Platypuschow
I read George Orwells classic about 20yrs ago but was quite frankly devastated by it. For that reason I had no interest in watching any film adaptation but recently gave in.Animal Farm is as relevant today as the day it was written and perhaps for that reason it is very difficult viewing.For those unaware the entire story is an allegory for the events leading up to the Russian Revolution of 1917 and then on into the Stalinist era of the Soviet Union.It tells the story of the overworked animals on a farm who turn on their human master and make it their own only to watch the same thing happen again when one of the pigs becomes the very thing they had revolted against.The animation style is that of the early Disney cartoons, it's over the top wacky and charming. The trouble is even though the movie is heavily comical and jovial it has several very alarming scenes and a very unnerving under current throughout.Animal Farm is great viewing and devastatingly relevant across the world,if you're reading this then you are almost certainly experiencing it whether an overworked animal or maybe even a pig.I rate Animal Farm a tad low perhaps, not because of the quality of content but purely because it's so hard hitting and not in a good way.The Good: Charming animation style In places very sweet Extremely well written and narrated Powerful social commentary The Bad: Very difficult viewing Things I Learnt From This Movie: The animators went out of their way to make every humans nose look ridiculous Mankind can make a movie to reflect society and how downtrodden most are, but still won't acknowledge it enough to act
SnoopyStyle
Manor Farm, run by the drunken Mr. Jones, has fallen on hard time. The animals suffer under his brutality. The senior boar named Old Major ferments a revolution among the animals proclaiming that "All Animals are Equal". Old Major dies soon after but the revolution is unstoppable. They drive out Mr. Jones and later his drinking buddies. The pigs lead the revolution and proclaim the Seven Commandments of Animalism. The leader Napoleon takes an interest in the abandoned farmhouse and a litter of puppies left orphan by the revolt. Soon Napoleon drives out his rival Snowball and takes dictatorial powers with the puppies which he raised into vicious dogs. The Commandments are slowly changed and Napoleon starts selling to local trader Mr. Whymper. The last change is that "All Animals are Equal but Some Animals are More Equal Than Others".The animation style is Disneyesque. The source material is George Orwell. The secret financial backing does alter the material but it is still compelling. The changes are political. As a movie, it is engaging. As propaganda, it is influencing.
Eric Stevenson
I happen to own a copy of the original novel of "Animal Farm". Back before big rival companies like DreamWorks or even mainstream anime were created, it was rare to find any animated movie in an age as long ago as the 1950's not made by Disney, or at least one that was particularly noteworthy. I admit that I don't read novels anymore, but this is a story so significant I can't forget it. My only complaints are that it is a bit too short. It seems like there could have been more ground covered, but it still delivers the goods. It was weird how there was little dialogue, but for the most part, it worked by setting the mood.In the modern age of CGI, we forget the time where traditionally animated films were all there was. This has animation that truly does hold up after all these decades. You could even compare it to the artwork of classic "Looney Tunes" cartoons released at the time. As the film is fairly short, it really does seem like some very long cartoon that would come before an actual film, only in a serious manner. This shows us how serious animation can be and how we should relish what it has done for us.The story is more or less the same as the book. Barn animals overthrow a farmer and are then ruled by pigs who turn out to be just as corrupt as the humans. Having read and studied the book in High School, I truly understand the meaning. The book is a classic and can never be surpassed, but this is certainly worth watching. Even if you are unaware of the symbolism behind Communist Russia or in more modern terms, a country like North Korea, it still holds up. History buffs such as myself can't pass it up. I know of citizens or maybe simply people who don't care about who controls them or how it's done. They didn't really change the ending, as simply add more to it.May the opposition of dictatorship live on forever! *** out of ****.
Red-Barracuda
George Orwell's novel 'Animal Farm' was a fable that worked as a bang-on critique of the Russian revolution and Stalinism. In it a group of mistreated farmyard animals rise up against their owner and overthrow him. They then briefly form a Utopian society that quickly deteriorates into something very similar to the old system that was in place before.Different animals represent different people. The wise old pig Old Major represents Karl Marx and the beginning of communist teachings; Farmer Jones is Czar Nicholas II and represents the old regime; Napoleon and Snowball the pigs are respectively the ruthless Joseph Stalin and idealistic Leon Trotsky; the pack of dogs are the secret police and violent state enforcement; Boxer represents the hard working peasants; Benjamin, the wise but powerless individual; the sheep the unthinking masses. While Manor Farm itself is Russia and Animal Farm the Soviet Union.The format of the fable works extremely well in illustrating the story of the formation of the USSR. This cartoon version of it is in the main a pretty impressive adaption. While the ending goes against the Dystopian one favoured by Orwell, it's not really surprising that it does this, although it's unfortunate. But it doesn't really damage the film very much as it's central idea remains intact. The animation itself is good enough, and even though there is a lot of narration I didn't consider this to be a problem. I thought that all things considered this was a good stab at an iconic bit of literature.
AD
