Avril et le monde truqué

2016 has really proved to be a great year for film. April and the Extraordinary World may not be on the level of some truly fantastic animated films (Kubo and the Two Strings, Tower, The Red Turtle, Zootopia) but it's still a very good film in its own right. The great thing about it is that it is not held back by having to only appeal to children and by not having to show anything that may be even remotely inappropriate for kids. It's a very classic action-adventure story, one where you could also see working in live action (although not exactly because many of the characters would not translate to live action as well). It is very well paced, very funny at times, and also genuinely heartfelt. That ending was also really effective, with the last scene really hitting on some great themes that the film had only previously alluded to. Definitely recommended.

I recently reviewed a Japanese film and was left a bit indifferent by the film. It's a shame, as I really love animated pictures. Thank goodness I found "April and the Extraordinary World"...an animated movie that was delightful and really, really unusual. It isn't so unusual because it's in a steampunk world...a few other films have explored this same sort of material. However, the film offers far more in this odd alternate universe...and it makes the film worth seeing. Fortunately, it just debuted on DVD and is available through Netflix.

When the film begins, you learn that this alternate tale of planet Earth diverged for our reality in the 19th century. Apparently Napoleon III was a bit of a nut and was intent on using his top scientist to create super-soldiers which the French could use against the Prussians. However, the experiments were failures and soon the French and Prussians made peace. His successor, Napoleon IV, was also a bit of a nut...and tried as well to use the top scientific minds to make super-weapons...but, oddly, soon all the scientists began disappearing...and so the world never experienced the gains of the 19th and 20th century. Electricity never really came into widespread use and instead the world was a dirty, deforested strange steam-driven place...and the French were part of an empire dedicated to war with the United States...a war for resources as the Europeans had completely exhausted their natural reserves.

Time passes and soon the story soon involves a family torn apart in the 1930s. Napoleon V's agents have been searching for the scientists and a few of them are in hiding in Paris. Soon young April and her scientist parents and grandfather are all separated and the young girl is raised in an orphanage. A decade passes. April lives in a secret hiding place with her talking cat...yes, I said talking cat. Anyway, government agents are looking for April...and assume they can use her to find her family and the other scientists. Here's where it gets weird...yes, weirder than the talking cat! It seems that most of the scientists, including April's parents, are working with aliens...yes, aliens! What are they working on and how does April figure into all this? And, how does the cat become a hero? See this clever mind-bending film and find out for yourself.

This project has an unusual pedigree. It originally was a graphic novel...which isn't unusual. But it was made and financed by French, Belgians and Canadians! The overall product is a very nice bit of escapism. I liked the story very much as well as the characters. My only complaint, and it's so small that I barely want to mention it, is that the characters themselves weren't drawn to the highest standard. The background and much of the animation was lovely...but April and the rest don't exactly look like Disney or Studio Ghibli quality. I found I was able to look past this.

So who would enjoy the film? Well, most anyone except younger kids. It is not cute or child-oriented in any way and younger kids would probably be confused and bored. The youngest I'd show it to are kids about 10. Try it if you love anime, try it if you love more traditional animation, try it if you like sci-fi or try it if you just want to see something different. I'm glad I did.

As a film fanatic who grew up watching lots of 2D animations, I'm very happy to see they're still alive in other parts of the world after Hollywood abandoned them for 3D animations. Especially when it comes to this kind of animation, obviously the France produced some extraordinary films in the recent years such as 'Ernest & Celestine', 'A Cat in Paris', 'Zarafa' et cetera. This is an internationally produced film in the French language, but available in the English language too, which was based on the graphic novel by the French cartoonist Jacque Tardi.

This is the story of a young girl Avril that takes place in the 1940s, Paris. But it all begins many decades earlier that reveals how a family of three generations were pursued by the powerful men. It is the parallel universe story, especially when it comes to the technology, the world is underdeveloped and is in the steam age. This film is about the science and invention where Avril's parents, grandparents were on the verge to invent an ultimate serum. Now those bad guys are after Avril and her cat, Darwin. So before they catch her, she must find her family members if they had survived the crash a decade ago to put an end to all the surrounding mysteries.

Usually Europe means fairy tales with magic stuffs, but this is an sci-fi-adventure. Feels like watching a Japanese anime. Excellent story, the brilliantly developed characters with lots of suspense and thriller, so I don't think it makes sense to call it a comedy or children's film. Definitely for all ages, the film has a bit of everything to please the people from different generations. The sketches were another highlight, very catchy with the low bright colours. Directed by the two new directors, but their's experience is the fine result of this film.

"Cats don't dance. And they don't talk! So be quiet."

It is a beautiful world with the twin Eiffel towers, a bridge in the English channel kind of stuffs, yet it suffers from all types of severe pollutions. The global warming is the hot topic right now, but this film sets in 65 years earlier. So it comes in the line of 'Boy and the World', but all the focus was turned towards the family of scientists and their adventures than to press harder on the important issue. But throughout the narration, it is quite clear the world was affected by without the proper scientific progression and adaptation to save it. Avril might be the centre of the story, but the film character distributed widely and theirs story were well preserved to keep the excitement and pace steady till the end. So be prepared for some unexpected, because it's very matured yet a light humorous film.

The title might give an expression of a cliché, so if you expect a fantasy tale, then you're in the wrong place. But I'm surprised for how unique it was from other sci-fi films. Especially somewhat resembles 'Les Misérables' and some others, yet quite refreshing with all the twist and turns. When the actual story ends, there's an extended scene which makes us to dream for a sequel to come. But it all ended here, so a follow-up is very unlikely. Apart from the story, the technical brilliance was like par with the Animes, especially it reminds Miyazaki's films. These directors must keep doing films like this and who knows they may become the French versions of Tomm Moore.

One of the best animations of the years. A sci-fi which is not a dystopian theme. I said that because that's what very common in the current films. Instead, it is a mid 20th century story and totally an entertaining film with the breathtaking visuals. The story wise, it is nothing less than any similar live-action themes. It should have been very popular by now, but it is not and the reason is it is not a Hollywood. That's really very sad, but if you are an international film fan then you should give it a try and animation fans must not skip it. Like I said you won't often get a film matured, at a time funny as this one where adults and children can sit together.

8/10

This animation tells the story of a post Napoleon would, where all scientists are captured, and the world becomes very different due to a lack of technology. The last surviving free scientists strive hard to create the serum that can make life perpetual, but mysterious forces are after them.

The colour scheme of the animation is dark and dull. The characters are not cute either, and therefore it's hard for me to develop a liking for it. Though the story is quite engaging, I still don't find myself developing a connection with April and her experiences. The normally careful April all of a sudden trusts a stranger appearing from nowhere doesn't make sense, which annoys me quite a bit. Overall, the story is strong but has a loophole or two. I would have liked it better if the colour scheme was brighter.

"Steampunk is ... a joyous fantasy of the past, allowing us to revel in a nostalgia for what never was. It is a literary playground for adventure, spectacle, drama, escapism and exploration. But most of all it is fun!" George Mann

April and the Extraordinary World is an animated French adventure for the whole family (I recommend about 8 years and older) reminiscent of the fantastic 'toons of Hayao Miyazaki (think of Howl's Moving Castle). Leading us through an alternate steampunk history of modern France, April (voice of Marion Cotillard) is a little girl whose scientist parents in 1941 were abducted by the "Empire" to advance the cause, in this case by creating an immortality drug.

With her charming talking cat(a product of the scientists' experiments), April spends her youth confronting malevolent forces like a driven policeman (Javert anyone?), a roguish boy, and nature itself. Not one moment of the 1 hr 45 min is wasted; each is crafted under the expert direction of Christian Desmares and Franck Ekinci for maximum adventure and humanity (for example, love may be blooming and Grandpa Pops is feistier than ever).

The graphics as well are outstanding in the steampunk visual style with the omnipresent steam and pipes, furtive surveillance rodents, bicycle-powered blimps, and suspended trolleys, among some of the creative expressions. Although great advances such as the use of electricity and oil have not been discovered, the above-mentioned steam objects awe April as she navigates this alternate universe of coal and wood.

Conservationists shouldn't despair, for there are numerous references to the need to use coal, for instance, responsibly—already coughs are in the ambient sound. The suggestion that without the invention and use of atomic energy and fossil fuel, the world could have been stuck in an ecological disaster is an intriguingly benign take on modern energy.

The extraordinary April and the Extraordinary World is nothing if not an invitation for girls to follow their dreams and create as their talents demand. For all children it is a call to be bold and responsible as they enter the real modern world.