Animation: What's the Appeal?
We sit down in the theater. The lights dim (well, after a while), and The Road to El Dorado begins. The three of us watch the film, occasionally commenting on the quality of the CGI or stomping our (well, my) feet in joy every time I heard Jim Cummings’s voice, and enjoying it immensely.
As we stumbled out of the theater, we chatted about the finer points of the flick. Suddenly, Bridget pointed out how utterly stupid it would have been had it been live action.
I had already become somewhat curious, but I immediately started wondering what exactly it was that sets animation and live action so far apart. I came to the conclusion that all of my favorites would be horrid as live action. Imagine The Great Mouse Detective. It would be just like any other deathly boring Sherlock Holmes movie (The Hound of the Baskervilles comes to mind). Then, there’s Darkwing Duck. I doubt that I would ever watch this as live action. It sounds like a bad Batman spoof. Then, there are a few that have been both. In these cases, the animated version is always better.
So what is it about animation that makes it so much better? What is it that puts cartoons on top?
One possibility is that there is so much more freedom in the animated world. The laws of nature and physics can be bent, stretched, or broken all together. Talking babies, animals, and trees are virtually exclusive to the realm of the cartoon. Not only can people fly, they can use the “law of delayed gravity”. Nothing unexpected can happen in a shot – everything is planned. And in animation, they can get away with much more. Looney Tunes is the single most violent show I can think of, yet it gets a “G” rating. Flame throwers, machine guns, and electrolizers abound in DWD and it is made humorous when a character is injured. And yet, no one raises too much of a stink. (Granted, anytime a cartoon character cusses, someone jumps all over it, but that contradicts my point.)
(Note: I wrote this essay right after seeing TRtED for the first time. I have since come across an article that brings to parents’ attention my last point. I have posted the article here.)
Or mayhaps, it is the acting. Face it. Voice actors are the superior actors here. They just have more emotion; more energy. Plus, they are actually hired for their skills rather then their appearance (though screen actors are hired for voice over jobs for their names quite frequently). I would much rather hear Jim Cummings or Dan Castellaneta than see any of the big stars of today. But you already knew that. However, this only appeals to the small regiment of voice chasers. And people usually join this illustrious group as a result of their fascination and adoration of the medium.
Then again, it could be because of the animation itself. A great majority of it is just so beautiful. The colors are astounding and just the whole field is wonderful. I have a great respect for animators. I would never be able to produce anything even remotely similar. I will never understand why it is assumed that just because someone drew or sculpted or otherwise animated show, it is for young children.
Which brings me to another possibility. Perhaps we are attempting to hold on to our childhood. I am certainly not prepared to let mine go yet. And, as cartoons are seen as being “baby shows”, this seems to be one of the easiest ways to do so.
But I don’t think this is quite it. My guess is that it’s the layers in animation. It just seems to have something for a wider variety of personalities than live action, as the children must be kept entertained, as well as their parents (and any deranged teenagers who happen to be in the theater. Heh heh). The furverts are rewarded with adorable talking mice, rats, foxes, beasts, whatever. Fans of annoying sidekicks are appeased with the Mushus and the Lumiers. And animated men are always way cuter than the real thing. Sorry, guys. Show me any one of you who’s as cute as Thomas (“Or Tulio!” says Larissa. “Or Tulio” I say. “Or Milhouse!” says Bridget. “Yeah. Sure.” I say), and I’ll reconsider.
So what it comes back to is – what ever happens to make it better does just that. I can guarantee that I would not have paid to see a live action TRtED, I would not be infatuated with a human version of Megavolt, and my walls would not be garnished with pictures of Daria characters if she were played by some three-name, anorexic teen superstar (sorry, Aaron, but Jennifer Love Hewitt is a perfect example).
