4/5
Reviewed May 26, 2023
Wes Anderson stop-motion flick about a young boy who crashes onto a trash island in Japan where all the area’s dogs have been exiled to, searching for his own pup; he’s joined and aided by a motley pack of dogs along the way, including one stray that hates humans. It’s…pretty great if you’re a Wes Anderson fan. His other animated film, the Fantastic Mr. Fox, is a great melancholic story with stunning style and acting talent; so is this one. It gets…dark, but then rebounds with cheerfully irreverent sequences and the driest humor this side of London.
The Bad:
-It tows the line of having the white savior trope with the exchange student pushing for saving the dogs, and accusing the leadership of murder and conspiracy. She browbeats her Japanese school colleagues and even a few adults. But…it still works? They twist it a bit, with her saying her piece and then “ope, we’re revoking your passport, giving you no credit for your classes, and shipping you back to Ohio.” That redeems it a bit, but it still FEELS wrong.
-As Wes Anderson does, the plot meanders in some very strange ways that don’t always mesh together in any sort of cohesive way. The planning and animation may be meticulous but there’s still doodle-style sections in it.
-How did the pack end up sitting in that incinerator nonsense for long enough that the boy and Chief had time to play, bond, and even wash Chief off in an extended bath sequence, only to pop out of the building at the exact moment needed? I know, plenty of nonsensical stuff here like having dogs that understand Japanese, but that one was odd.
-Shipping dogs to the trash island in cages that needed keys to open, thus dooming them to die of starvation. It makes sense in the context of our villains but dang, brutal.
-The movie, as a white guy watching it, feels like it should be offensive at points to the Japanese but it’s hard to pin them down because certain characters are meant to be caricatures and it’s super obvious, like Major Domo (even his name). It plays out fun, but there’s always a lingering doubt about sincerity…
The Good:
-Wes Anderson’s signature style. He translates it here, all the quirks. Direct close-ups, symmetrical shots, a wide-ranging but always pastel palette, picture-in-picture shots, mixed media like radio and TV broadcasts – and even different animation styles – in showing sequences, short dialogue that feels incredibly stilted and yet poignant, and side-scrolling movement shots. If you like his tricks, you’ll like this. And I like his tricks.
-The cast is…just dynamite. Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, ScarJo, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum, Greta Gerwig, Frances McDormand, Harvey Keitel, Ken Watanabe, Yoko freaking Ono, Tilda Swinton, F. Murray Abraham, among others. Stacked as hell. And they all give droll, dry performances that mesh very well with the style.
-Visually, it’s just a beautiful movie. The animation is stylish and enjoyable, especially call-backs to classic cartoons with the cloud-like fight sequences.
-Was not expecting full on Nazi and Fascist storylines, including equating the dog exile with ghettos and planning on poisoning all the dogs in a Holocaust reference. Good lord. That was…definitely a gut punch in what had been a quirky comedy to that point.
-The wild technology in the society, including the robo-dogs, military grade teeth, and the head scientist’s lab.
-The boy seeing the slide in the park and finally getting to be himself. He had been remanded into his “distant” uncle’s custody and forced to live at home with private tutors, and used as a status symbol rather than a person. Him bonding with Chief was a slow burn but so well done.
-Killer Wasabe
-Yoko Ono’s character grieving and giving up after the murder of her beloved. No symbolism there, nope.
-The Spot vs Sports twist. Legit believed that the dog was dead right at the start of the film, and it hits you. The twist is even juicier, as you get a lot of hope from that point on and can’t trust the film….especially when it then nonchalantly throws our dog pals into the incinerator building and the boy and Chief act super casual about it. Roller coaster shit.
-ScarJo doing insane tricks and telling Chief to imagine them.
-The whole Chief and Spots storyline is an old trope, but it was done magnificently here.
………………………………………….
Yeah, really enjoyed it. This was my third Wes Anderson film and they just keep killing it for me. It’s a lot darker than I thought it was going to be, but it has a happy ending.
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