Orion und das Dunkel

Orion and the Dark is a sweet and charming film, dealing with anxiety in a unique cross generational way. There are moments where it almost captures peak Pixar (think Up), which is a first for Dreamworks. A very good family film, that will age wonderfully as your family grows up. Especially good for families with ND children / parents or families with children / parents who suffer from anxiety.

The sudden non-linear nature of it might seem jarring, but trust me - stick with it - it makes beautiful sense at the end. Voice acting was on point too... not celebrity ridden like Dreamworks films tend to be.

Loved it (and my kids did too).

DreamWorks Animation's most recent release follows Orion, a boy with an active imagination who faces his fears on a journey through the night with some new friends. Written by Charlie Kaufman, the mind behind "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" and "Being John Malkovich" I was intrigued to view his first animated film. Sadly, I will admit that this was kind of a letdown in the aspect of it not feeling original whatsoever. It did however illustrate kids struggling with fear and anxiety, and ways to face such fears. An ensemble of talented actors such as Jacob Tremblay, Angela Bassett, and Paul Walter Hauser would bring much attention to any film, however they couldn't do much to save this from just being an average film. Overall, this was nowhere near DreamWorks Animation's best work but was not there worst either.

I was enjoying the beginning so much that I paused the movie and made some popcorn. Everything was perfect; the story, the animation, nice heavy shadows in the animation, the drawings and separate little cutscenes which by the way reminded me of "Better off Dead" with John Cusack and a little of "Love and Monsters" with Ariana Greenblatt, in THAT movie the main character made a book with all the monsters in it that he came across, in This movie the main character made a book of all his fears. The beginning was so perfect, I was happy. But then the movie changed, I remember Buzz talking to all the alien dolls while Woody is watching and saying "This is Ludicrous". That's how I felt with the rest of the movie.

Honestly, I didn't know what to expect with this movie since it is made by Dreamworks but also written by Charlie Kaufman who has made some of my favorite films of all time. With an interesting concept, the movie surprisingly was pretty ambitious and interesting then the typical Dreamworks Animation movie.

I do appreciate the writing where it creates interesting themes and ideas together which worked pretty well. I found the narrative, while having some faults with certain aspects, remaining strong with some good dialogue, themes, and tone. The voice performances were pretty solid with some good deliveries and style. The animation is pretty solid with some good colors and models. Although it does feel a bit cheap then the usual Dreamworks Animation movie which is understandable due to the low budget.

The characters are interesting but I felt as the side characters were a little messy on certain aspects of development. Including the third act to be a little rushed. Here, Kaufman's writing isn't his best work but he still provides some interesting ideas and I do applaud him and Dreamworks on taking some unusual directions and shifts here. But I won't be surprised if Dreamworks had done studio interfere with his script.

Overall, not the best but nice to see Kaufman doing more stories.

Orion and the Dark is a surprisingly heavy and layered animated film until you see who has a screenplay credit and then it all makes sense. What starts off as a film about how every aspect of life can be scary quickly morphs into something that celebrates the unpredictability of it whilst exploring how balance is essential.

Jacob Tremblay is almost too good at portraying Orion's fear of everything early on but that actually makes his newfound love of adventure all the more enjoyable. Paul Walter Hauser makes Dark so loveable, turning a concept that's scary to so many into a gentle giant with his own fears and doubts.

Sean Charmatz's direction keeps things moving and manages to find an animation style that feels fairly original and more importantly, really nice to look at. In a perfectly fitting fashion, its greatest moments of visual beauty come from the scenes at night, which is essentially the majority of the film.