The Cabinet of Jan Svankmajer

If you're into film, you're most likely familiar with Stephen and Timothy Quay as well as Jan Švankmajer. Remarkably talented stop-motion animators, they are also distinctly different and for that reason alone worth seeing together.

This film is easy to see as a mere acknowledgment, but it's more than that. Švankmajer definitely features in the film as the strangely madcap creator of illusions in his cabinet; the ambiguity then arises from the fact the boy, to me at least, is the one who explores the world and has the pep and spiritedness. He's the one whose mind is explored, put on the table and ultimately stuffed with the things the creator wants.

When I think of Švankmajer, I think of a bleak reality that translates to socio-political commentary in filmic terms. The Brothers Quay, however, I associate with purely cinematic stories, their metaphorical film language not so much describing even allegorically any external condition but rather triggering solely visual reactions, much like Joyce's "Finnegans Wake", to which I already referred to in an earlier review. For me the Quay's speak more. Not that it has to be either or.

I just read a reference to the Quay Brothers and in it was a description of their animation. So I sought out a couple of examples. In this one we have little boy doll. He has things in his head which are emptied out. From that point on he is missing the top of his head. A "person" with metallic arms (like probes) and a head that looks like an open book comes in and seems to be teaching. A petrified tarantula is probed, sight unseen, and information about it results in the old men and the elephant thing, where the observations are based on limited information. Along with this are movement of pins, sugar cubes, and other objects that come to life. I will seek out a few more of their works.

This is an excellent introduction to the work of the Quay Brothers and stop-motion animation. It is enjoyable for fans of Svankmajer, but also for fans of the painter Arcimboldo, whose paintings and characters are featured heavily in this short; most notably the Librarian, which is brought to 3D life as the lead puppet, and also characters from The Seasons, The Elements, and others: Vertumnus, Summer, Fire, and so forth. In fact, a subtitle in the film is Portrait of Svankmajer a la Arcimboldo. Giuseppe Arcimboldo (1527 - 1593) was an Italian painter known for creating portraits composed of fruits, vegetables, flowers, fish, and books, all arranged in a fashion that constitutes a portrait of a character which is represented by all those diverse elements.

The Quay brothers style is at it's best here, with beautiful, surreal puppets telling the story of Czech animator Jan Svankmajer's life. The expressionist, stop-motion puppet work is perfectly suited to tell the story of Svankmajer's own surreal film-making. Split into several sections, the puppets (one expressing Svankmajer himself) act out the scenes, with maze-like, unidentifiable sets, dancing pins and a mesmerising soundtrack. All these elements combine into a treat for the eyes, and a severe hammering to the brain. The Cabinet of Jan Svankmajer is a marvellous short, particularly of interest to fans of Svankmajer himself.

"The Cabinet of Jan Svankmajer" is a film that is a tribute to the strange work of this Czech filmmaker. Svankmajer is known for making many stop-motion pictures which feature a strange and creepy sense of humor. I personally love Svankmajer's work but his films are certainly NOT for everyone. They are mega-strange, surreal and some are filled with father repellent images.

In this film, you see what essentially looks much like a Svankmajer short...with creepy dolls (with their wigs missing and giant cavities where brains would be) and a main character with a book for a head! It's all very confusing and strange...and much like a Svankmajer film. My only complaint is that it's NOT a Svankmajer film and I really think this Czech master filmmaker would have done this better. An interesting homage and Svankmajer-like film...but not up to his usual quality or sense of humor.