Touches You

Highly Overrated But Still Good

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

I sought this out because of World of Tomorrow, which despite being shorter, does have more of a narrative drive and probably even more ideas than this. This, however, is still rather brilliant. It's easy to think that after a while it will get old and dull, but the ideas keep on flowing and they keep coming on. There's a narrative here, but it's the random, spontaneous moments that make the film shine. Despite such simple animation, it also works very well within what the film is trying to do. I don't think this is for everyone, but I definitely think that it will be able to find a sizable audience that will greatly appreciate it

This movie is a natural progression from Hertzfield's earlier works, like Rejected. While Rejected experimented with the very form of the animation paper, this movie experiments with film itself. Exposure and lights and mixing images together. It's still animation, but it's experimenting on a different level. His visual style is still very recognizable, and despite all the visual experimentation, Hertzfield manages to put it together in a way that serves the not only the purpose of communicating the story to the audience, but also reflects what is going on with the story.The story told is about Bill, who has some health problems that affect his memories. It's a journey through (parts of) his life and his memories, seen through him. In some ways it is similar to Kurt Vonnegut's book Slaughterhouse Five, as it explores the same nonlinear storytelling as you find in it. It turns out that animation is a great way to explore corrupt/altered memories, and it's also a good outlet for Hertzfield's "silly" imagery.I wish Hertzfeld had spent more time on the ideas behind the short, and less on silly memories. While the are interwoven, it ultimately felt like he did not get as far under the surface as you would have hoped for a movie this length.

(Note: this review is fairly vague as I believe that this film is best if you go into it not knowing a single thing) REVIEW: Oh sweet baby Jesus... Where do I even begin? It was just a normal Tuesday afternoon and I was scrolling through the Netflix home page looking for a quick fix when, amongst all the stylish film and TV icons, stood out the bland, simplistic cover of "It's such a beautiful day". I didn't know what to expect at first but curiosity got the better of me and I decided dive head first into what is possibly one of the greatest films I have ever seen. This 1 hour cartoon sent me through a roller coaster of emotions. It made me laugh, it made me cry and it made me question my own existence. I imagine that this film is not going to be for everyone but it's only an hour long so there is really no reason to not give it a go.

I really didn't know much about this movie, but I assumed it was a movie about a little animated man living life. I sort of had it, but it's the kind of life he's living that's important. It's Such a Beautiful Day really is quite a beautiful movie. The art is very well done, despite seeming to be rather simple, and really portrays the thought processes going through Bill's mind very well as the story progresses. It's really cool to look at and although may be difficult to get used to at first, quickly becomes very intriguing and lovable. The fact that the whole movie is narrated makes it all the more interesting. The dialogue is made from little sounds and occasionally a sentence or two heard in the background. I can't imagine it being done any other way, the narration fits so perfectly. The movie is, although dark at points, very funny. The sheer randomness yet odd sense the movie makes really adds to it. Overall, It's Such a Beautiful Day is a must watch. It's creative and interesting, and although it'll probably be the longest hour you'll ever watch, it certainly makes sure that that hour is interesting and well spent.