"Fantastic Planet"
1973
Directed by Rene Laloux

Rene Laloux's mesmerizing sci-fi classic, based on the book Om en Serie by Stefan Wul, is a landmark of European animation. La Planete Sauvage tells the tale of a race of humanoid creatures called Oms, fighting for their freedom from the giant, blue-skinned Traags, who keep them as pets. A group of rebel Oms travel to a strange planet where they try to uncover the secret of the Traags' existence. The film, which won the Grand Prix Award at the 1973 Cannes Film Festival, prefigures much of the work of Hayao Miyazaki at Studio Ghibli (Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away) with its palpable political and social concerns, cultivated imagination, and memorable animation techniques. "Laloux's film is a provocative foray into the psychology of state-sponsored terror...it is difficult to watch any scene without being aware of its symbolic and metaphorical potential" (Senses of Cinema). French with English subtitles. 72 minutes.