Lily and Jim

This short was in part four of the "Short Cinema Journal"--a film I rented from Netflix but which appears to have originally been a monthly film series for people who like mediocre modern short films AND love to have the DVD chock full of commercials. I have so far tried two of the Journal's DVDs and felt enraged at the horrible way that a viewer needs to navigate the disk in order to see the films. Talk about an over-produced and overly complicated way of doing this! While I have and will continue to see as many shorts as I can, I really doubt if I'll bother with the Journals because of these factors.

LILY AND JIM was probably my favorite film in the set, though it was rather slow going at first. It begins with two terribly animated and nerdy characters talking about going on a blind date. The artwork reminded me of Don Hertzfeldt's but I didn't know for sure until later that it was indeed his work. I knew for sure when the couple turned on the television--the art and especially the very sick (and funny) minute or so the set was on was the highlight of the film. Apart from this, the film is quite cute and it was very insightful into the hazards of dating--especially for folks who aren't as charming or clever as folks on TV (in other words, most of us!).

'Lily and Jim' is an animated short about the blind date Lily and Jim had. Both are being interviewed, doing their story while we see the images that belong to their story. They start in a restaurant where they do not know what they should talk about. Then they go to Lily's (voice by Karin Anger) apartment where they drink some coffee. Jim (voice by Robert May) is actually allergic to caffeine, but he does not say anything about it since he wants to keep their evening nice. He just drinks the strong coffee.

Although it is not as good as 'Genre' from a year earlier, or both 'Billy's Balloon' and 'Rejected' after this one, 'Lily and Jim' is another fine example of the brilliant mind of animator Don Hertzfeldt. This one is the most accessible since it lacks some of the more violent images from his other films. It has some great laughs, when they are watching television is the best example, but not as much as any of his other films. Still terrific entertainment, highly recommended.

This is Don Hertzfeldt's third film, and arguably his best. This 13 minute film has as much heart as Woody Allen's "Annie Hall" with the sadistic edge of "Billy's Balloon," the followup to "Lily and Jim" played at the Spike and Mike Twisted Animation festival this past year.

A brilliant, brilliant film.

I saw this short recently and thought it was great - both poignant and funny. And the part where they turn on the TV was actually so funny that I laughed out loud sitting alone. I thought, why haven't I heard of this Hertzfeldt guy before, he's great. Turns out I had, but had forgotten. I'd seen both Rejected and Genre and thought, meh - I see what he's trying to do but the humor is too juvenile and too obvious. Kinda like South Park, or most of Cartoon Swim.

So, I think Lily and Jim is brilliant. And the violence and mayhem in the TV scene is just perfect. It works as parody there, funny and to the point. The violence and randomness in his other shorts doesn't work for me. Just making something weird and/or overly violent doesn't cut it.

For weirdness (even gross and violent stuff) that actually works because there's something behind it, see Wonder Showzen or Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job.

Put two dreadfully shy people (throw in low self-esteem) on a blind date and you have this great little animated feature. Each of the figures is trying to dredge up something to say and be honest at the same time. The problem is that something one says triggers a strange response. Nerves abound and they try, but can't connect. The girl makes a comment about her parents being incinerated. Do you think that could lead to a question or a comment? He doesn't even ask how that happened. This is a tightly produced little film that we all can relate to, even if it makes us crawl.