XXII INTERNATIONAL TOURNEE OF ANIMATION

The 22nd INTERNATIONAL TOURNEE OF ANIMATION, made up of 18 animated films from around the world, has a few bright spots, but the entries mostly echo the futility of man caught in no-win situations.

Themes of dog eat dog and the hectic pace of modern life reoccur in many of the shorts, but a notable exception is “The Cow,” an Oscar nominee from the Soviet Union. The tender story is about the love a little boy has for his cow. Upon the sale of her calf, the cow is disconsolate until the little boy offers the gift of himself as her son.

“A Warm Reception in L.A.” is an upbeat tale of a budding screenwriter’s experience in the corporate jungle of Hollywood. The film community initially woos and loves the young writer, but after six months of waiting for that “big check” he realizes it was all hype.

The Oscar-winning “The Balance” is a story of greed, man’s injustice to man, and the delicate balance between wanting something and receiving it. The fable features a group of identical figures trying to maintain the precarious balance of a plane floating in space. It is a somber tale of corruption where no one wins.

These films are not sweet, innocent cartoons, but rather serious and sometimes disturbing observations into the torment of the artistic soul. There are elements of violence, female frontal nudity, sexual suggestiveness, and pagan symbolism, which make it difficult to recommend the film to even those die-hard animation fans who have a strong biblical worldview.