Eden on MASTERS OF TIME which is playing Animation First Sunday

With Les Maîtres du temps playing this years Animation First Festival, here is a look at the film from Eden Miller who reviewed it as part of her look at the cinematic work of Moebius

This is a repost Les Maîtres du temps (also known as Masters of Time) seems like it should be great. It was directed by René Laloux and designed by Moebius. The two of them should have been able to create a visionary masterpiece of animation.

And the truth is, they did, if you adjust your expectations a little.

Although based on the 1958 novel The Orphan of Perdide by Stefan Wul, the plot is secondary to the visuals. It's mostly about a boy named Piel who is stranded on a planet and space pirate Jaffar is sent to go save him.

Or something. As much danger Piel seems to be in, Jaffar and evil exiled prince Matton, his sister Belle, and old friend Silbad spend a lot of time talking and more or less just kind of hanging out. There's little urgency in terms rescuing Piel. And weird stuff that has nothing to do with anything happens -- like a planet where everyone turns into faceless angels and Piel encounters strange creatures on the planet he's on. It goes absolutely nowhere fast, until a resolution comes out of nowhere.

But to want a plot from this movie is maybe asking a bit too much. It is, rightfully so, all about the trippy -- and usually beautiful -- visuals. Much time in spent deliberating over the freaky angel-like creatures and alien landscapes. Two childlike creatures named Yula and Jad have their share of screen time, discussing various philosophical concepts about living. The film's not about the ultimate goal of saving Piel -- it's about everything that leads us to there.

Still, this is the kind of movie you're either going to connect with or you're not. I don't think there's too much middle ground. If the odd and often complexly dazzling look of the movie and its purposeful pacing doesn't appeal to you, Les Maîtres du temps will probably just confuse you at best or bore you at worst.

I know both Moebius and Laloux were disappointed with the final product, but that actually makes me a little sad. The movie is far from perfect, but in many ways, its imperfections is its strength. A more straightforward film would not have been as interesting, even if it would've been more satisfying.

The Movies of Moebius: Masters of the Universe (1987)

This movie is just silly.

It's clearly dumb fun, but even calling it "fun" may be overselling it somewhat. Masters of the Universe is not a good movie, but at least it's entertaining, despite itself.

The Eternia stuff is obviously where all the money went. The huge sets and complicated costumes are attractive and inventive (it's also a rare movie where our main hero is wearing fewer clothes than the female characters). Sure, this movie is based on a toy line, but these parts look better than they have any right to. I think just about everyone would've loved to have seen a movie completely based in this environment, but that wasn't to be the case.

No, instead, we get to spend most of our time on present-day earth with a couple of teenagers who get mixed up in He-Man and friends' dimension-hopping adventures. The generic small-town sets are such an apparent cost-cutting measure and that does feel annoying, but fortunately, there's not too much time spent on the "what is this strange world we've found ourselves in?" stuff.

Dolph Lundgren, as He-Man, is not nearly as bad of an actor as you'd expect him to be. He actually carries the film pretty well with an innocent nobility. Still, he does seem to be thinking really hard about his acting, although it works. Frank Langella's performance as Skeletor is appropriately hammy. Everyone else is largely interchangeable or forgettable, but you're not watching this movie for the performances.

Moebius is credited as "special designer" on this movie, which is about as vague as you can get, but there does seem to be his touches in terms of set design and styling of the costumes. All that stuff is great. There's just not enough of it.

But there are enough battles (with swords! and lasers!), reasonable PG-rated violence and explosions to keep Masters of the Universe mostly entertaining. But except for the Eternia stuff, it's also mostly forgettable.

The Movies of Moebius: Willow (1988)

While doing this project, I've hesitated to link to any of Moebius' concept art for these films. Partially, I figure that most people know how to use Google and these images are pretty easy to find, but I've wanted to judge want makes it on screen more than what could have been.

But with Willow, I think it's absolutely a case of "what could have been." Moebius' concept images for Willow are striking, colorful and original. What is on screen is dull, muddy and unsurprising.

And sadly, it's those elements that keeps this movie from fully working. If the production had been better, so would have been the movie.

The plot isn't really anything new -- you have an unlikely hero in Willow (WarwickDavis) on a quest who acquires a few sidekicks along the way. Some are powerful, such as Madmartigan (Val Kilmer). Some are just annoying, like the Brownies. Most events are telegraphed in advance -- the audience is flat-out told that evil Queen Bavmorda's (Jean Marsh) daughter, Sorsha (Joanne Whalley) is going to betray her. And if you're thinking harm is going to come to baby Elora, you probably haven't seen a movie before.

In director Ron Howard's hands, the movie is overly deliberate and long. You know what's going to happen and basically how, so getting through it is a a bit of a slog. (It might be different if you're say, between the ages of 8 and 11, however. This may be exciting.) There are only a few inspired moments -- a wormlike two-headed dragon and the skull mask of the General Kael.

It does get a little more intense toward the end, but it never really becomes much of anything.

So really, it just leaves you with the idea that it could have been good. It could have been visionary (even with special effects that haven't aged too well). It could have been fun (even with uneven acting). Looking at Moebius' concept art, you see it could have been bright and weird and playful. Instead, it's just a by-the-numbers fantasy adventure we ended up with.

Moebius Redux: A Life in Pictures (2007)

In honor of Eden's Moebius series I'm reviewing a wonderful documentary on the life of the man himself. Its a loving, but very much warts and all look at the work and life of Jean Giraud also known as Moebius.

The film is effectively the life of Moebius as told by Moebius. His telling of the story of his life is cut together from several interviews and it's what drives the film. His story is inter-cut with the the commentary of the men who knew and worked with him including Philippe Druillet, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Mike Mignola, Dan O'Bannon, HR Giger, and Stand Lee among others. The film is filled from start to finish with his art and some of it is brought wonderfully to life.

As he film begins we see how Giraud goes from young man interested in art and watch as he is altereded by a visit to his mother and stepfather in Mexico. There is something about the desert that opens up his mind and changes his art and his person. Its the change that will set him on a course to expand his brain and which will change the world of comic art. (And which will get him into a bit of trouble when he got hooked up with a so called "cult").

The film mostly concentrates on his life and art. We see his work on the original Heavy Metal, His creation of Azarak, the Silver Surfer and of course his film work.

Moebius says that getting a call to work in Hollywood is like getting a call from mount Olympus. We see bits of his work for The Fifth Element, Tron, and Alien. The most amount of time is spent talking about Alejandro Jodorowsky's attempt at making Dune. As fan of that book and the people involved with that film I've always been curious as to what happened with that film, and now I know (I finally learned the failure of the film was simply due to not being able to get US distribution).

I really loved this film more than I thought I would. Its great film that told me a great deal not only about Moebius but about other things, about the history of comic art, of how films are designed and how one man can influence so much.

Now the tough part, this film is going to be a real pain in the ass to find. The film was produced in Germany and it's full version is available on a German 2 disc DVD (which is worth it for all the extras), the trick is that you're going to have to have region coded machine and your going to have to try and track it down cheaply over seas. Amazon Germany has it but it's not quite as cheap as In and Out Records from Austria (I got it from In and Out with another DVD for about the price I was going to get it from Amazon Germany).

There is a 48 minute version called Moebius A Life in Pictures. It was run by the BBC and was for a brief time was available to viewing on their website. I don't know what the difference between the two versions, though one thing I've read is that Moebius is less of a jerk in the short version. I didn't think he came off as a jerk in the long version so I can't say.(I can't imagine what was cut from it and if you can try and find the full version)

If you can get your hands on this do so, its something I cam say rarely about a DVD it's something you'll watch repeatedly.

The Movies of Moebius: Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland (1989)

This is a mess.

It's a mess that's not without its charms, but Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland is still pulling in several directions at once. It doesn't even feel like a movie made by committee -- a "committee" at least implies some kind of coherency of vision, however mediocre the end result may be. This movie has no focus.

Nominally based on Winsor McCay's comic strip Little Nemo in Sumberland, this went through several producers, writers and directors before eventually getting made -- including Gary Kurtz, Hayao Miyazaki (who reportedly said it was one of the worst professional experiences), Ray Bradbury, Brad Bird, Brian Froud and Chris Columbus. Moebius wrote one version of the script (he ended up with a story credit) and created some concept art.

Not surprisingly, the aesthetic here is all over the place. The character design veers from cutesy to strange to scary, often all in one scene. The pacing is odd, with punchlines and reactions either coming a beat too late or a beat too soon. The plot feels cobbled together, almost as if someone vaguely described the formula of Disney movies ("there's a princess, a hero, an animal sidekick, some songs, and a bad guy!") and this was the best everyone could come up with based on that.

Still, there's some fantastic segments -- the opening where Nemo is trying to escape a runaway train on his bed is remarkable, and there are a few nightmarish sequences as Nemo's house floods or as he and his friends try to escape demon-like creatures. Slumberland is rendered in beautifully cheerful pastels. The final battle with the Nightmare King seems like the only time Moebius' work on this movie seems to show through, but it also feels a bit out of place.

But then again, most elements of this movie feel out of place when viewed next to each other, so maybe in another way, that part does fit right in.

I want to like Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland and despite myself, part of me does admire it, even though I spent most of the movie either marveling at how odd it was and waiting for it to be over. There is something kind of fun about it, but with all the talent the movie went through in its long production history, it's too bad it didn't end up as something better.

The Movies of Moebius: Les Maîtres du temps (1982)

Les Maîtres du temps (also known as Masters of Time) seems like it should be great. It was directed by René Laloux and designed by Moebius. The two of them should have been able to create a visionary masterpiece of animation.

And the truth is, they did, if you adjust your expectations a little.

Although based on the 1958 novel The Orphan of Perdide by Stefan Wul, the plot is secondary to the visuals. It's mostly about a boy named Piel who is stranded on a planet and space pirate Jaffar is sent to go save him.

Or something. As much danger Piel seems to be in, Jaffar and evil exiled prince Matton, his sister Belle, and old friend Silbad spend a lot of time talking and more or less just kind of hanging out. There's little urgency in terms rescuing Piel. And weird stuff that has nothing to do with anything happens -- like a planet where everyone turns into faceless angels and Piel encounters strange creatures on the planet he's on. It goes absolutely nowhere fast, until a resolution comes out of nowhere.

But to want a plot from this movie is maybe asking a bit too much. It is, rightfully so, all about the trippy -- and usually beautiful -- visuals. Much time in spent deliberating over the freaky angel-like creatures and alien landscapes. Two childlike creatures named Yula and Jad have their share of screen time, discussing various philosophical concepts about living. The film's not about the ultimate goal of saving Piel -- it's about everything that leads us to there.

Still, this is the kind of movie you're either going to connect with or you're not. I don't think there's too much middle ground. If the odd and often complexly dazzling look of the movie and its purposeful pacing doesn't appeal to you, Les Maîtres du temps will probably just confuse you at best or bore you at worst.

I know both Moebius and Laloux were disappointed with the final product, but that actually makes me a little sad. The movie is far from perfect, but in many ways, its imperfections is its strength. A more straightforward film would not have been as interesting, even if it would've been more satisfying.

The Movies of Moebius: The Abyss (1989)

The aliens almost make this movie worth it.

This is probably the most James Cameron-y of all of James Cameron's movies. You have a working class hero in Bud (Ed Harris), a "strong" female lead in Lindsey (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), who everyone refers to as a "bitch" even though we don't see it as audience. You have some hot-shot military guys as antagonists, as well as the elements of nature itself (in this case, the deep sea). You have plenty of special effects and action sequences, clunky dialogue, a bloated running time and some goofy, preachy philosophizing.

But the designs for the aliens -- which were conceived by Moebius -- almost make the movie work. They are both familiar and foreign and their flickering lights and graceful beauty make it easy to understand why the characters feel such awe when they see them. Even though some of the effects look dated now (the computer generated stuff isn't blended very well with the human characters), there is still something affecting about these scenes.

Still, the movie is mostly a slog. There's no reason it needs to be nearly three hours long, and the exciting parts are dragged down by slow, excruciating drama. The underwater scenes are certainly thrilling, but there's never a moment where what's going to happen is ever a question. Everything is telegraphed so far ahead of time it's easy for you to just want Cameron to get to the point.

Only the bizarre shift into preachiness toward the end -- the aliens are upset with us because we don't get along! -- is surprising. The aliens' underwater city is breathtaking and transporting, but those scenes feel like they belong in another movie. Maybe in a movie that's better.

In the end, The Abyss is what it is -- a James Cameron movie with some cool-looking creatures designed by Moebius. There's not much more to it than that.

The Movies of Moebius: Alien (1979)

To be clear, the spacesuits in Ridley Scott's Alien are the only thing Moebius designed to make it into the movie. (Although much of the inspiration did come from Heavy Metal magazine, so Moebius probably had more influence that just that.)

Of course, they're cool spacesuits.

At its core, it's a simple horror movie -- a terrible monster is on the loose and kills the crew of a spaceship one by one. There's not much more to it than that. And sure, that might be scary anyway, but in Alien, all the elements of design add up to make it terrifying.

H.R. Giger gets most of the attention here, and probably rightfully so, since he is responsible for most of what viewers remember, but everything from the interiors to the costumes make this world believable and uncomfortably claustrophobic even before the alien shows up.

So while something like the spacesuits may seem like a relatively minor thing in the movie, they do contribute to the overall feel. They are both sinewy and bulky and the bubble helmets with overhanging lights make the characters feel shut in and restrained even when they're out of the ship.

And that feeling of being stuck is what makes the movie work. We've all seen movies where characters who don't know or necessarily like each other are put into a terrible situation and have to learn to work together or trust each other. That's nothing new. And while the script and the acting is impressive, that's not quite what makes it so scary. They are trapped -- that's where the terror comes from.

Alien remains scary because all of the elements add to one mood. Even if one of those elements just seems trivial at first -- they're just spacesuits, for instance -- it would've been a lesser movie without it.

The Movies of Moebius: TRON (1982)

Nearly 30 years later, and TRON still looks good.

The computer graphics look dated now, sure, but there remains something masterful about the vision this movie creates. While it's pretty simple overall with its Wizard of Oz-esque plot and fairly low stakes, that doesn't feel like it matters too much in the end. Is it a good movie? Maybe not. But it's an amazing one.

While futurist designer Syd Mead created the designs for most of the vehicles, it's Moebius' touches that truly complete the world inside the computer. His skin-hugging costumes lit up by circuitry and maze-like environments go far to evoke the inside of a computer. The grayed skin tones and muted color palette, except for pops of electric red and blue, look odd and distinctive even now. It's even odder to think that all of this is in a Disney-produced movie that was more or less aimed at kids.

Jeff Bridges is all blue-eyed boyish charm as the main hero Kevin Flynn. He makes video games and is good at playing them and it's no wonder a whole generation found the idea of getting stuck in a video game world appealing. Bridges' Flynn made it look like too much fun. Bruce Boxleitner's Alan/Tron and Cindy Morgan's Lora/Yori are less interesting and the love triangle between the three is pretty inconsequential. But the acting doesn't feel like it matters too much, nor do the human characters. They're just there to serve as guides through this world as we travel from one dazzling set piece to the next.

There's a clear sense of fun and originality to TRON and it seems like the designers got to do what they wanted. It was a collaborative effort, certainly, but the distinctive quirkiness of Moebius' vision remain strong throughout. And it's that vision that keep this movie timeless.

The Movies of Moebius: The Fifth Element (1997)

When thinking about all the movies that the artist Jean Giraud -- known mostly to us in the U.S. as Moebius -- The Fifth Element is as good of a place to start as any.

Moebius, along with fellow French comic creator Jean-Claude Mézières, did the production design for Luc Besson's ridiculous attempt at a sci-fi epic. As dumb as this movie often is, the aesthetic at least means it looks really good.

Probably the most obvious thing about The Fifth Element is how shamelessly it steals from every popular sci-fi movie that came before it. Maybe I wouldn't go quite as far to say it rips them off, but there's some of that. Still, that's what makes this movie fun, despite its many flaws. After all, most of those movies stole elements from Moebius' work anyway.

(Hilariously enough, so did this one. Publisher Humanoids sued over similarities to The Incal by Alejandro Jodorowsky and Moebius.)

Bruce Willis plays Korben Dallas, a Bruce Willis-type whose tough-guy exterior hides a wounded soul. Milla Jovovich plays Leeloo, the supreme being who is essential to saving earth and can kick your ass, but is also innocent and vulnerable. These aren't so much characters as they are action figures. Both our leads make the mistake of playing these parts very straightforward and seriously instead of campy. Jovovich's oft-quoted, loopy take on "Leeloo Dallas Multipass" does come close to capturing the right tone for the film.

Only Gary Oldman, who plays villain Zorg as a broad parody of a Texas oilman, seems to realize he's in a movie where henchmen are wearing leather short-shorts (the costumes by French fashion designer Jean-Paul Gaultier are incredible and one of the things I do love is that absolutely not attempt was made to tone his looks down). Zorg is ultimately inconsequential but at least Oldman seems to be having fun.

The plot is fairly standard -- earth is in peril, stuff blows up, Chris Tucker appears and the movie screeches to a halt with his shrieking, and then everyone is saved -- but I realize expecting this movie to make sense or actually be good is maybe wanting too much from it.

Is it pretty? Yes. This is a beautifully stylish movie -- it looks good whether on a small screen or big. Individual scenes are dazzling and colorful (if a little bit reliant on orange) and parts of it go very far to evoking an intriguing future. It's just too bad that the story around those parts aren't very interesting.

Still, this is probably as close as we have to a live-action adaptation of Moebius' science fiction work -- at least visually, anyway. Even if I, personally, never need to sit through this movie of my own free will again, I think I will always have some affection for it on that account.