In Jesse Rosensweet's eye-popping stop-motion animated Paradise—set in what appears to be the 1950s in an unnamed metropolis where people mechanically move about on slotted tracks—a painted tin toy couple named John (voiced by Dave Foley) and Jane Small (Linda Ballantyne) engage in the same routine every day: breakfast and a kiss before John heads off to work. A lonely and disillusioned Jane keeps dropping hints about taking a vacation, but John only worries about keeping his metal nose to the proverbial grindstone at work, hoping for a promotion while rather naively helping out a conniving colleague with various customer accounts. Ultimately, Jane tells John, “I have needs, too”—a warning that John ignores, only to return home one night to discover that Jane has flown the domestic coop…after which John kind of goes off the tracks himself. An entertaining, impressively animated short about a man—who is almost a literal cog in the machine—receiving a rude awakening, this cautionary tale of paradise lost is recommended. Aud: C, P. (R. Pitman)
Paradise
(2007) 8 min. DVD: $99. National Film Board of Canada. PPR. Volume 23, Issue 6
Paradise
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
Order From Your Favorite Distributor Today: