Das Rad

It is a film for discover the reality near yourself in the fair perspective. It is an amusing , touching, ironic and delicate short animation about history, changes, people and nature. And it gives more than a lovely story but a wise manner to discover the essence of the things around every new day. Two characters. A talk . The status of witnesses of a large circle. Small observations and large slices of silence. And the fear of the viewer about the victory of progress against the rocks. The end is a wise one especially as answer to this fear. So, admirable animation.

Das Rad (2003)

*** (out of 4)

Neat film received an Oscar-nomination for Best Animated Short. The film works on the basic idea that two piles of rocks, who can speak to one another, are fearing another ice age. The entire short is built around time going forward thousands of years and these rocks being there through it all. I guess it's fair to say you'll never really look at a rock the same way again and the next time you pick one up to throw it, there's a good chance you'll remember this movie and think about the history you're holding in your hands and ask what all has happened in the presence of that rock. The movie doesn't do anything overly special with the exception of the wonderful build up and the eventual execution. This is certainly the type of movie that makes you think after wards and the thoughts you have after the movie are probably going to be more impressive than the ones you have while watching it. This here is certainly a nice little gem that deserves to be seen.

I really, really felt for these rocks. Seriously. They were imbued with so much personality, and I didn't want anything to happen to them. In addition, there was a skillful back-and-forth device that shifted the POV from the short-term human perspective to the rocks' long-term, uh, rocky perspective. Very cool, very skillfully done. If you told me a German film about rocks would be so charming and touching and funny, I'd have told you to take a hike, but it's true: this little film about rocks is a jewel.

Perception is all about your perspective. This short allows you to see the world and the passage of time through the perspective of rocks, which might sound dry but is actually quiet amusing.

This film is a combination of stopmotion animation (one of my favorite styles) and digital animation. They blend the two seamlessly, not an easy feat.

This is one of those rare films that reward repeat viewings. Your eye catches different details each time and you start to appreciate the pain-staking attention to detail that the team of animators put into this work. You can pick it up over at www.Filmporium.com. The five dollar disk also includes the wickedly funny "Astronauts" and the Olympic event parody "Ski Jumping Pairs."

memorable, smart, funny, original, flawlessly executed... what else can i tell you about 'das rad', without spoiling any future viewing experience (if there will be a chance for one)? this one really stood out among this year's oscar contenders. i am truly disappointed the academy decided to give the golden guy to yet another big studio product instead of rewarding this little (but by no means insignificant) movie. i was really touched by the story: i think what we (humans) really need in a trying time like that is a proper perspective towards what our species is getting itself into. 'das rad' gives you that, and manages to make its point despite its short running time. a real gem, go see it if you have a chance. bravo stenner & uidel!