Movie Review: The Inventor

 

Michael's Movie Grade: A-

A very sophisticated and intelligent stop motion film. 

Telling the story of the later years of Leonard DaVinci's life, this film has the look of a Rankin-Bass Christmas special. However, the story it tells is much deeper and more complex. This movie explores some very deep themes and does each of them in a very intelligent way. One of the main themes here is that DaVinci is simply unable to have faith anything beyond what he can scientifically explain. Yet this lack of faith and a need for a meaning in life drive him further and further into his experiments. This leads to many incredibly well-done scenes where he tries to find some deeper meaning in life. Some of these scenes are just as visually interesting as they are philosophically interesting. One brilliant idea was to have the scenes that take place in his mind be done in 2-D animation, while the rest of the film is in stop motion. This not only makes the film a visual treat, but it also works from a thematic standpoint as well. Because of this stylistic choice, we feel that we get to experience this joy of discovery along with DaVinci and understand so much of what drives him as a person. While it only covers a small portion of his life, this film is a masterful character study as well as a historical story. What makes this movie special is that it is hard not to become invested in the main character. Just as much as the 2D animation works, the stop motion animation is perfect for this movie. It gives this movie an unassuming and unpretentious look that makes it feel immediately accessible. This movie also benefits from a good sense of humor and a charming and easy going pace. The easy going pace also helps us feel like we are experiencing this along with the characters. 

I do have two minor complaints about the film. One is that the ending feels a little too tidy and the other is that the songs (while pleasant) are instantly forgettable. 

All in all this is a lovely and very smart movie that I hope achieves the attention it deserves.