Bill Plympton's Dog Days: A Collection of Short Films 2004-2008

Many of Bill Plympton's idiosyncratic animated shorts, which have gained a cult following over the years, are available in several collections (see review of Plymptoons in VL-5/06). This compilation includes all three titles in his “Dog” trilogy—Guard Dog (2004), Guide Dog (2006), and Hot Dog (2008), as well as four other recent efforts: The Fan and the Flower and Spiral (2005), Shuteye Hotel (2007), and Santa, The Fascist Years (2008). All demonstrate Plympton's unmistakable visual style and quirky attitude, but are otherwise very different. The Dog films display distinct development from the gallows humor of the first short to the poignancy of the third piece, while Shuteye Hotel is moodily noirish and The Fan and the Flower slyly poetic. Spiral, meanwhile, is a biting satire on bad abstract animation. Only Santa, The Fascist Years misfires: relating a “forgotten” episode in Saint Nick's life during World War II, when he developed a dictatorial attitude and even joined forces with Hitler (in Plympton's audio commentary, he recalls that his friends didn't find the original concept very funny). In addition to commentary, DVD extras include other examples of Plympton's work, such as music videos, commercials, and animated segments from a History Channel documentary on Shays' Rebellion. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)