New York is a city populated by anthropomorphised animals, including the central character, who is a dog called .. Dog. He's lonely, and decides to buy a robot.
After assembling his new friend, Dog shows him the city. The two hit it off and develop a simple but beautifully-observed friendship.
Unfortunately, the two are then separated. The rest of the film is told from two separate points of view, as they seek to reunite. Some of the scenes from the robot's point of view are revealed to be a series of increasingly bizarre dreams - and what better proof of sentience is there than the ability to dream?
The ending's not the one the viewer expects, but is nevertheless charming and life (and friendship) affirming.
The animation is simple (in every sense of the word) but incredibly expressive at the same time. It's amazing how much emotion can be expressed by two dots and a few short lines. There's virtually no dialogue, but again the animation makes this unnecessary.
I wouldn't go so far as to call this film a masterpiece, but it's certainly better - and more enjoyable - than many another animation with fifty times the budget.
After assembling his new friend, Dog shows him the city. The two hit it off and develop a simple but beautifully-observed friendship.
Unfortunately, the two are then separated. The rest of the film is told from two separate points of view, as they seek to reunite. Some of the scenes from the robot's point of view are revealed to be a series of increasingly bizarre dreams - and what better proof of sentience is there than the ability to dream?
The ending's not the one the viewer expects, but is nevertheless charming and life (and friendship) affirming.
The animation is simple (in every sense of the word) but incredibly expressive at the same time. It's amazing how much emotion can be expressed by two dots and a few short lines. There's virtually no dialogue, but again the animation makes this unnecessary.
I wouldn't go so far as to call this film a masterpiece, but it's certainly better - and more enjoyable - than many another animation with fifty times the budget.