Fresh and Exciting

As Good As It Gets

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

What begins as a feel-good-human-interest story turns into a mystery, then a tragedy, and ultimately an outrage.

The winner of Best Animated Short Film at the 67th Academy Awards is a look at middle age. I understand that "Bob's Birthday" became the inspiration for an animated series. I've never seen the series, so I can only focus on this story of a dentist's misgivings about reaching middle age while his wife invites their friends over for a birthday party.I should note that this is a mature cartoon, but in my opinion that improves it. The cartoon doesn't sugar-coat or dumb anything down. It treats the characters with respect the whole time. It also brings to mind the fact that the millennials will start reaching middle age in a few years. That creates all the more incentive for us to check out "Bob's Birthday". I recommend it.

"Bob's Birthday" is a 12-minute movie from 12 years ago by the National Film Board of Canada. David Fine and Alison Snowden wrote and directed this Oscar-winning little movie and they are mostly known for their work on "Shaun the Sheep" (the series, not the new movie). Anyway, this one here has some dark humor, but also some truth to it. A woman invites all her and her husband's friends to surprise him on his birthday. Unfortunately, the husband does not have his best day, walks around with no pants and calls all their friends boring while they hear it still being hidden to surprise him. Lots of awkwardness in this movie and some pretty funny moments I thought. Decent watch and I recommend it. The animation is very simple, but I liked it too.

Margaret Fish is busy putting the finishing touches to a surprise 40th birthday party for her husband Bob. Meanwhile, still at work, dentist Bob is in the grips of a middle aged depression where he wonders where his life is going and if he should really be as bored and disaffected with his lot as he is. While the guests gather in his home, Bob takes his time coming home and, when he eventually does, Margaret finds that Bob is deep in the throws of a crisis and keeps the surprise a secret In what is now regarded a pilot for the animated series "Bob & Margaret", this short film is wonderfully amusing but with a real heart for the characters and emotions involved. It is a simple plot but it is consistently amusing, occasionally very funny and mostly quite moving. The script paints Bob and Margaret as convincing and real people whom the audience easily identify with and feel for; they are funny but never in a cruel or mocking way. The animation matches this, providing a fuzzy warm style that has plenty of amusing little touches around the edges – particularly the pair of dogs in the house! I have never seen more than an episode of the series but consider it to be good and continues the themes and characters established in this film. Overall this is a touching and funny little short about middle age – nothing of any great consequence but enjoyable and entertaining nonetheless.

Funny animated short film that gave birth to the series, which I must admit, I haven't really followed. In this short, Bob turns 40. Margaret organize a surprise party, but she'll get a few surprises of her own! While she's preparing kebabs and the dogs are choking on the same ball, Bob is hit by middle-age crisis. His fear is to "wrinkle up like a piece of fruit". Maybe it's time to have children. Maybe Margaret doesn't find him sexy anymore. Maybe he should fall to temptation and have an affair with his younger secretary. Maybe ophtalmology is really his destiny! Lots of question and lots of laughs in this one.Seen at home, in Toronto, on December 29th, 2004.79/100 (***)