Bill Plympton's The Tune

Rating:
Summary: Funny Animation, Great Tunes
Review: This full length film is highly recommended for Bill Plympton fans or fans of edgy animation. A solid effort from one of America's most distinctive animation artists.

For the most part "The Tune seems to be a collection of Bill Plympton's shorter animations strung together with the aid of a thin storyline. The story is a sweet one, of love and what it means to give someone a song. But the main character is a little cloying, and it's hard to care much about what happens to him and his girl. That being said, the peripheral characters, who star in the musical numbers, are much more interesting. The animations are outstanding and easily stand on their own. They seem to have been done at different times, in different styles, and it seems like not all these bits were aware they were gonna become a part of this movie. As a result each has a slightly different look, and color palette, which adds to the interest of the film.

Plympton's signature pencil sketch style is jumpy, wierd, disorienting and hilarious. Heads fold in half, split in two, and turn inside out. Characters morph into representations of the lyrics while they sing. The Wiseman's bald head grows funny hats by the dozens while a twangy countrified guitar does speed-solos. Serious tango partners share dumb jokes.
Each scene (for the most part) is based on a song, and the music is very catchy. I bought the soundtrack and still sing "Isn't It Good Again" and "Dance All Day" to myself frequently.

This is not your standard animated movie. It's intended audience is adults, though it's certainly not "dirty" and kids could enjoy most sections of this. At most, sex is hinted at, as when a hotdog enthusiastically leaps into a hotdog bun. Pretty obvious, and amusing, but at the same time fairly innocuous. Also, we get to see a moment of naked animated bums at the end of "Dance All Day." Nothing your average kid can't handle.
In fullscreen, about an hour long. Regrettably, the sound is slightly muddy, and like most of Plmyptons releases, it's short on special features (there are none) and DVD production values aren't the highest. But this flick is certainly worth seeing on it's own merits.

Rating:
Summary: Brilliant and distinctive animated musical
Review: I was astonished to read ...(this website's) in-house review trashing The Tune. It's one of the most innovative animated musical films of all time. I saw in the early 90s and couldn't get it out of my mind. Finally purchased the soundtrack a few years ago, and it's one of my favorites, with tunes rooted in a dozen genres, from surfer music and rural blues to slick Vegas show tunes, Sondheim-type musings, and commercial country--about the only thing The Tune skips is opera! Bill Plympton's jittery animation works perfectly.

Rating:
Summary: Just amazing...the second time 'round...
Review: If you've only watched this movie once then you haven't experienced it. You need to watch it again because it is then when you'll discover its brilliance. Believe me, the first time I hated it, then I was forced to watch it again, and it now is one of my favorite movies of all times. Great songs, great story, great animation. Plympton and McElheron are geniouses! Please appreciate this movie as much as I do.

Rating:
Summary: Yea! It's on Video!
Review: Finally, it comes back out on video! I was soo happy! This is the most wonderful Independent Film I have ever seen. Bill Plympton is a mastermind! IF you into cute cartoons with great music and a funny plot..this is the film for you. This is a story about a song writer, who goes on a crazy adventure through Flooby Nooby, a crazy town...where he learns about the perfect Tune...and a lot about himself!

Rating:
Summary: essential plympton
Review: The tunes are lovely and the animation is great. I bought it from amazon.com because it's already out of print in canada. It might get oop in U.S.A. too so get one quick and discover the magical and surreal world of bill plympton.

Rating:
Summary: Remarkable toon with ridiculous tunes
Review: Celebrated cartoonist Bill Plympton's first feature film is a surreal musical fantasy with some inspired animation. He financed it entirely by himself, raising extra money by doing work for a few television commercials (see "Plymptoons: Complete Works" on DVD). He also released early portions of the film as shorts to help generate funds ("Dig My Do" in 1990, "Push Comes To Shove" and "The Wiseman" in 1991), even winning the 1991 Prix du Jury at the Cannes Film Festival for "Push Comes To Shove." Working again with Maureen McElheron (she scored his 1988 Oscar-nominated short "Your Face"), Plympton pieces together the story of a songwriter who, after receiving a 47-minute deadline to deliver a hit song or get fired, finds himself lost in the town of Flooby Nooby. Through the course of ten musical numbers (touching on various popular music genres) and some outstanding animation sequences, he learns to pen songs from the heart rather than by the book. This film is classic Plympton, but the light-hearted theme and often silly songs contrast greatly with the bizarre sex and violence of his second feature-length film "I Married A Strange Person."

Rating:
Summary: Plympton for ALL Ages
Review: Bill Plympton's hand-drawn colored pencil cartoons are a joy to look at, and very funny with their multitudes of visual puns. But unfortunately most of his films are really for more mature audiences than can be shown in a classroom setting. This is the one DVD of Plympton's that is entirely appropriate for young audiences. Kids like the silly songs and weird roaming story. It is also an excellent example of economizing animation production with cycles and "moving holds." I wish they would package it with his short film "Your Face" which is also great for kids as an example of how animation can be used to change something normal --a face-- into a million variations of funny and strange.

Rating:
Summary: Just amazing...the second time 'round...
Review: If you've only watched this movie once then you haven't experienced it. You need to watch it again because it is then when you'll discover its brilliance. Believe me, the first time I hated it, then I was forced to watch it again, and it now is one of my favorite movies of all times. Great songs, great story, great animation. Plympton and McElheron are geniouses! Please appreciate this movie as much as I do.

Rating:
Summary: Finding the right sound...
Review: The tunes are lovely and the animation is great. I bought it from amazon.com because it's already out of print in canada. It might get oop in U.S.A. too so get one quick and discover the magical and surreal world of bill plympton.

Rating:
Summary: uhh..I guess the trippy movie
Review: okay-like if anyone has ever tripped before or is like wanting to this is the movie for you. This movie is sooo weird! there's like stuff-people coming out of a dude's head-and like the dude that the movie is based on, well he gets lost in this weird town called flooby nooby and he has like 45 min. to write a song. Honestly if you aren't on anything it will kinda make you feel like you are--I'd say this movie is for(well i'll be nice)people experienced with physecidelic-uh..things! over all it was kinda trippy!