Attempts to forcibly fit realistic human characters into animated skin and shape them within it generally do not bear fruit.
Animated films favor stylization, both visual and character-based. This is particularly felt in films made with computer 3D animation, which are mostly all that appear on cinema repertoires. One of the best examples is the ‘Ice Age’ series, also from the Blue Sky studio, which achieved its success thanks to animal characters. When a sufficient number of films are compared, it becomes clear that animated stylized animals are far more human-like than animated human beings. Director Chris Wedge fell into the trap and managed as best he could. ‘Guardians of the Forest’, a title in Croatian that fits the film far better than the original epic ‘Epic’, tells a story that almost literally copies Luc Besson’s series ‘Arthur and the Invisibles’, offering a far less diverse and vibrant fairy-flower world. The film occasionally suffers from directorial, and sometimes from animation stiffness, and some shots leave an impression of emptiness. Although it can offer good action and solid entertainment, ‘Guardians of the Forest’ leaves an impression of mediocrity.
Director: Chris Wedge
Cast: Christoph Waltz, Colin Farrell, Blake Anderson, Beyoncé Knowles
Epic 3D
Voices: Ana Vilenica, Marko Makovičić, Livio Badurina, Mladen Vasari
