Isle of Dogs (2018)

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  TheMovieDiorama

  9 / 10

  Isle of Dogs made me realise "I Love Dogs". Firstly, those accusing this film of racial appropriation and marginalisation, stop. It is abundantly clear that Anderson was inspired by the Land of the Rising Sun as he creates a futuristic reimagining of Japan whilst retaining their traditional culture. It's not racist in the slightest. The mayor of Megasaki signs an executive decree to banish all dogs to Trash Island due to viral outbreak. His young nephew flees home in an attempt to find his guard dog Spots on the quarantined island. Japanese, stop motion, ensemble voice cast, canines...safe to say I adored this animated adventure. Anderson's quirky utilisation of symmetry, character centralisation and swift camera panning makes for a deliberately odd style that is incredibly easy to succumb to. A darkly mature story that involves political agendas, propaganda, totalitarianism, obedience and death is surprisingly intertwined with an intelligently written script that is sure to have you laughing on several occasions. This is also a result from the outstanding voice ensemble consisting of Cranston, Norton, Murray, Johansson and more as they inject life into their puppet canines. The smart use of language and lack of subtitles ensures that linguistic authenticity flows throughout its runtime. The attentive detail put into each character (both physically and literary) makes for several heartwarming moments as you quickly become emotionally attached to these adorable dogs. The stop motion animation was gorgeous, just like 'Fantastic Mr Fox', with excellent use of fluffy wool to depict clouds and industrious rust to illustrate the abandonment of the environment. It's not just aesthetic appeal, it's world building. Desplat's musical score of booming taiko drums and other traditional instruments allows the Japanese culture to invade all of your senses, slowly entrancing you. I did find that the narrative segmentation and constant flashbacks made for a disjointed plot. Small gripe aside, it's very rare that we are presented with such originality, creativity and humanity in an animation. Stunning.

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