3dmm - the toy maker

Directed by: Dopp
Released: July 2001

I, like many, often find that the most simplistic of stories are the most effective. The recent Disney and Pixar movie 'The Incredibles' is an excellent example of the point I am trying to make. You don't need a complex plot with sub-stories and deep underlying twists; you don't need a huge character cast and you certainly don't need eyeball melting visual candy (well, ok - The Incredibles fails on this criteria). What I'm trying to say is that 'back to basics' is often better than loosing yourself in a mist of unnecessary complications. When 'The Toy Maker' was released in mid-2001, it quickly became one of my favorite 3dmm movies. I must have watched it in the region of 20 times now, and when I revisited it the other day it still worked it's magic. I'm not usually a fan of this sort of movie but for some inexplicable reason this one presses all the right buttons. All the cogs are in the right places; it's winning combination of cast, story and sound just make it flow. The animation and scenery isn't bad - a little bland in places, but there are some nice early shadow effects emerging. I'm not saying that everyone will love this movie, because I'm sure there are people who wont - this is an opinion after all. I just hope everyone will be able to appreciate the movie for what it is - simplistic yet brilliant.