The Congress (2013)

Ari Folman's follow-up to his acclaimed animated documentary once again delves into the world of animation, this time using animation as a plot device.  The latter half of the film is animated in a style that is notably different from the cut-out comic book animation style of Waltz with Bashir.  It starts out sort of psychedelic in a Yellow Submarine-esque feel, preparing the audience for a funky ride through cuckoo town.  This is a seriously wacky movie.  Folman animates recognizable figures in pop culture and art--the animated scenes genuinely look like something straight from Cartoon Network.

The premise of the movie is very interesting, but there is simply too much going on.  The first premise of the film is Robin Wright playing a version of herself, an aging actress who is getting less work, and resorts to selling her image.  Her likeness is captured by computers and the computers make movies starring their manipulation of Robin Wright.  In exchange she promises to quit acting, so the computerized version of her can be used in movies.  The movie is a critique of Hollywood and the studio system.  Folman clearly supports actors and their art, which cannot be replaced by computers.  But this is not just mere theory--recently the Hunger Games director decided to not use a computerized Philip Seymour Hoffman in the final film, opting to simply remove him from their unfinished scenes.  Marlon Brando attempted to preserve his head and emotions digitally for use in performance in the future, as detailed in the documentary Listen to Me Marlon.

But this storyline, which could stand alone to make a formidable movie, is seemingly abandoned in the second half of the movie.  The plot gets more convoluted and the movie moves on to explore other issues about denying reality and living in a fantasy of one's own kooky creation.  There's just so much going on, that it is easy to get confused.  But the movie is very interesting and its a pleasure to watch the animations.  Robin Wright is excellent acting live and voice-acting.  She reveals her mastery of her emotions in the scene in which the computer is capturing her range of facial expressions.  This movie is less personal and less powerful than Waltz with Bashir, but it is a brave foray into narrative film.