ME

Directed by Don Hertzfeldt, "ME" is a strange, fascinating, and deeply challenging work that defies easy interpretation. As is typical of the filmmaker, the short film features his unmistakable signature: simple stick figures, complex philosophical concepts, and a narrative that spirals through time and space in dizzying ways. But "ME" goes even further. With no narration, dialogue, or subtitles, the film demands that viewers build their own connections through symbols, visuals, and soundtrack, diving headfirst into a surreal and sensory experience.

The story-or what can be pieced together from it-seems to revolve around cycles of creation and destruction, both on a personal and societal level. It begins with a couple having a baby during a time of chaos. The father, obsessed with building a revolutionary machine, grows emotionally distant from his wife and child. His invention changes how people communicate, but he grows old, dies, and his body is discarded in a mass grave. Meanwhile, a second child, symbolized by a floating eye, grows up disconnected and eventually transforms into something colossal and catastrophic-possibly a black hole that consumes everything around it. The fragmented narrative, filled with gaps, feels intentionally designed to both confuse and captivate.

What makes "ME" even more unique is how Hertzfeldt uses music as the film's primary language. Brent Lewis sets the initial tone with a frenetic, claustrophobic percussion score that captures the intensity of the story's beginning. As the narrative transitions into more tragic territory, we hear Mozart and Chopin, evoking melancholy and introspection. In one of the film's most ethereal moments, a recording of Dame Joan Sutherland singing "I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls" creates an almost transcendent atmosphere, brimming with emotion. Then, near the end, the film shifts into an entirely different space with Jelly Roll Morton's jazzy improvisation, whose intro feels like a distant echo of a simpler, more innocent past. The music doesn't just accompany the story-it acts as a character in its own right, emotionally guiding the viewer through this existential rollercoaster.

Visually, Hertzfeldt stays true to his signature aesthetic but adds nuances that expand his repertoire. The stick figures and rudimentary shapes are deliberately simple, but the world they inhabit is filled with unsettling details and symbolism. There's something deliberately discomforting about the settings the characters occupy: landscapes that oscillate between the familiar and the alien, the beautiful and the apocalyptic. The transformation of the "floating eye" into a massive cosmic threat encapsulates the idea that small acts of carelessness or obsession can spiral into unimaginable consequences. The visual simplicity only serves to highlight the complexity of the story being told.

The symbolism in "ME" is, as always, open to interpretation, but Hertzfeldt gives us enough clues to reflect on contemporary issues. Though he explicitly denies that the film is about our devices, it's hard not to see parallels with how technology shapes our lives and relationships. The father's isolation, the emotional disconnection within the family, and, ultimately, the catastrophic collapse triggered by technology can be read as a metaphor for our growing dependence on innovations that simultaneously connect and destroy us.

However, limiting the film to a single interpretation would do a disservice to its depth. "ME" can also be viewed as a reflection on humanity's existential chaos, a study of impermanence, and the impact of our choices over time. Whether seen as a meditation on collective anxiety or as a pure audiovisual experiment, the work invites-and demands-multiple readings.

Overall, "ME" is the kind of film that doesn't make things easy for its audience. It challenges, provokes, and, at times, may even frustrate with its lack of clear answers. But that's the beauty of Don Hertzfeldt's work: he never hands you ready-made solutions. Instead, he creates a space where you can get lost, question, and maybe even find something of yourself reflected in the stories he tells. If you're willing to accept the invitation to dive into the unknown, "ME" is an experience that will linger with you long after the credits roll.

All of Hertzfeldt's work has a poignancy to them. In that poignancy, there is a little goofiness, introspection, sentimentality, absurdism, even a little horror. ME, for some reason feels the most monochromatic. Emotionally speaking, ME feels like Hertzfeldt's most apocalyptic and all-encompassing work yet. Even the "nervous system person" walking awkwardly through lava doesn't feel goofy. It feels too evocative, - that stripped down, naked, hunk of electrical signals bound together by screens - too dark.

That's why in more ways than one, this is also Don Hertzfeldt's best. Whatever the baby eye represents, I think there is a very eerie feeling of darkness in infantilising, (as well as reconciling) the presence of a creature who continuously surveils (cue dystopia metaphor). So much good imagery that sticks in your heard with this. But hey that's true for "beautiful day", "world of tomorrow" too. I'm just gonna have to rewatch his old repertoire again I guess.

So... I had the absolute pleasure to see Don Hertzfeldt's 2012 animated masterpiece "It's Such a Beautiful Day" on Wednesday for one night only at my local cinema and.... his new short film "ME", you can tell that I couldn't say no to it!, now before I get into this one, I should say what I think of Don Hertzfeldt's work, I absolutely love his work, they are so wonderfully surreal, weird, deep and very original, I love his feature film "It's Such a Beautiful Day", his short films "Rejected", "World of Tomorrow" and "Lily and Jim" are huge inspiration for my animation work and are incredibly awesome and unique, he's a really unique animator and filmmaker that you guys need to check out if you haven't already, anywho I went it to the screening with a friend which was kind of busy.. that was something.

Anywho I already did a review on the film so that's not why I am here to talk about, although I can say the way it was screened was very Don Hertzfeldt like, it starts with the short film (which I'll get to in a bit), then like a brass band playing a song with a guy clearly into banging on the guitar and then afterwards the man himself talks about the progress of his film and the camera he used to make it as well which was very cool, Don was clearly very thankful for people like me supporting his work and then the film started as normal...

Anywho I'm here to talk about the short film in question which is "ME", a musical surreal odyssey about technology and humanity and... I kind of loved it, not sure if I can say it's as amazing as "World of Tomorrow" & "Rejected" but it's really something to behold, something that's very unique and kind of profound too, I can't say too much since I only watched it once and I can only say what I remember from it and I don't wanna give away too much, plus it's kind of hard to describe so you'll have to watch it for ya self so then maybe you'll probably get it, anyways the animation is the best I seen from the guy, it's very purposeful and visually interesting, I like the music that accompanies the short like with African inspired music to then a full on like opera sequence that's really phenomenal and shows Don's true skill in animation, there's laughs to be found in it too and I enjoyed the presentation and what it was going for, I can still remember some of the memories shots in the short, it's bizarre but yet has relevance to it if ya pay attention to it.

So yeah I can't say much else then it's another really solid short from Don, it's original, surreally entertaining, beautifully animated with a interesting style and purpose, I like the themes and message of it, it's a wild ride that you'll never forget and Don really goes for it in terms of what it delivers, it's a very interesting piece of animation that's worth checking out and I kind of loved it!, one of his best in my opinion, if ya haven't seen it, go check it out I mean you might as well with "It's Such a Beautiful Day" which is where it is showing with, if it's playing near you, go see it as soon as you can as I think these are just one night events in different countries and cities, please do it you won't regret it, it's an absolute treat to see his work on the big screen.

I'm going to give "ME" a 10/10.