Animal Farm

Animal Farm (1954) is an animated film based on George Orwell's bestselling novel. "Britain's second animated feature, which, despite the title and Disney-esque animal animation, is in fact a no-holds-barred adaptation of George Orwell's classic satire on Stalinism, with the animals taking over their farm by means of a revolutionary coup, but then discovering that although all animals are supposed to be equal, some are more equal than others." Referenced from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047834/

I thought the idea and storyline was good and an interesting concept but I disliked the animation style. I dislike animation that is done too stylized or too "cartoony" however the emotions of the characters were done very well and conveyed all the right emotions, some people will have more empathy for the animals than for people.
 

There is an interesting concept of propaganda and dictatorship woven into the storyline, the pigs end up ruling over the other animals and making them all miserable. The American cartoon tradition from the 1920’s until after the Second World War, used animals as funny distractions from the social despair of the Great Depression and the war, they sacrificed their 'animalness' and became purely comical.

 This story is based on the Cold War and uses Anthropomorphism very cleverly as if this had used live action actors or human figures it would of reduced the appeal of the film, it would of also had some of the ideas frowned upon due to them being considered taboo. "In 1954, however the Halas & Batchelor Studio released Animal Farm, making the animals far more like animals and less like humans, in order to underpin the seriousness of the political metaphor at the heart of George Orwell’s famous fable." Referenced from Basics Animation: Scriptwriting by Paul Wells.

 

 

This is a short extract from towards the end of the movie (see above).

This story contains a lot of interesting ideas and basis on real events but I still discredit it due to its unappealing animation style. I don't feel that this film has aged well due to the loud and distracting soundtrack and annoying sounds. I feel that this film can be easily understood by anyone of a mature age but the historical and political context is very important to the story, I have never studied this area of history and yet by watching this film I picked up on the hidden and interwoven messages within the film.