Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space

Forget plot. Dispel any notions of linear progression. This is animation simply for the purpose of animation, and it sort of works. This does have a few problems however--I felt it was about ten minutes too long. And the shades of black and white do become a little tedious after awhile (though there is alleviation in the strategic use of colors throughout).

One of the attributes of the movie, the one that could either draw viewers in or send them running, is its tendency to drift in a kind of dream-logic (I feel that animation works well with that sort of surrealistic play) with no regard towards traditional structure. The character design is simple, yet oddly emotive, and the music is dreamy enough to get lost in.

This movie makes me wonder what the next step in these kinds of animation projects is going to be.

Granted this is not for everyone since many have poor attention spans and cannot tolerate sub-captions but for the rest of us that appreciate good art no matter what country it is from this is the bee's knees! This jumps from rich animation in deep vivid color and detail and realism to black and white very simplistic 'hello kitty style animation with mouths and moving eyes. The music is pretty damn good as well. keep in mind this is not only done by Japanese it has never really been adapted to fit American culture so do not think this will have the same feel as other Animation titles such as Nausical or Pom Poko. This is the most unique piece of animation I have ever seen so far hands down. In a way it is an homage to classic animation and the modern age as the two differences in animation style constantly converge and diverge throughout. Some scenes are very Fantasia like. Tamala herself is very much a cat in the way she acts and subjects she speaks about. She comes off as cute but has a serious potty mouth at times and she smokes. it is like cute collided head on with reality. Imagine Dot Warner of Animaniacs smoking and letting out four letter expletives while going on freaky adventures. Well I hate to tell Dot Warner this but Tamala IS Cuter than she is! Sorry Dot... The story may come off as undirectional but keep this in mind, Japan is a country of coming to a point indirectly. This is one story that is about the subtleties, the art, the characters, and describes the human condition well in many of the smaller elements in it like references to human extinction and Catty and Co. running everything in an iron fisted monopoly. This is not for children as there is violence and sexual references. Also do not watch this one with huge expectations. It is a lite piece in comparison to say Akira nor is it as direct in story as Kiki's Delivery Service but it is different and for those that are into the different, bazaar, and strange (as well as the non-xenophobic viewers out there) this is a animation that needs to be in your collection. No serious collector of Japanese cinema or animation should be without this even if it is not only tough but expensive to get. I had to look HARD for this one but Yesasia came through for me! Try Amazon Japan as well. It can be had but you got to look. Even though it is my personal opinion I loved this animation and hope more comes from this studio! It was food for my mind!

I attended a screening of Tamala 2010 at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood. The directors, t.o.L. (trees of Life), and animator were present for discussion after the film. It was two years ago, so my memory might be shaky, but I can fill in some information about the production of the film.

t.o.L. is an enigmatic multi-media creative duo (a man and a woman). While they work with animation, illustration, and graphic design, their primary focus seems to be music, and they composed and performed all of the music for the film.

All of the animation was done by one (!) man. He labored for nearly four years animating Tamala 2010. From his comments, it sounds like the directors fed him information about story and scenes, bit by bit, which he would use to animate segments. He usually did not know what was coming next while animating a segment. After the initial character design and style was established, he was left with complete control over his work.

Responding to a question from an audience member, the directors admitted that the idea for "Minerva" was based on "Tristero" from Pynchon's novel "The Crying of Lot 49".

The directors also indicated that they are very interesting in marketing merchandise based on Tamala 2010.

While the film is visually and conceptually interesting, it is disjointed, lacking a smooth flow. This is probably a result of the "make it up as you go" approach to direction and animation. The film could have been more satisfying if it had been planned out more carefully from the beginning.

The music provides continuity and holds the film together, which leads me to believe that music is t.o.L.'s primary interest.

I went to this movie with no expectations of any kind, except that it was Japanese and animated. What I saw was perplexing and at times disturbing, but completely engaging from beginning to end.

If you consider satire comic exaggeration with a moral punch, then this might be satire, though it's difficult to figure out what the moral is. The connections between the title character, Catty & Co., the Fritz Lang style 3-D artificial world, and Minerva are spotty. It would probably help to take notes during the rotting old professor cat's lecture, both at his slide show presentation, and during his confrontation with Michelangelo. For those who haven't seen it or read it elsewhere, these are all cartoon cats.

But this is a movie, and you shouldn't need to take notes to enjoy it, and I enjoyed it thoroughly as it was presented. I love the black and white, sharply detailed designs, the splashes of vivid color, especially that painting Tamala discovers in the basement of the museum. The violence gets pretty intense in places, but it works very well and doesn't seem gratuitous.

Tamala is worth a second look, but seems to be strictly short-run in most venues here in the U.S. DVDs are available from their website, but they're Region 2. It will probably be a long while before I see it again, but I anxiously await that chance.

I can see why some reviewers might not care for it, but I think this movie is incredible. It is largely associational, confusing and disjointed, and this is by no means made up for (in fact, perhaps exaggerated) by the long, dull, ex-positional monologue towards the end. But the very fact that the main character nods off repeatedly during said scene is evidence of the film's awareness of its own means and purposes, whatever they may be.

Purely affectively, I can say that the experience of watching this movie, if you can let go of plot expectations, is dreamlike, hallucinogenic, thought-provoking, and, as much because of the devastatingly catchy electro-pop soundtrack as any other element, at times transcendental. A shame it's so difficult to come by; I had to buy it region 2.