My Grading System

A+ = Masterpiece (I hold back on this one.) / A = Great. / A- = Really Good. / B+ = Good. / B = Decent (Serviceable). / B- = Flawed but okay (For those times there's something redeeming about the work). / C+ = Not very good (Skip it). C = Bad. / C- = Awful. / F = Complete Disaster (I hold back on this one too).

Note on Spoilers: I will try to avoid ruining a story by going into too much detail. But if I wish to include some revealing points to my analysis I will try to remember to add a separate spoiler paragraph.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Heavy Traffic (1973)

When are we, as Americans, going to realize that animation isn't just for kids?  I love animated films and while films like this one exist I crave for more adult-themed toons, especially ones that have the level of quality that go into the ones made for the family crowd.   Here Ralph Bakshi attempts just that and the results are mixed.  I can appreciate what he's trying to do.  The dark humor is funny and make for the best part of the film.  The grotesque nudity and in your face sex is great.  But a low budget and dated non-animated sequences show how rushed and incompetent the screenplay is.  What's the story exactly?   The attempted murder of a husband, the death of a homeless person, and the introduction of a transvestite for no reason but comedy is just desperate randomness, not storytelling.   Grade: B-.   
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