17 Jun The Triplets of Belleville (2003)

Dream Stories

Let’s see. How many stories are within this story.

There’s the show at the beginning which our heroine watches that gets transformed into her dream about the capture of the grandson she’ll never have. When that show comes alive as reality, it gets mirrored back as the triplets do a show within (using items from their “real” house.)

There’s the show of the bike race which gets captured and turned into a show on a stage for bettors, while the head gangster dreams. As with the triplets, it contains a show within, the projection of reality for the (presumably stoned) cyclists. And that projection becomes real again when the contraption is turned into a getaway vehicle.

There’s even the show the dog sees and barks at when the train goes by. Even that gets turned around as the dog similarly dreams himself on the train being barked at. And his train at home gets mirrored at the triplets’ house.

Smaller things: scenes meld into each other as elements literally morph. The women in disguise. The TeeVee show she watches when at the triplets’.

Many reviewers have called this surreal. I suppose that’s true in the broad sense that it is unreal. But surrealism is a specific bend or reality where things don’t make sense. This reality is bent in exactly the opposite way: things make a whole lot more sense that they do in the world in which I live.

Characteristics are more clear and clearly seen, Behaviour is more direct and noble, not at all chaotic.

And of course, it wouldn’t be such a deep cut on the nature of French Québécois, if it were not so true.

I appreciated the attention given to the structure of the thing. Immense structure: dreams within dreams randomly. And I’ll always join in on making fun of the French. Also, we need to celebrate any animation that has personality.

But I wish the story itself had as much bite as the structure and tone of the thing. As it stands now, it still falls into the Disney pattern of goodness triumphing over evil.

Posted in 2006

Ted’s Evaluation — 3 of 3: Worth watching.

IMDB