Geri's Game

This short won the Academy Award for Animated Short and probably deserved to win. The detail is impressive, but secondary. The plot is marvelous and the character of Geri is well developed. If you've seen Toy Story 2, Geri makes a "cameo" appearance as the toy repairman. All in all, a remarkable piece of work. Available on some copies of A Bug's Life VHS and DVD and well worth seeking out. Recommended.

The overwhelming success of such Pixar features as 'Monsters Inc' and 'Finding Nemo' may mean that's where all the attention's currently going, but their four-minute short 'Geri's Game' is definitely an enjoyable and highly original little film that deserves to dwell up there with the company's finest output. On the whole I've been repeatedly impressed with Pixar's animated shorts (perhaps even more so than many of their feature films!), and 'Geri's Game', in which an elderly man enjoys a game of chess with himself, may just be the best I've seen - even amongst such a tight array of gems as 'Knick Knack', 'For the Birds', and the ingeniously simple 'Luxo Jr', there's something about this one that really stands out above the rest. It's breezy and colourful, and the animation is simply excellent - I know that until relatively recently, people have always considered human character designs to have been the weak link in Pixar's digital portfolio (check 'Tin Toy' for example, and contrast the ultra-shiny, believable Tinny with his somewhat chunky human baby nemesis). Well, there's nothing in the least bit awkward or artificial about our title character Geri - he's a very polished creation indeed, with facial expressions all smoothly on target (can't go wrong when you're using Jonathon Harris as your model).

This is of course the very same Geri who showed up soon after as the cleaner in 'Toy Story 2' (I'm not sure if he was actually referred to by name, but he was there, and he even flaunts his trademark chess pieces at one point). I was always intrigued by this mysterious character, and when I discovered that he had a short film of his own I was anxious to see it (too bad it's been regulated to the 'Bug's Life' DVD, which is actually my LEAST favourite Pixar feature - there's irony for you). I finally managed to capture this little diamond on Pixar's own official website and, needless to say, it didn't disappoint.

The quality animation aside, and with the European plaza-style music setting it off to a nifty pulse, it's the slick editing that really makes this concept come alive. Seriously, it's amazing. I'm sure this has been pointed out enough times already, but no matter how obvious Pixar make it that really this is little more than just a bored and lonely old man making the most of his chess set and his seclusion, the way in which it cuts seamlessly between the players on each side of the table will quickly have you believing otherwise. Two very distinctive characters really do appear to emerge from one (think something along the lines of Gollum's personal tête-à-têtes in 'Lord of the Rings', only a lot less sinister in this case).

Unlike other Pixar shorts, including 'Knick Knack' and 'For the Birds', 'Geri's Game' may not be a laugh-riot exactly, but then laugh-out-loud hilarity has never been the essential ingredient for class entertainment. What makes this film so engaging is its intelligent story, gentle humour and truly charming sense of character. The cool visuals are a delightful bonus.

Grade: A+ - Clearly, playing a game of chess on your own can be more enthralling than you'd think.

I remember getting a kick of this short repeatedly when I saw Bug's Life in the theater repeatedly eight years back. Mostly because it sticks to the best rules of a little animated short like this. Less is more with the dialog, and editing and position of the camera are crucial. The filmmaker behind this, who hasn't done much aside from this short, is like a very wise film-student. In most film-student shorts, a good chunk of the goal in making 4 or 5 minute films is to put in as much information as possible while keeping it to the point and still having a story. The story here is a guy playing chess, Er, with himself, and getting into a competition to the death (well, almost) in having a check-mate. Geri's laughs and little facial gestures on either side are really genius in their own way, and the ending is one of those that puts a smile on your face. The music is also, in its own way, funny by way of being just a lowly accordion applying the backup to this wacky little scenario. Probably ranks up there with my very favorite Pixar shorts, worth another look on the Bug's Life DVD for sure.

This animated short film tells the story of an old man, who plays a game of chess with himself in the park. As he loses the game, he decides to turn things around with a drastic move.

"Geri's Game" is an interesting animation, as we see only one character but he plays both sides of the game. In the middle of the film, it gets unclear whether there is really just one man or there are two. Yet, I think the ending resolves this issue. It is a funny animation, but it is not as outstanding as the recent Pixar short animations.

This animation film is produced by Pixar studios. An elder man plays chess. However there is no opponent. He plays chess by himself and he changes his character. One is very quiet and cowardly, another is confident in himself and plays chess provocatively. At the beginning, he seems to be lonely because there is no one around him, in this place he is alone. On the other hand, he really enjoys playing chess so gradually loneliness will disappear. There is no dialogue but it isn't needed. Without lines we can enjoy this movie. This is an animation but it shows many expressions like really human. In the course of watching, I misunderstand there are two elder man. Through this animation film, I rediscover that the animation technology of Pixar is very high. The animation technology is shown up not only in the elder man's expression but also in the background landscape. The landscape is so beautiful and it looks like a picture. I think everyone should watch this film once.