Fétiche

Words alone cannot describe the sheer beauty and power of this film.

Think "Toy Story". Now, think "Toy Story", circa 1934. Now, imagine the animation looks as lifelike, as fluid. Think of the movie not as something adults and children can enjoy, but imagine it as a filme-noire.

Imagine trying to do something like that back in 1934. Somehow, "The Mascot" delivers. In a story where toys come to life, and one of them is trying to deliver an orange to his sick owner, Starewicz delivers a level of animation completely unexpected. It's so fluid, you will wonder for a long time whether what you see is really stop-motion animation.

Comparing "Toy Story" and "The Mascot" is an excercise in futility, plot-wise: while "Toy Story" is a children's story adults can enjoy, "The Mascot" is a dark, chilling story aimed at adults. Meaning, NO, your kids won't like it. One bit.

Still, get it if you can. You might be able to find it along "Vampyr" in DVD and LaserDisc. And prepare to be stunned at what Starewicz was able to do back in 1934 with a couple of puppets.

i still can't belive that starevich made this film back in 1934. animation is simply perfect, and what is amazing about it, with all the advanced technology we have nowadays there are few animation studios that are capable of producing a little gem like this one. it has everything: a great story, beautiful chracters (although this is a morbid kind of beauty in some cases), special effects... well, it is definitely not a kid's movie,but it's a must-see for anyone seriously interested in animation.

Straight from the brilliant mind of animation pioneer Wladyslaw Starewicz, "Fétiche", or "The Mascot" as it is known nowadays, stands as a masterpiece of stop-motion animation that sadly, has been almost forgotten by now. Nevertheless, the work of this man deserves to be seen, and in fact, must be seen to be believed because the outstanding way the animation flows is simply unbelievable.

Decades before "Toy Story", Starewicz conceived the idea of moving toys, in "Fétiche", he tells the story of a small stuffed dog that gets makes friends with the sick daughter of his maker. One day, his maker takes him away to sell him, and the adventure begins as he tries to find his way back home. In his Odyssey, he'll travel from Paris to Hell, and will find the other toys that were supposed to be sold with him.

It is a surreal experience to watch this movie, as Starewicz makes every imaginable creature come alive with grace and beauty. The other toys include a beautiful ballerina, who loves a thief, but she also is secretly loved by a clown, forming a love triangle; an old woman, a stuffed cat and a stuffed ape complete the group. every toy is so detailed and very expressive that without words one can understand their motives.

Truly, the surreal atmosphere the whole animation has it is remarkable. It is hard to believe that a work of this magnitude was done in 1934 since it looks even better than most of the current day animation. The influence it has in modern day animator such as Tim Burton and Henry Selick is very significant.

This short is a masterpiece of animation and the outstanding work of one genius who done everything by himself and that has influenced animators for decades. Starewicz's work is an immortal piece of art that should be seen by everyone. This work is not only for kids, adults as well will enjoy it and probably catch most of the subtext hidden in the movie.

It is possible to find it in the "Vampyr" DVD as a bonus feature. Anyone with the slightest interest in animation should give it a look.

There is a complete copy now available at the Internet Archive - watch it or download it today!

http://www.archive.org/details/The_Mascot_Complete

One of the greatest animated shorts ever made. Starewicz is endlessly inventive and his techniques still astound animation fans 70 years later. We may have computer-generated techniques now, but all he had in 1934 was an imagination that wouldn't take "no" for an answer. Whatever he wanted to see on the screen, he created.

And he wanted to see some truly bizarre stuff - every imaginable piece of scrap is called up for service: old shoes, chicken bones, utensils, broken glasses, dolls, monkeys, rats....seems like there was nothing that was off limits.

A truly eerie, even unsettling film that should be seen by anyone with even a passing interest in animation. This film must be seen to be believed!

It seems likely that anyone who takes the trouble to post a comment on this obscure little masterpiece would be fascinated and entranced by it, as I am, and the previous comments bear that out. It is true that some of the human types portrayed by the puppet figures are distinctly European, but I don't think that makes them inaccessible to non-Europeans. It does, however, add an exotic, foreign cachet for a viewer unfamiliar with European culture, which from my American perspective only enhances the viewing experience. Some of this comes from the musical soundtrack, which has a distinctively French style and tone quality, and attaches signature tunes, or "leitmotivs" as the Wagnerians would have it, to certain characters. Some of these melodies are very old tunes that immediately evoke a state of mind, human emotion, or character trait to go with its subject in the film. The romantic serenade that the garlic-headed clown sings to the weeping ballerina is a venerated old French art song called "Plaisir d'amour" by Johann Paul A Martini. Probably the only way that last sentence can make much sense to you is if you've actually seen this film.

For me one of the most interesting characters is a type of French gangster made universally recognizable by the famous "apache" dance, a brutal but nonetheless charismatic hoodlum whose pockets are filled with deadly weapons and burglary tools. He treats everyone, including women, with violent contempt, even double-crossing Satan himself. His appearances are invariably accompanied by a jaunty tune on the saxophone portraying him as a nasty, but inexplicably attractive, thug. The apache image is emphasized when he disdainfully throws his sometimes girlfriend, the delicate and emotionally fragile ballerina, against a wall!

The hapless ballerina is emotionally overwhelmed by everything, and is thus subject to the random cruelties of circumstance and the whims of those around her. Her only proactive gesture is to slap the face of a sex-crazed monkey who makes advances towards her, demonstrating that even she has some standards.

There are so many details and aspects of this film to ponder and appreciate that I find it endlessly fascinating, and never tire of watching it. Consider how laborious it must have been to actually create these scenes in the absence of all the modern imaging techniques available today. Every detail must have been meticulously planned before the first frame of a scene was shot, as stop-action animation is hardly a medium for improvisation. Just conceiving of all these details of characterization through action, character design, set design, lighting, etc. must have been a Herculean effort. I'm grateful that Starevitch and his people took the trouble, for all these years later we have a bona fide masterpiece to enjoy. "The Mascot" is an under-appreciated treasure trove of imagination and artistry.