Isle of Dogs

ISLE OF DOGS (PG)

D: Wes Anderson

Fox Searchlight/American Empirical/Indian Paintbrush (Wes Anderson, Scott Rudin, Steven Rales & Jeremy Dawson)

US/Germany 2018

101 mins

Animated

W: Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola, Jason Schwartzman & Kunichi Nomura

Mus: Alexandre Desplat

voices of: Bryan Cranston (Chief), Koyu Rankin (Atari Kobayashi), Edward Norton (Rex), Bob Balaban (King), Bill Murray (Boss), Jeff Goldblum (Duke), Scarlett Johansson (Nutmeg), Greta Gerwig (Tracy Walker)

Wes Anderson usual visual style and quirky humour goes into this animated film, set in the dystopian future of Japan caught in a dog flu epidemic. The dictatorial mayor of the city passes a law exiling all canines to an island full of trash and a young boy ventures over to get his beloved dog, Spots, back.

Despite being an animated film, this is more likely to be enjoyed by adults, as it will probably go over the heads of young children.

The stop-motion animation style is excellent, the voice actors are all perfectly cast and the script does have many humorous and touching moments, presenting the film as a satire on immigration, consumerist waste, dictatorial societies and a face value story about one boy and his dog. 

At 101 minutes, the novelty does wear off in the final half hour, especially when the trailer practically sums the entire film up in a couple of minutes, but it's certainly recommended to those who enjoy Anderson's other works.

7/10