Fantastic Planet (Laloux) 1973

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I’m searching for ways that this film would be more enjoyable, and I’m sure most of the answers to that question involve copious amounts of drugs.

I received this film as a recommendation in a movie challenge I’m participating in online, and the category for the week was surrealist films, and let me tell you, Fantastic Planet definitely falls into that genre. There were times that this felt like the animated versions of picture books I remember from my youth, but dipped in a Dali painting and then rolled through a pile of the oddest rejected creature creations from Star Wars.
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The animation in the film is basic and that’s really just fine. The creations mentioned above are truly unique and I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like them on film or elsewhere. I really enjoyed the visual approach, and the lack of complex animation actually contributes to being able to focus on the story.

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​Unfortunately, it’s the story that is a bit lacking. Like the animation, the story is very basic, but at the same time it is strongly allegorical. To summarize, the story focuses on a young Om (human) named Terr who is taken in by a Draag child on a distant planet. Terr is treated as a pet, complete with collar and silly outfits, until he eventually escapes and finds a group of Oms that he aligns himself with. The Oms learn about the Draag society from an information headset Terr brought with him and eventually rise up against the Draags.

The allegory should be pretty obvious to anyone who has ever had a pet of their own or seen kids trying to cook ants with a magnifying glass. In that respect, it feels a bit heavy handed and direct, something I wouldn’t expect from a French film. I appreciate the effort, but don’t feel like the execution was as good as it could have been.

Being a French film, I wish I could have watched this with the original French voices and English subtitles. Unfortunately, the English voice cast was bad and probably detracted from my enjoyment of the film. On the other hand, the music was terrific. It was very clearly from the 1970s, but had a good vibe to it throughout.

If you’re looking for something different from the traditional animation from Disney, Pixar, Dreamworks, etc., this is definitely one that fits that bill, but I’m not sure it’s truly a great film.

6 out of 10