Length: 1 hour, 20 minutes
Rating: PG
Animated Family Movie
Boy & The World is a Brazilian movie that had a limited USA release in December 2015. It came out on DVD this past July. The movie is told through bursts of colors and sounds, with no dialogue. It opens with Cuca, a stick figured drawn boy, watching his father go off on a train to the city to find work. Cuca embarks on an adventure to look for his father and reunite his family. As his journey progresses, the film gets darker. Through music and animation the movie shows the detrimental effects of industrialization and urbanization.
I borrowed this movie from the library, not knowing much about it. When the movie opened with a kaleidoscope of colors and sounds and simple, child-like figures, I wasn’t sure how well it would go over with my eight and ten-year-old children. Would it be too childish for them? No, in fact, it wasn’t. It was actually a very abstract film in which I voiced a running commentary to explain what was going on. Despite my reservations, both children were enthralled with the movie. Even if they don’t understand everything that’s going on, younger children will enjoy the bright colors and beautiful music!
The bonus material on the DVD was enlightening as we got to see how the movie was created. My son loves to draw and he was impressed to see how the original artwork was created and then made into the movie. Music and sounds played a pivotal role in the movie and it was fun to see how different materials were used to get the targeted sound effects.
This movie has won over 40 film festival awards and after viewing, it is understandable why. My children and I highly recommend this movie.
We borrowed this movie from our local library. The movie is out on DVD and available for purchase. It is also available (at a cost) to stream from Amazon Video.
