Everything Will Be Ok (2006)

Director:

Don Hertzfeldt

Writer:

Don Hertzfeldt (writer)

Genre:

Animation | Short | Comedy | Drama | Fantasy

Plot:

A series of dark and troubling events forces Bill to reckon with the meaning of his life - or lack thereof. |

Plot Keywords:

Death | Dream | Surrealism

Awards:

21 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Don Hertzfeldt

...

Narrator (uncredited)

Runtime:

USA:17 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Company:

Bitter Films

Trivia:

Almost every scene in the short splits the screen up into multiple moving "windows". The whole movie and all of its special effects were photographed and carefully composited "in camera" - no CG was used in the production.

Movie Connections:

Edited from The Meaning of Life (2005/I)

What seems to be a one-gag cartoon proves to be a moving story about illness and madness

The banal life of a young man is represented by stick figures and described by a monotonous narrator. We hear about his moments of awkward social behavior, the silly ideas that occur to him, his goofy thoughts about death and dying; the stick figures and the narration make the banality funny. The audience laughs.

Then the one-joke premise overstays its welcome. We're waiting for this thing to end, barely aware that the writer and director Don Herzfeldt, through his narrator, is sneaking in some disturbing items on the list of banalities. It hits most of us that something is seriously wrong when the young man notices a trickle of urine sliding down his pants leg. Is he sick? It turns out he is, both mentally and physically; and it seems he may die. We see, and hear about, the reactions of his mother and uncle. They buy a casket for him. He loses control of his mind.

I found this animated short about illness and madness very moving. I know how I feel about it, but what did I think of it? Did Herzfeldt intend to make a short that initially appears to us as a one-gag cartoon? Whether he intended it or not, was this a mistake? Did it add to or subtract from our reaction to the second half? Did Herzfeldt intend to amuse us, then bore us, then frighten us, then sadden us? Is telling a serious story with stick figures a kind of joke? Or were the stick figures the most effective way of telling the story? Or both?

In asking these questions, I think I've come up with my own answers. I think Herzfeldt intended the effects he got, and I think they were good ideas. This film is highly recommended.