LogFAQs > #962369611

1. Wolfwalkers

Karo: 1
Red: 1
Inviso: 2
Johnbobb: 3
Evillord: 12
Ermine: 15

Total: 34

Karo: When a young girl who has been raised with the notion that wolves are evil befriends a 'wolfwalker' forest child, they way she sees the world is forever changed. Most of the adults are the usual stupid narrow-minded moralistic lunatics that human beings cant seem to help being, and not even her dad will listen to her.
Things ramp up when she finds out that she is a wolfwalker herself and she faces rejection from her town and her hunter father. This leads to a clash between the wolfwalkers and a religious zealot noble, and culminates in the greatest miracle of all, Sean Bean surviving a story.
The central message of accepting and understanding what is different rather than reflexively grabbing torches and pitchforks to hunt down societys currently accepted bogeyman is something the world desperately needs right about now.
Cartoon Saloon's unique animation style really shines here, with whimsical and intricate backgrounds that make every frame a work of art. You see so little 2D animation in western movies these days and is it good to see someone still carrying the torch.
It is a hauntingly beautiful film with compelling characters, an exemplary moral, and an astounding amount of heart. It is not only Cartoon Saloon's best film, it is the best by far. Given the general high quality of the movies that this studio turns out that is no small praise.

Red: Humans decide to be a bunch of jerks and go out to exterminate some wolves in their home and end up becoming sort of wolves themselves. This was probably a good bet from anyone to finish near the top of my list, so it shouldn't be much of a surprise. The wolves are great, the animation style is kind of refreshing, and the main characters all mesh well with each other. The dumb humans sort of get what they deserve, the family dynamic resolves and comes to terms with one another, and we get end up with a kind of somber ending of everyone needing to find a new home. It was a very refreshing non-sequel on the list that I'd been looking forward to since seeing the previews, so I was very glad it delivered.

Inviso: So help me if you guys were willing to stuff Kells and Song of the Sea into the top five of the last list (or whichever list it was), and dont do the same with a Cartoon Saloon movie I actually liked. Now, is it possible that this appealed more to me as a furry? I mean, its about a girl becoming the Irish folklore equivalent of a werewolf and just chilling in the forest with her Irisih wolfwalker bestie, somaybe. But this just told its story extremely well. The whole movie has this atmosphere of oppression as EVERYONE is trapped in these roles and trapped within the walled city, at the will or an evil leader who felt like Frollo mixed with Radcliffe (with emphasis on Frollo, because this guy wasnt a shit character). I just really appreciated Robyns character, because Im always in favor of the feisty girls who try to change their lot in life (rather than stumbling into a change in their lot in life), and I just found her character arc fascinating over the course of the film. Watching her succumb to the fear that claimed her father, and trying to force protection onto Mehb, only to realize that she NEEDED to be free herself, was great. And everything culminated exactly as it needed to, in a satisfying happy ending. I really liked this film and Im glad Cartoon Saloon learned a thing or two about pacing from their earlier films.

Johnbobb: Wasn't even slightly expecting this to be as good as it was. Initially, I had Soul as my favorite animated movie of that year pretty easily, but to my surprise, it's been Wolfwalkers that has stuck with me since I saw it. The hand-drawn animation is beautiful, and it loses the annoying side characters that Disney and Dreamworks always squeeze in, instead keeping the focus squarely on the two main characters and their friendship and conflict.

Evillord: The plot here is kind of standard and simplistic, but it's elevated by wonderful animation and two lovable main characters. Robyns first night in wolf form is super memorable and captivating.

Ermine: A bit of a mixed bag here but overall pretty decent. A movie about wolves SHOULD be right up my alley, but uh... not exactly when it's just wolf-human things. As expected, I really disliked Mebh. She gets a bit better throughout the movie but god is she annoying throughout the first half. Thankfully Robyn is a really strong lead and carried the movie for me.

Art style was nice but sometimes it was a bit off on how sketchy it would be sometimes. Some scenes would be drawn fully and others would have a clear sketchiness to them. Not saying I disliked either style, but it was slightly off putting when it would jump from one to another.

I think I still prefer Kells over this though. Despite Wolfwalkers having more magic to it, I think Kells captured those magical moments better.

Another downside... sorta, is how predictable the movie was. So many times, in my head I'm like... oh this is when she's gonna find the mom... the mom is gonna get shot after a couple tender moments here... oh there it is...

Obviously movies are going to have a certain amount of predictability to them, but pretty much every plot beat and moment I had figured out beforehand and it takes away from the impact when you know what's going to happen and when.

Still decent movie overall.

OH! Also, I was really confused at why they just stayed in the town? If things were so awful... and they were, why would they stay? They could just... leave? Maybe it was explained, but I didn't really get it.