Hunger

I am in the field of Computer Graphics. I saw this film in 1979 as part of a course. It is an early example of morphing. But what got me was what started out as a technical viewing ended up as an emotional one so now 20 years later I can still remember "Hunger" quite clearly.

I wasn't sure until the end if this might not have been better called 'Appetite". It's a very early computer generated animation that depicts just how easy it makes it for us, as human beings, to embrace a convenience society in which all sense of proportion is compromised. The imagery here isn't my favourite style of presentation, but as we see the original character morph into the end product, it's about as allegorical as you can get to the expansion of a societal need to take, and to take more and then to keep on taking - at the expense of ourselves and others or both. It becomes a grotesque travesty of humanity or perhaps a validation of what we want from it? There's something almost Dickensian about the conclusion and it's quite a thought provoking ten minutes that fifty years on might prove a little more providential than any of us might like!

This is a fascinating film--not so much for what it says but because it looks so very, very early 1970s. When I watched it, it brought back memories of super-wide neckties, crazy hair and intense colors. I also liked the quality of the animation--though it was, at times, hard on the eyes. The way things seemed to morph in the film was pretty interesting. However, while there were some interesting elements, the film got old very, very quickly. It was so hard on the eyes and other senses that it was tough watching it to the conclusion.

I can see that all the other reviews have been extremely positive and I'm glad they liked it. However, I truly can't see the average person sitting through this film--it's definitely for a very select audience.

This short, produced by the National Film Board of Canada, was nominated for an Academy Award. Once you've seen it, you'll see why. Not easily forgotten, although you may wish to. The choice of animation styles was made, I suspect, deliberately, in order to keep viewers off-balance. It's a perfect choice. A thought-provoking, extremely unsettling look at hunger in many forms. If you are easily disturbed or offended, this probably isn't for you. Otherwise, highly recommended.

On one of the comments of Thomas Knowler's animated short, Gorge, in the Cartoon Brew site, this particular person compared it to Peter Foldes' Hunger of which this person provided a link to the National Film Board of Canada site where it resides. So with my curiosity stoked, I decided to watch this animated short there. Before I begin the review, let me mention that this was the first time a computer aided in the making of an animated film which gets noticed when a figure obviously not drawn by hand appears in the middle of the short. Okay, so a man who loves to eat does so in big gulps. And he just keeps getting more obese as the short keeps going on. And then when he encounters a group of people who are starving...well, just watch this film if you want to know. The score is by Pierre Brault and it goes from repetitive to maybe a little bluesy and back again to disturbing effect. Artistically, I don't consider this one of the best I've seen but it sure is very compellingly drawn and effective, message-wise. So on that note, Hunger is definitely worth a look.