Following on from our CoP Seminar featuring that utter train wreck of an album cover, we were shown two animations, as mentioned in the title.
The first was Ruka (or 'The Hand' in English) by Jiri Trnka. We weren't told anything about the animation before hand, other than the year it was released, and we just had to see what we made of it.
Ruka - Jiri Trnka (1965)
Oh my days did this make me feel uncomfortable. It was just so dark, and really frustraiting that the hand couldn't just leave the poor guy alone. To begin with I thought this could have been a metaphor (is that the right word to use here?) for depression, as the hand seemed to be getting on top of him, and stopping him from caring for his plant, something he deeply cared about. The hand was there at every turn and was beginning to control his life. The man kept trying to get away from it and hide, but he could never seem to do so, and it made me feel that he was losing a battle with a mental illness. It seemed quite likely as well, as there was nothing beyond the room he was in, so it could have symbolised how he felt trapped or isolated. The only thing that changed my mind was how he was then made to do work for the hand, and the coffin at the end. It seemed too ceremonial for me, and made me think that maybe this animation could actually be representing how people were forced to battle in the war, in particular World War II. Whereas I thought this could have been a possiblity, the dates were a little out.
Having done a little research I found that the animation was supposedly based on how Czechoslovakian artists were treated at the time by the government, and how they weren't given the freedom to do things they loved. It was also suggested to be based on the Prague Spring and other things that I don't understand because I know nothing about communism and politics and what not.
Surogat - Dusan Vukotic/Zagreb Film (1961)
I found this to be generally more cheery, and I didn't feel ridiculously uneasy whilst watching it, but having said this I still prefer the first. It was more emotional and powerful, and I think it conveyed it's message very well (even if I didn't grasp it right away). I also think the overall style of the animation was greater. With that being said, I think the simplisty and quirkiness of this animation suits it well, and helps to entertain the audience, which is what I'm guessing it set out to do. Yes, it had some strong themes of jealousy and supposedly "love" (which to me seems unlikely, as he'd only just met the lass, and only favoured her because of her figure), but it doesn't seem to have an underlying message, which is fine, It definitely entertained me. I didn't think it was anything spectacular but I wasn't tearing my hair out over watching it. I even really liked the idea behind the inflating and deflating, and how easily things could be brought to life, and how it was demonstrated with just the use of geometric shapes.
I dont think it was fair to compare it to Ruka. I massively favour that by Jiri Trnka, but the two are very dissimilar and have separate qualities that can be appreciated in different ways. I find it hard to do so with Surogat because I'm having to compare it to something that is incrediblly powerful and meaningful, but as it stands on it's own, it's quite a nice little animation short.
