Gandahar (1988)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

René Laloux

Writers:

Jean-Pierre Andrevon (novel)
Isaac Asimov (adaptation) (English version)

Release Date:

2 March 1988 (France)

Genre:

Adventure | Sci-Fi | Animation | Fantasy

Plot:

An evil force from a 1000 years in the future begins to destroy an idyllic paradise, where the citizens are in perfect harmony with nature.

Plot Keywords:

Deformed | Turned To Stone | Robot | Invasion | Time Travel

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Pierre-Marie Escourrou	...	Sylvain (voice)
Catherine Chevallier	...	Airelle (voice)
Georges Wilson	...	Métamorphe (voice)
Anny Duperey	...	Ambisextra (voice)
Jean-Pierre Ducos	...	Blaminhor (voice)
Christine Paris	...	Porte-parole (voice)
Zaira Benbabis	...	Voix Enregistrées (voice)
Claude Degliame	...	Voix Enregistrées (voice)
Olivier Cruveiller	...	Homme-métal (voice)
Jean-Pierre Jorris	...	Transformés (voice)
Dominique Maurin	...	Transformés (voice) (as Dominique Maurin-Collignon)
Jean-Jacques Scheffer	...	Transformés (voice)
Jean Saudray	...	Transformés (voice)
Frédéric Witta	...	Transformés (voice)
Philippe Noël	...	Transformés (voice)

Also Known As:

Light Years (USA) (dubbed version)

Runtime:

USA:83 min

Country:

France | North Korea

Language:

French

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

USA:PG

Company:

Col.Ima.Son

Quotes:

Blaminhoe: We have lived in peace so long, we've neglected the possiblity of evil and we may have forgotten how to fight it.

Some fairly good sci-fi

It's not an outstanding movie by any means, but it gets the job done and entertains. One has to remember that when viewing sci-fi often the plot takes precedence over character. Most plot driven films and stories are like that: We're given the bare bones of our protagonist, and watch him or her weave their way through a story.

Such it is with "Light Years." The animation is certainly above the quality of your typical commercial studio, but is not as dazzleing as say a Japanese Anime space opera, nor a Disney Production feature; but it does have a certain quality unto itself. Even so the movie could've used more shots (cutaways and general coverage) to help move the story and highlight the characters more. As it stands more the shots are rather static, and the animation in them shifts gears a little too often. In some scene the animation is very smooth, where other times is seems very long and drawn out, or just not well staged.

The film itself has action, but some of the it is stilted and painfully slow, where othertimes it moves quite well. The dubbing is adequate, though, like all dubbed films, one gets the sense that it doesn't quite catch the tones and inflections of the voices from the original French cast.

Technology and regimented existence are pitted against the organic and under-dogs of Ghandahar in a typical sci-fi theme. The film's worth a night's rental, and if you like collecting rare sci-fi this might be one to add to your collection. Otherwise it may only be worth a single viewing.