The Animation Show 2005 (2005)

The second in the Animation Show's theatrical anthology series of the world's greatest animated short films; featuring Don Hertzfeldt's "The Meaning of Life" and Bill Plympton's "Guard Dog".

Storyline

Year Two of the "Animation Show" theatrical anthology series, showcasing more of the world's best animated short films: headlined by Don Hertzfeldt's "The Meaning of Life", also features Bill Plympton's "Guard Dog" and Peter Cornwell's "Ward 13".

---

Plot Keywords:

compilation | number in title

---

Genres:

Animation

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 February 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mike Judge and Don Hertzfeldt Present: The Animation Show 2005

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Animation Show

Technical Specs

Runtime:

85 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The DVD version Includes the following short films:

• Bunnies (2002, directed by Jakob Schuh and Saschka Unseld)
• Guard Dog (2004, directed by Bill Plympton)
• The F.E.D.S. (2002, directed by Jennifer Drummond Deutrom)
• Pan With Us (2003, directed by David Russo)
• Ward 13 (2003, directed by Peter Cornwell)
• Hello (2003, directed by Jonathan Nix)
• Rockfish (2003, directed by Tim Miller)
• Magda (2004, directed by Chel White)
• Fallen Art (2004, directed by Tomasz Baginski)
• When the Day Breaks (1999, directed by Wendy Tilby and Amanda Forbis)
• Fireworks (2004, directed by Pes)
• The Meaning of Life (2005, directed by Don Hertzfeldt)

In addition the DVD features 2 bonus shorts:

• A Painful Glimpse Into My Writing Process (2005, directed by Chel White)
• Kaboom! (2004, directed by Pes)

---

Connections

Follows The Animation Show (2003)

User Reviews

For the general overview, a fascinating good time

I won't review each short here separately, but in general this series is intriguing and definitely worthy a view. It starts off on the silly side with "Guard Dog", a short that, albeit a bit predictable, is still humorous and a little odd. The shorts don't really get funnier after that, but then again animation doesn't have to be funny.

While I'm not too knowledgeable on the subject of why these were put together, I believe it has something to do with showcasing creative talent in animation that would otherwise pretty much go unwatched, which in my case is true being that I wouldn't have heard of any of these animators if it wasn't for Mike Judge's and Don Hertzfeldt's names put above the title. However, besides Hertzfeldt's "The Meaning of Life" (which is the weakest Hertzfeldt short to date, methinks), the real stars are the other animators.

The strongest short is "Ward 13", a stop-motion animation about a patient trapped in a hellish hospital and trying to escape. It is hilarious, disturbing, and amazing all at the same time, a combination that results in the viewer staring at the screen with jaw agape once the credits start rolling at the end. It is so powerfully done with all three emotions that they tend to battle inside of you and leave you wondering what to think.

If it happens to be showing somewhere around you, I'd strongly suggest going to see it. Even if you don't like the separate shorts as a whole, the feature is definitely something intriguing and creative, and it's always nice to show what can be done with a creative mind at work.

--PolarisDiB