The Best of Zagreb Film - Laugh at Your Own Risk/For Children Only

Description

In four decades, Zagreb Film of Yugoslavia produced 600 animated films, winning more than 400 international awards. The studio quickly became famous for a unique animation style that became known as "the Zagreb school." One of the pioneering distinctions was that its filmmakers wrote, designed, and directed their own films, resulting in boldly entertaining cartoons unified in design, tone and message. "Laugh at Your Own Risk" - The Tower of Babel, Exciting Love Story, The Devil's Work, Of Holes and Corks, Learning to Walk, Home is the Best, Largo, Maxicat in Tennis/Maxicat in Rope/Maxicat in Door. "For Children Only" - Cow on the Moon, Strange Bird, Octave of Fear, Little and Big, Anna Goes to Buy Some Bread, Well Done Job, Krek, Maxicat in Ball of Yarn/Maxicat in Door/Maxicat in Fishing.

Customer Reviews:

A rarely seen treat in the US is now available.......2001-02-04

I grew up watching "Pinwheel" on Nickelodeon and was thus exposed to wonderful foreign animation such as Zagreb's own "Professor Balthazar." While I don't explicitly remember any of these cartoons appearing on that show--although I think Maxicat's adventures may have--this was still a wise purchase. It is utterly fabulous to see the oft-neglected animation of Zagreb Film's talented stable of artists. I have always been amazed at how much these animators conveyed without dialogue; without language, these cartoons could find a home more easily in a multilingual world. The innovation in technique, storytelling, and themes should be required viewing for all students of animation, especially those who only have seen Hanna-Barbara and anime. A personal favorite of mine is Zlato Grgic's "Krek," a charming tale of the powerful bond between a man and his frog (think Michigan J. Frog without the singing) in the face of military oppression. A quick note to parents: just as standards of moral conduct vary from home to home, so do they from country to country. While I know some parents won't mind the very brief --only about two seconds--animated nudity, I know there are some who would and feel they should be alerted.

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