This is the most amazing stop motion piece I have ever seen. Let me just get that out of the way. Every scene is packed with legit visuals. Amazing work on a technical scale.
As for the creative scale, for me Wes Anderson never disappoints. His characters, dialogue, rhythm, themes, composition, wardrobe, color, music, editing, sound design, tone, all of it. Dig.
Isle of Dogs is in line with this. I'll probably go deeper into the film at some point here, but for now I'm focused on favorite food as a key motif for the story and character arc. Of course! This is a story about dogs at the core, not about a boy, not about a girl, not about a city. Anderson and team's use of language, subtitles, and non-subtitles is grrreat to underscore this, putting us in the mind of the dog, so often focused on tone and motion for communication. Almost too genius, simplicity as part of that.
The key motif is the same. Favorite food. Again, this is a dog's story, almost too genius, simplicity as part of that--favorite food, and even just food itself, is a symbol of connection, pack, union... love.
First we see this as the pack fights another group of dogs over food. That's their opening team goal: food. As the pack then travels with the boy, we hear them discuss their favorite foods. Every food is in direct connection to their past owners, direct connection to individual past pack, family, team.
As we cross the midpoint of the film, we see Atari and Chief separated from the rest of the group, forced to travel together. This is around ten minutes of growth, conflict, and interaction that ultimately unites them. As Atari gives half of a doggy biscuit to Chief (a biscuit brought especially for Spots), we solidify a huge step toward their connection. It isn't just the treat. No, no. The treat is just the visual motif which symbolizes closure on their connection, the key, the catharsis, the deliciousness of the doggy biscuit, the deliciousness of a team. Pack animals, humans and dogs. We need this.
"This is my new favorite food. Thank you." Tears in the eyes. Eye contact. Family. Love.
Here is were Atari and Chief lock down their friendship, lock down their "team-ness." So solid.
See this film, for surrre. Screenplay by Wes Anderson, story by Anderson, Roman Coppola, Jason Schwartzman, and Kunichi Nomura.
Be well. http://www.LionSuit.com
