Fétiche

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.

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.

The Mascot is just one entree of an incredible visual feast by Russian/Polish Animator Ladislaw Starewicz. This is especially true when compared to the poverty of digital imagination we are witnessing today. It is a vision of such texture and pure creativity that it could inspire whole new artistic movements. I had to laugh out loud at the unexpectedness and depth of the imagery. This film is made for children. But not "children" as defined by Disney or Hasbro or Sesame Street. Rather for real children who love strange mythologies and flights of unchecked fantasy. The tale follows the quest of a stuffed puppy doll in search of an orange. (!?) It follows the animated puppy through the city streets of Paris into hell (!) to protect the orange. This little film was made by Ladislaw Starewicz who is credited with being the first man to make stop-motion animated stories in 1910. Starewicz is truly an inspiration behind the masterfully weird puppet films of the Brothers Quay and Jan Swankmejer. And in some ways his little films surpass them.... which is hard to believe. But it's true. Starewicz has a taproot inserted deeply into the soil of arcane ancient Europa. It is a world of puppets and gargoyles, of dolls and devils, of fairytales and medieval woodcuts. The silent qualities in this nearly silent film only emphasize the dense textures and old European qualities. There is a deep source of inspiration here for artists, film makers, and humans who still exercise their imagination. This film is featured in a compilation of Starewicz's work entitle THE CAMERAMAN'S REVENGE AND OTHER SHORT FILMS. All of these short films are worth their weight in artist gold.

If any one feature demonstrates as far as possible Wladyslaw Starewicz's wide range of talents, this might be it. "The Mascot" seamlessly combines top-quality puppet animation with live action; it tells a tale with some humor, some horror, and some humanity; and it does it all with a vivid sense of imagination. At the height of the action, there is a constant succession of detailed images at the same time that the story reaches its peak of suspense.

The story follows a toy dog through an odyssey to fulfill a young child's request. The basic story line would be interesting enough, though now pretty familiar from many similar stories by lesser lights. But it is fleshed out by such an imaginative array of creatures and settings that the only possible way to appreciate it is to see it. The detail is extraordinary, especially since each detail in many of the frames had to be done carefully by hand. Many of the details are quite amusing, while others are sinister, bizarre, or just plain interesting. Nor does Starewicz resort to tired or obvious devices in order to impress - the closer you look, the more you see.

While this is certainly not a children's movie, in every other respect it is more impressive and more interesting than any of the animated features from the computer imagery era. For anyone who enjoys classic cinema, it's not to be missed.

A brilliant animated piece that was far ahead of its time, and certainly far ahead of anything that was being released in mass production at the same point in history. The influence of this work upon Tim Burton's "Nightmare Before Christmas" is readily apparent. One can only imagine how Starewicz slaved over every beautifully detailed frame of this masterpiece.

There have been very few animated films of this caliber. It's a shame that more people haven't seen this gem.

Apparently, IMdB now requires comments to be at least ten lines long, so this is the tenth line. This must be something new - but I really don't have anything else to say!