some strings detached

an epic story of war and the triumph of love told with puppets; marionettes actually.


i don't have a clue how this ever got made. not because its bad or anything like that, rather because its a full feature 2 hour film with nothing but puppets. thats a wild concept. imagine pitching this as a movie. i'm sure you'd be laughed at outright and probably blacklisted from ever showing your face again.

so if you're going to do it, you better make it good.

this is good. maybe not perfect, but its damn good.

the story itself is a bit on the obvious side. the novelty of puppets is seemingly a drag rather than integral. and thats were this film pulls out the punches. its not just that they're puppets being used but the "strings" that animate them are integrated into the story as a lifeline to the heavens. the birth scene in this, the creation of a new puppet-being, is mind blowing and beautiful. on the flip side the lack of movement of the mouths is somewhat difficult to take given that it can be challenging to attach a voice to the character (i don't know if this is a choice or something especially difficult to do in this technique....their eyelids move so i'm guessing it was a choice).

also the way in which the story blends a number of mythologies (leda and the swan, frankenstein monster, etc) is quite fun. i'm sure i missed some but the ones i did catch were both interesting and unique.

i'd say it may not become your favorite movie, its very likable, but its an absolute must see. the efforts put into this should be heavily rewarded.

give the beginning a bit...it does start a bit slow and difficult to get immediately into.

awesome
(9/10)

9/10