the garish visuals to the cheesy animation, it can't be mistaken as being from any other time than from when Reagan was President and Michael Alig and his friends painted the club scene red.
Based on science fiction and fantasy stories from "Heavy Metal" magazine, this film is an anthology of short animated stories that radiate with pulp energy. Nolan's "Dark Knight" has no place here. Think "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow." Granted, it's nowhere near as innocent as Kerry Conran's criminally underrated movie, but it has the same "gee-whiz" energy. A better analogy would be the "Spaceman Spiff" strips from Bill Waterson's "Calvin and Hobbes."
The stories vary in terms of plot and quality. Most are sci-fi and fantasy, although there is one futuristic film noir called "Harry Canyon" (which doesn't get the film off to a good start) and "B-17" a WWII horror story (which is good, but far too short). My favorites were "Den," where a nerdy kid gets transported to another world and transformed into a bronze Adonis (it's pure space opera) and "So Beautiful and So Dangerous," where a woman accidentally gets kidnapped by aliens (two of whom are voiced by John Candy and Harold Ramis).
The problem with an anthology format is that there's so little time for real development (this was a problem for "New Year's Eve" as well). Five or ten minutes isn't enough time to get an audience involved in a story.
Another criticism I have with the film is the treatment of women. I have nothing against sex or nudity on film (and there's a lot of the latter), but it's different here. They are constantly sexualized in a way that even I found distasteful, and they're portrayed as either violent vixens or whimpering idiots. Nice message.
"Heavy Metal" was not very popular during its initial release, but, like "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," it became a cult hit during midnight screenings. That doesn't surprise me. This isn't mainstream entertainment. It's meant for a select few, but those who enjoy this sort of thing will find a lot to appreciate here.
Starring (voices): Percy Rodriguez, John Candy, Eugene Levy
"Heavy Metal," the cult animated film from Canada (of all places) is all 80's. From the garish visuals to the cheesy animation, it can't be mistaken as being from any other time than from when Reagan was President and Michael Alig and his friends painted the club scene red.
Based on science fiction and fantasy stories from "Heavy Metal" magazine, this film is an anthology of short animated stories that radiate with pulp energy. Nolan's "Dark Knight" has no place here. Think "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow." Granted, it's nowhere near as innocent as Kerry Conran's criminally underrated movie, but it has the same "gee-whiz" energy. A better analogy would be the "Spaceman Spiff" strips from Bill Waterson's "Calvin and Hobbes."
The stories vary in terms of plot and quality. Most are sci-fi and fantasy, although there is one futuristic film noir called "Harry Canyon" (which doesn't get the film off to a good start) and "B-17" a WWII horror story (which is good, but far too short). My favorites were "Den," where a nerdy kid gets transported to another world and transformed into a bronze Adonis (it's pure space opera) and "So Beautiful and So Dangerous," where a woman accidentally gets kidnapped by aliens (two of whom are voiced by John Candy and Harold Ramis).
The problem with an anthology format is that there's so little time for real development (this was a problem for "New Year's Eve" as well). Five or ten minutes isn't enough time to get an audience involved in a story.
Another criticism I have with the film is the treatment of women. I have nothing against sex or nudity on film (and there's a lot of the latter), but it's different here. They are constantly sexualized in a way that even I found distasteful, and they're portrayed as either violent vixens or whimpering idiots. Nice message.
"Heavy Metal" was not very popular during its initial release, but, like "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," it became a cult hit during midnight screenings. That doesn't surprise me. This isn't mainstream entertainment. It's meant for a select few, but those who enjoy this sort of thing will find a lot to appreciate here.
Comments
Post a Comment