Review of The Triplets of Belleville (2003) by Jonathan B — 17 Sep 2011

A wonderfully macabre and original animated film that I've watched many times. It tells the story of a little orphaned French boy and his wizened old granny who, in an effort to engage him buys him a bicycle. Over the years he trains for and eventually enters the Tour de France but while on a mountain pass during the race, he is kidnapped by a couple of shady characters with a dastardly plan. They take him over the ocean to the city of Belleville and granny and his faithful old mutt have to track him down and foil the baddies.

This is a darkly comic movie that is definitely one for the adults. The dialogue is sparse and indeed, hardly needed. The animation is about as far removed from the sanitised Disney style as it is possible to be with some lovely nods to 1930s style. The characters are uniquely expressive and original giving the viewer plenty of chuckles and a few genuinely laugh out loud moments. The scene where one of the triplets (a trio of ancient, former vaudeville stars) goes fishing stands out in particular.

If you've only ever seen bland, mass market animated features and fancy something a bit more substantial and definitely left of field, this could well be the movie for you.