"Les Triplettes de Belleville"
Champion is lonely little boy, orphaned and living with his loving grandma, Madame Souza. He dreams of winning the Tour de France bicycle race and she, dotingly, buys him his first bike. Granny is also aware of his loneliness and brings him a puppy named Bruno. Champion grows to become a professional cyclist ready to compete in the Tour and Bruno has just, well, grown - to sizable proportions . But, there is mobster trouble brewing for Champion and grandma must save the day, with a little help from Bruno and "Les Triplettes de Belleville."
I knew that I was in for a real treat and something extraordinary when the screen fills with the scratchy black and white images from the 30's that is reminiscent of those old Warner Brothers cartoons that parade the caricature images of the stars of the day, with the likes of cartoon Cary Grant, Clark Gable, Mae West and W.C. Fields. Here, though, we see Josephine Baker, Fred Astaire and Django Reinhardt (guitar aficionados will recognize him) and the title Triplets of Belleville singing their sole hit tune, "Rendezvous," in a toe-tapping and beautifully created opening.
The animation camera pulls back and we see that the image is being shown on a battered black and white TV set being watched by little Champion and his granny in their rickety home smack next to the elevated train. The boy's bedroom is plastered with posters of his heroes, the winners of the grueling and prestigious Tour. Grandma Souza gives him the aforementioned gifts and Champion's direction in life is defined.
Jump ahead some years and the now fully grown Champion is in training with the help of grandma, she with her ever-present whistle tooting out a cadence beat at which Champion will peddle. He is about to participate in his coveted bicycle race and is at the peak of condition. The race begins and grandma follows behind Champion in the support truck. Suddenly, sabotage occurs, sidelining granny. An identical truck takes her place, this one driven by a pair of sinister looking thugs. Soon, their intent is clear and Champion, along with two other racers, is kidnapped by the French Mafia and spirited away.
Madame Souza - tiny, portly and clubfooted - is not to be deterred as she takes tubby Bruno and sets of in search of Champion. Along the way she is taken in by the now-elderly Triplets and plans are made to follow Champion's captors across the Atlantic to the town of Belleville where the bicyclists are used to perform their skills for a room full of gamblers. Granny, Bruno and the Triplets head off to America on their rescue mission.
It is a rare occasion that I get a film rush when I watch a movie. "Les Triplettes de Belleville" is one of those rare occasions. From the beautifully rendered opening number to the imaginative abstractness of the 2-D drawings the film pulled me into its quirky, entertaining story. Using minimal dialog, director Sylvain Chomet tells volumes with the eccentric characters that populate "Les Triplettes." My favorites are Madame Souza, probably one of the pluckiest octogenarians you'll ever see, and the well stuffed but totally loyal Bruno.
Grandma is ready and willing to take on any hardship to get her beloved Champion back. She doesn't say much but she is up to the task to rescue her grandson. Bruno has to be one of the great dogs of animation, ranking up there with Pongo & Perdita ("101 Dalmatians" (1961)) and Lady & Tramp. Bruno is a yappy, happy little puppy that grows into a rather obese (and still yappy) canine that lives by the train schedule of the very close quartered elevated train. Every 15 minutes, like clockwork, Bruno rushes to the top floor of their shaky home to bark at the passing train. In one of the film's inspired moments, we are privy to Bruno's dreams (in black and white) where he is the passenger on the train and the passengers take his place to bark at he rides past.
The Triplets of "Les Triplettes" are an odd, funny and endearing trio of old ladies that take Madame Souza's quest to heart and aid in the rescue of Champion. But, not before they dynamite the nearby lake and harvest and share their favorite food - frogs.
There are many notable moments of animation excellence through the course of "Les Triplettes de Belleville." Incredible attention to details, like a television broadcast of Charles De Gaulle speaking to the French nation, are provided throughout. The precise use of sound as a comedic tool is reminiscent of the fine audio work in another wonderful, surrealistic French film, "Delicatessen." Helmer Chomet shows the influence of the great Jacque Tati with his pointedly minimal use of the spoken word throughout "Les Triplettes de Belleville." The only words used are song lyrics and the complaints of a waitress when Madame Souza orders hamburgers and can't pay.
The 2-D animation is richly done and, though darkly hued, rivals some of the best pen and ink efforts out of Disney studios, especially when considering budget. Sound is also taken to subtle levels with, even, a squeaky wheel being played out to tense ends.
This short and sweet masterpiece has jumped to my best animation list and will likely be one of my 10 best at the end of the year. I give "Les Triplettes de Belleville" an A.
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