The Animation Show, Volume 3 (2007)

The Worst Film Ever

Nice effects though.

It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

I loved the first installment of THE ANIMATION SHOW. It was incredibly funny--particularly because of its sick and twisted Don Hertzfeldt cartoons as well as the great films by Adam Elliot (UNCLE, BROTHER and COUSIN). However, with Volume Two, I was very disappointed--few of the cartoons (including Hertzfeldt's) were funny and the entire DVD is a bore with only one or two exceptions. I assumed that Volume Three would continue this downward spiral of the series, though fortunately Three was about as good as the first DVD. However, the overall type of cartoon is very different. While One featured many overtly funny toons, Three featured much more visually striking and risky shorts--spectacular and impressive. My favorite was RABBIT--a short that I've seen on a couple other compilation DVDs.Because Volume Thee was so good, I can't wait until they bring out more--this is a great series of short animated films.

This is just a fun mix of animated shorts. If you get a chance to see the tour curated by Mike Judge, do so. Some surprises are tossed into the line-up and they might not appear in a DVD release. Beavis and Butthead begin the series of shorts and they are in classic form. The second short in the series is titled "Rabbit" and it's like an animated children's book with a demented twist. "City Paradide" follows with a surreal blend of animation styles. The third animated short is Sundance Award winner "Everything Will Be Okay". The third offering is also the longest of the show. "David & Son-of-Goliath" is a familiar set of 70's claymation characters crossed with a "Son of Sam" inspired plot line. "Collision" is mostly geometrical shapes and patterns set to audio. "Nine" follows with a Tim Burton style of animation featuring a story about a predator and his prey. "No Room For Gerrold" is a German entry with subtitles. It explores the awkward situation of kicking out a roommate. "Guide Dog" is a very stylized piece done by Bill Plympton featuring an emotionally disturbed dog. "Eaux Forte" is a simple but very well done piece. "Overtime" features some very Muppet inspired Kermit-like characters. "Dreams & Desires" is a busy but mesmerizing piece done by Joanna Quinn. "Game Over" is a fun tribute to 70's and 80's video games. Some other fun shorts are tossed in the middle of the set. Overall a fun show which leans towards an artistic style of animation rather than the more commercial works you's see on network TV.

Animators Don Hertzfeldt and Mike Judge have put together a collection of animated shorts that easily rivals the quality of Spike and Mike.This is their third Animation Show, and as usual Don Hertzfeldt's own contribution was among the biggest crowd pleasers. But don't expect anything as silly as his infamous "Rejected" this time around; his new film "Everything Will Be OK" is perhaps his darkest yet.My personal favorites were "Rabbit" and "Overtime," though "Game Over" got the most applause in the theater. Speaking of which -- stop reading and go buy tickets! You have to see this in a theater for the full experience. There's nothing quite like watching these films in a room with a huge group of weirdo fanatics like yourself.

This show was packed full with about 14 short animation films that were creative and hilarious. The show had mild to strong language some of the time. My personal favorites from the show include: "Everything Will Be OK", "9", "Game Over", "Guide Dog", and "Davey and Son of Goliath". Some films were random and boring because they were too abstract. The film "Rabbit" was very creative and had a very surprising ending. "City Paradise" didn't have a good plot but it was fun to see the innovative techniques they used. "Everything Will Be OK" was very funny but near the end it became very weird and lost my interest. "Guide Dog" was simply full of funny parts and was very well done. All together it was a great experience.