First off, I absolutely adore The Snowman. Charming, stunningly animated, beautifully scored complete with a heart-wrenching ending, it is really something that Christmas is not the same without. I was intrepid in all honesty about The Snowman and the Snowdog. I was intrigued also of course, but thirty years after the original, which is close to so many people's hearts, I did question whether there was much point to it, and my family initially felt the same. Watching it last night, I actually did find it quite pleasing. Is it as good as The Snowman(like it or not, it is inevitable that these two are going to be compared in some way)? No it isn't, but The Snowman's quality and its reception and influence was a very tough act to follow and it was to be expected.
If there was anything that I wasn't particularly fond of this time around, it was the music. It certainly isn't terrible, it does have some beautiful moments, but at the same time it did feel a little too modern and could've been more subtly orchestrated. The song was pleasant enough, though I imagine that many people, including myself, will much prefer the ethereal beauty of Walking in the Air rather than the occasionally overpowering Coldplay-like feel of the song in The Snowman and the Snowdog.
However, I cannot deny at all that the animation is great. It is remarkably faithful to the style of The Snowman, to the other Raymond Briggs animated adaptations(Father Christmas and The Bear) and to the illustrations of the stories, and the handcrafting in detail and in colour looks really splendid. The story is also a strong asset, the middle has a little more going on, including a very amusing skiing race between the snowmen and a penguin, while the friendship between the boy, dog and snowman is charming in its whimsy and innocence yet remains upbeat on the most part and I did find the beginning and the end part with the snowdog very touching.
What was also good was that while it was very faithful in spirit to The Snowman, it even has a wonderfully silent atmosphere, because of the nice touch with finding the things under the floorboards, it didn't feel too much like a rehash. The ending is not as heart-wrenching as in The Snowman, but it still has that losing your best friend vibe- which would choke anybody up, whether they've been in that situation or not- that does still make it a moving moment. All the characters have a lot of appeal to them. Overall, pleasing and charming but I do think it is understandable if anybody is disappointed in some sort of way with The Snowman and the Snowdog. 8/10 Bethany Cox
If there was anything that I wasn't particularly fond of this time around, it was the music. It certainly isn't terrible, it does have some beautiful moments, but at the same time it did feel a little too modern and could've been more subtly orchestrated. The song was pleasant enough, though I imagine that many people, including myself, will much prefer the ethereal beauty of Walking in the Air rather than the occasionally overpowering Coldplay-like feel of the song in The Snowman and the Snowdog.
However, I cannot deny at all that the animation is great. It is remarkably faithful to the style of The Snowman, to the other Raymond Briggs animated adaptations(Father Christmas and The Bear) and to the illustrations of the stories, and the handcrafting in detail and in colour looks really splendid. The story is also a strong asset, the middle has a little more going on, including a very amusing skiing race between the snowmen and a penguin, while the friendship between the boy, dog and snowman is charming in its whimsy and innocence yet remains upbeat on the most part and I did find the beginning and the end part with the snowdog very touching.
What was also good was that while it was very faithful in spirit to The Snowman, it even has a wonderfully silent atmosphere, because of the nice touch with finding the things under the floorboards, it didn't feel too much like a rehash. The ending is not as heart-wrenching as in The Snowman, but it still has that losing your best friend vibe- which would choke anybody up, whether they've been in that situation or not- that does still make it a moving moment. All the characters have a lot of appeal to them. Overall, pleasing and charming but I do think it is understandable if anybody is disappointed in some sort of way with The Snowman and the Snowdog. 8/10 Bethany Cox