hot chocolate can't save you
It's that time of year again; and as the holiday season approaches, so does the likely hood that The Polar Express will be showing on television stations near you.
Besides the "Hot Chocolate" number in The Polar Express, the film is an unsettling and uncanny beast that haunts the Christmas season.
However, the film's dark undertones go beyond the disappearing homeless man and the abandoned toy room. To me, the most frightening thing about this film is the animation.
At first glance, the animation of The Polar Express doesn't seem all that bad, but once you sit down to watch the movie, you realize how odd the models and their movements are. There are definitely uncanny elements at play, and this largely comes from the use of motion capture technology to help create reference for the movements of the film that are then layered over with 3D CG animation. The animation they place over the motion capture is trying it's best to remain true to what real people look like, but also maintains the look and feel of an animated film. It's unnerving to watch these oddly people-esque empty puppets go through the motion of what is supposed to be a wholesome holiday story - and no amount of the incredible and charming song and dance scene led by Tom Hanks that is the "Hot Chocolate" can fully save the film from being unsettling.
Besides the "Hot Chocolate" number in The Polar Express, the film is an unsettling and uncanny beast that haunts the Christmas season.
However, the film's dark undertones go beyond the disappearing homeless man and the abandoned toy room. To me, the most frightening thing about this film is the animation.
At first glance, the animation of The Polar Express doesn't seem all that bad, but once you sit down to watch the movie, you realize how odd the models and their movements are. There are definitely uncanny elements at play, and this largely comes from the use of motion capture technology to help create reference for the movements of the film that are then layered over with 3D CG animation. The animation they place over the motion capture is trying it's best to remain true to what real people look like, but also maintains the look and feel of an animated film. It's unnerving to watch these oddly people-esque empty puppets go through the motion of what is supposed to be a wholesome holiday story - and no amount of the incredible and charming song and dance scene led by Tom Hanks that is the "Hot Chocolate" can fully save the film from being unsettling.
I've never looked at The Polar Express in the way you just described it... but I can totally see that now. I always knew there was something wrong with the disappearing man but couldn't put my finger one what he represented.
ReplyDeleteA lot of people have the same reaction as you, and I think you articulate why it appears so strange quite well. However, I think you should give more credit to the filmmakers behind Polar Express, as well as Beowulf and A Christmas Carol (all the same motion capture style and all Zemeckis-made). The technology was new at the time and far from perfect, yet Zemeckis was bold enough to use it for mainstream crowd pleasers. It takes a lot of courage to utilize an art form that's still in its infancy, but it must be done in order for it to grow.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, because of the unique animation style that really has no reason to be replicated now that we have superior technology, it gives that weird sort of trilogy of films an aesthetic entirely their own, which is pretty darn rare to come by, especially for blockbusters.