My Life as a Zucchini
3/4
Starring (voices): Erick Abbate, Ness Krell, Nick Offerman, Romy Beckman
Rated PG-13 for Thematic Elements and Suggestive Material
"My Life as a Zucchini" is a slight but charming stop-motion animation film from France. It has a lot of heart and love for its characters, but a lack of narrative drive and a far too short running time keep it from being something special.
Icare, or Zucchini, as he prefers to be called, has a sad life. His father has long since been out of the picture and his mother spends all of her time drinking beer and throwing empty cans at the TV. When an attempt to avoid a spanking ends up with his mother dying, Zucchini is sent to live in an orphanage. There, he discovers the true meaning of friends and family.
This movie isn't strong on plot. Not that there's much time for one, considering that the film is barely over an hour long. Apart from that, it lacks focus. It wants to give everyone their due, but with seven kids at the orphanage, plus a few other characters, including a cop voiced by Nick Offerman who grows to care about Zucchini, makes it a little too much. Stretch it out to 85 or 90 minutes and you'd have a great little movie.
The voice acting is effective, which is to say, it's low key and doesn't draw attention to itself. None of the child actors has any trouble convincing us to accepting the emotions they are trying to covey, although they are all far too well-adjusted to be believable in that regard, considering their backstories. But since director Claude Barrass is aiming for a Dickensian vibe rather than Ken Loach, I'll let it slide.
The animation is top-notch. "My Life as a Zucchini" is gorgeous; it's like a picture book come to life. The score by Sophie Hunger sets the mood perfectly, reminding me of the video game "Life is Strange," believe it or not. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, I strongly suggest that you go find an Xbox One or PlayStation 4 and play it, since it's a definite 4/4.
Anyway, I'm getting sidetracked. The point is, that for however slight and too short this movie is, it has a likability to it that's impossible to deny. I cared about Zucchini, his friend Camille (Krell), and their friends. So I think it's worth checking out.
Starring (voices): Erick Abbate, Ness Krell, Nick Offerman, Romy Beckman
Rated PG-13 for Thematic Elements and Suggestive Material
"My Life as a Zucchini" is a slight but charming stop-motion animation film from France. It has a lot of heart and love for its characters, but a lack of narrative drive and a far too short running time keep it from being something special.
Icare, or Zucchini, as he prefers to be called, has a sad life. His father has long since been out of the picture and his mother spends all of her time drinking beer and throwing empty cans at the TV. When an attempt to avoid a spanking ends up with his mother dying, Zucchini is sent to live in an orphanage. There, he discovers the true meaning of friends and family.
This movie isn't strong on plot. Not that there's much time for one, considering that the film is barely over an hour long. Apart from that, it lacks focus. It wants to give everyone their due, but with seven kids at the orphanage, plus a few other characters, including a cop voiced by Nick Offerman who grows to care about Zucchini, makes it a little too much. Stretch it out to 85 or 90 minutes and you'd have a great little movie.
The voice acting is effective, which is to say, it's low key and doesn't draw attention to itself. None of the child actors has any trouble convincing us to accepting the emotions they are trying to covey, although they are all far too well-adjusted to be believable in that regard, considering their backstories. But since director Claude Barrass is aiming for a Dickensian vibe rather than Ken Loach, I'll let it slide.
The animation is top-notch. "My Life as a Zucchini" is gorgeous; it's like a picture book come to life. The score by Sophie Hunger sets the mood perfectly, reminding me of the video game "Life is Strange," believe it or not. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, I strongly suggest that you go find an Xbox One or PlayStation 4 and play it, since it's a definite 4/4.
Anyway, I'm getting sidetracked. The point is, that for however slight and too short this movie is, it has a likability to it that's impossible to deny. I cared about Zucchini, his friend Camille (Krell), and their friends. So I think it's worth checking out.
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