Alisa’s Birthday/ dir. Sergei Seregin/ 2008/ Russia
It has nearly been a month since the 2009 Seattle International Film Festival ended, and I am now finally reviewing the last animated feature I saw at SIFF this year. And I can’t think of a better movie to end my 2009 SIFF experience.
The art style and animation may turn folks off of this film and if you saw the SIFF trailer for Alisa’s Birthday, with its awful English voice-over dub and its campy upbeat tone, you may think its just a bunch of children’s fluff. To be truthful, yes, Alisa’s Birthday is geared more towards younger children, but unlike the other PBS kids’ specials I watched at SIFF, Alisa’s Birthday offered the audience a richer experience with moral dilemmas, contemplative moments, and *gasp* real emotion. All of which eventually led to a pretty decent animated film. Make no mistake, it doesn’t reach the pinnacle of Pixar or Studio Ghibli animated films, but Alisa’s Birthday is entertaining nonetheless. Continue reading