Review of The Illusionist (2009) by Dennis H — 21 May 2011

This is a fantastic film that presents the unfortunate situation that many artists find themselves in, but it does it in a way that's not sentimental or overly attached. All of the scenes are faraway shots with hardly any closeups, which some may see as uninvolved, but I feel that it downplays the drama that is going on in the film and the moral messages in such a way that makes it more persuasive to its audience.

There's no whiz bang action; instead, there's touching scenes between very real and three-dimensional characters interacting in their everyday lives. It's a slice of life. Everything, especially the animation is exquisitely done, but the only flaw is that the ending was a little too abrupt, and it lacked real satisfying conclusions.

I loved it.