The use of pastel colors for most of the characters has a calming glow, lulling the viewer into a false sense of security. Excluding Birdboy’s demon form, most character designs look closer to something one would find in a PBS Kids cartoon. The animal characters are almost all rounded in design, carrying a neotony that presents them as anything but threatening, even the criminal ones to a degree. It’s that Birdboy’s visual sensibilities are cute, deceptively diminutive, and seem more humble in their simplicity.
The box art of the film is imposing, menacing, and features a color palette of reds and blacks-hues commonly associated with danger, power, aggression. Not in the sense that the viewer does not know what kind of experience they are getting themselves into. If Birdboy: The Forgotten Children is to be described in one word, it would be specious. A Cute Yet Despondent Coming-of-Age Fable But fear not, he has some friends who still believe him, especially his girlfriend, Dinky. This curse makes him enemy number one on the island. Birdboy, on the other hand, has a curse on him-a crow-like demon that is trapped in his body after the explosion. In reality, the pouch was carrying mysterious glowing acorns, which his son picks up and continues where his father left off.
Tragedy strikes when Police shoot down birdman since he was suspected of delivering drugs across the island. Birdman, the father of Birdboy, was once a lighthouse keeper who survived the explosion and began flying around the island carrying a satchel. After the fallout, which killed most of the fish and devastated the land, the island was split into two: the fishing village, where the survivors eke out a living, and the once industrial area that is now a junk heap where Darwinism is the rule of the land. The brisk-paced prologue exposits to the viewer that the once idyllic island home of several anthropomorphic animals had a nuclear meltdown that makes whatever Bambi suffered through looks like sunshine and lollipops. The story of Birdboy starts with a literal bang. Birdboy has earned its seat in the world of western adult animation, a market empty of meaning and bombarded with rehashed adult animated comedy shows. It is also a brilliant little animated film with a haunting electronica score, tragic themes, and an angsty coming of age plot.
Weirdness abounds in Birdboy, complete with anthropomorphized characters, seemingly inanimate objects that reveal themselves to be sentient, simplistic hand-drawn animation, and a plot that raises more questions than it provides answers. Maybe most people can’t handle an adult animated feature unless it is a comedy?īirdboy: The Forgotten Children is a strange little animated film. The film was a critical success but bombed at the box office with a budget of 1 million only to make back $52,366. Most creative types do not have that kind of freedom to adapt their work adequately. Join me as we explore worlds that only animation can bring, but a word of warning is in order: there will be spoilers.īased on a graphic novel called Psiconautas by Alberto Vázquez, Birdboy: The Forgotten Children is unique because he also wrote and directed the film adaptation. Film Inquiry introduces to you Animation Sensation! Twice a month, I will be presenting some of the most intriguing, fascinating, and fun films that the art of animation has to offer.