Cannes 2023: with “Mars Express”, “Robot Dreams” and “Linda wants chicken!” », make way for animation
Feet in the sand, head in the stars. There was entertainment on Sunday evening at the Cinéma de la plage, which broadcast outdoors Mars Express by Jérémie Périn, a French science fiction animated feature set on the red planet (in theaters November 22).
In this well-executed futuristic thriller – despite its somewhat convoluted script – a private detective and her droid go in search of a cybernetics student who has mysteriously disappeared.
This intelligent action film develops a reflection on the place of robots in the world of tomorrow against the background of machine revolt. / Gebka
Tinted with a touch of humour, this intelligent action film develops a reflection on the place of robots in the world of tomorrow against a backdrop of machine revolt. It’s a pity that the sound system of the beach did not allow to give all its scope to this neat work.
Projection conditions that already regretted two years ago the world of animation cinema when the dizzyingsummit of the gods, by Patrick Imbert. Year after year, professionals deplore the lack of space given to animated feature films.
“No film is in competition this year at Cannes, neither in the official selection, nor in the Directors’ Fortnight, nor in Critics’ Week. regret the producers’ unions, in a press release recalling that we must go back to 2008 and Waltz with Bashirby Ari Folman, to find a work in the running for the Palme d’or.
Delicate subjects: loneliness, friendship, mourning
The 2023 edition is not entirely devoid of animated films, however, with six short films and four feature films. A level rarely even reached on the Croisette, whose penchant for entertainment seems to vary like the (imperceptible) tides of the Mediterranean. Besides Mars Express and the latest from Pixar studios, Elementary (in theaters on June 21), screened at the end of the festival, the festival had reserved its “children’s session” on Saturday at Robot Dreamsby Pablo Berger.
ROBOT DREAMS, the new film (and first animation) by Pablo Berger (BLANCANIEVES), is in the Official Selection – Special Screening at @Festival_Cannes ! 🎡 🗽#Cannes2023#RobotDreamspic.twitter.com/2Y5U7nCzel
— Wild Bunch (@WildBunch) May 5, 2023
This Franco-Spanish cartoon is a charming variation on loneliness and friendship. In Manhattan, Dog, an anthropomorphic dog, acquires a pet robot that becomes his best friend. But a trip to the sea paralyzes the cogs of the droid, which Dog is forced to abandon on the beach, closed to the public until the following summer. A year during which the two friends will dream of meeting again. Melancholic, funny and poetic, this inventive animated film speaks with many nuances of friendly ties, standing the test of distance and time.
Another strong subject, which animated films have cherished for several years: mourning, which Linda wants chicken!, by Chiara Malta and Sébastien Laudenbach, in theaters on October 18 and presented on Saturday by Acid (Association of independent cinema for its distribution). Nothing funereal, however, in this Franco-Italian cartoon with acid colors. To be forgiven for having punished her unjustly, Paulette promises her daughter to make her chicken with peppers. A recipe that her father, who died when she was 2 years old, prepared for her. But one day of general strike, go find a chicken!
Both tender and burlesque, this film with animation as lively as its characters and their dubbing connects misunderstandings and wild chases. Sometimes a little freewheeling, the scenario offers scenes of rare accuracy on parent-child relationships. A work that exudes rebelliousness, which could inspire many live-action films.
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