How Cel-Animation May Survive: A Review of "Sinbad: the Legend of the Seven Seas"

Dreamworks has taken over for Disney in my idea of what an animated film should be. True, Dreamworks is responsible for a number of strictly CGI films, their Cel-animated movies are actually quite impressive. My favorite has to be Sinbad, so far.

Now before I get slammed for the amount of CGI in this film, let me say this:

I once saw this movie receive a meager 2 stars. I’d like to sucker-slap that guy. This movie has slick dialogue, even slicker animation, wonderful voice acting by Pitt and Jones, and good, rounded storytelling. Dreamworks’ animation crew packs a nice punch with this film, and their synthesis of CGI and Cel animation proves it. A lot of studios use CGI as a band-aid for choppier animation, but this melds the two smooth as glass. The CG is textured to fit the surrounding Cel, so although audiences’ eyes are well-trained to pick out CG from Cel, they work well enough together that we don’t care.

True, many of the sequences are computer-generated, but the CG is cel-shaded, which is a technique more animation studios should implement (or have been), and allows an echo of cel artistry to the smoother textures (which also provides some nice eye-candy).

But enough about the animation (as awesome as it is), and on to the story. Sinbad, a pirate and all-around scoundrel, must retrieve the mystic Book of Peace from Aris (goddess of chaos and discord – don’t care if I didn’t spell it right) in Tartarus in order to save his life-long friend Proteus from doom in his own kingdom in Syracuse. Still with me? To complicate matters, Proteus’ promised wife (Catherine Zeta-Jones), Marina, stows away on Sinbad’s vessel to make sure he does the job. Aris, recognizing that Sinbad will actually follow through with his heroics, sends a slew of enchantments and creatures to stop him.

To all parties, the ensuing antics make sense, and each character, no matter how small, has their own quirks. You have two Asian brothers constantly betting on various outcomes in almost every event. Their words are in the background, but are imbued with genuine wit and timing. Dialogue between Sinbad, Marina, and Cale, Sinbad’s sort of skipper, are also teeming with realistic qualities. Sinbad and Marina argue like a married couple, Cale and Sinbad speak like old friends who have been through a lot and know what the other is always thinking. I flesh that out because I easily felt those impressions from the dialogue. It isn’t that it was complex or simple, it just was real. The dialogue made sense in every situation. Too many cartoons (hell, too many movies) have dialogue spackled with flatness (uh…Star Wars) and little depth that you could read between the lines with. To really get what I mean, just watch the movie.

And finally, a few words about the music. Harry Gregson-Williams goes solo here, and offers up a fine orchestral score that has well-placed character themes and over-archs. Though the only stand-alone pieces are the main titles and Aris’ theme, Williams sets the mood nicely. I was never distracted by the music from the action on screen, and that is a good thing. Too often, bad movies use good composers as Elmer’s glue, trying desperately to hold their movie together. Sinbad is not one of those movies. The composer and the animation go hand in hand seamlessly, and the end result is wonderful.

Lastly, this movie is FUN. It’s great even if you hate cartoons. The action is well-choreographed, has surreal physics, and is just plain enjoyable, not to mention pleasing to the eye. And above all, the story's pacing and execution is top-notch. You will never be bored with this movie (unless you're a prick).

I’m buying the DVD.

Over and Out,
Adam