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Sylvain Chomet

L’illusionniste * Sylvain Chomet (2010)

The director of “Les Triplettes de Belville” returns with a new full length animation. “L’illustionist” (the illusionist) is about a not too successfull French illusionist who travels to England and Scotland to perform. In Scotland a girl is so impressed by his ‘magic’ that she travels back with him to London. There the two grow apart. “L’illusionist” is a slow and overly sweet film which lacks the weird humour of “Les Triplettes…”. The result is rather dull, perhaps enjoyable for 8 to 12 years old or so. More positive is the artwork. Where characters and scenery are kept simple (like before) there are a few scenes which almost look as if they are filmed.

Les Triplettes de Belleville * Sylvain Chomet * 2003

Strange, this film was anounced quite largely, but plays in only five cinemas in the Netherlands and as it seems only for two weeks. As you can see from the poster, this is an animation film and it is French. Not really my kind of film, but enough people who wanted to see it to form a group of seven (all family too).

“The Triplets from Belleville” opens with al old-fashioned and hilaric piece of black and white animation which proves to be a tv-show. Then you see the main charactors, a young boy (in the front on the bike) and his grandma (with the umbrella). The boy is a sad boy, but when he grandma finds out he likes bicycles, he is delighted and soon trains himself into the “Tour De France”. There he gets kidnapped by a couple of square guys and shipped to “Belleville” (America) where he is exploited. Grandma goes after him with their dog in order to save him.

You can already see the way of drawing, simple, effective and funny (especially the maffia and the waiter). The film is not a chain of jokes and not so silly that it is only for children (as a matter of fact, there were only older people watching). No overtly hilaric animation, just something completely different an nice to see some time.