Directed by Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski, "Madame Tutli-Putli" is a somewhat groundbreaking stop-motion animation. The macabre film, which reportedly took over five years to produce, revolves around Madame Tutli-Putli, a frail looking woman who boards a midnight train. She's shown carrying a lot of extra baggage, both physical and psychological, the latter of which may or may not play a part in the bizarre nightmare which she experiences during her midnight journey. It's a nightmare rife with strange sights, grotesque visions and a plot in which freakish train robbers sneak aboard the train, cut open a man's stomach and steals his kidneys. Whether these events are really happening, are a nightmare, or are manifestations of the woman's warped personality – her misreading of real but far less sinister events – is left entirely up to the audience. Figuring out exactly what's going on is part of the film's charm.
It's technique rather than content which elevates "Madame Tutli-Putli", though. The directors, for example, used composited human eyes, which lend their characters a creepy, life-like quality. More jaw dropping is the film's second half, which essentially invents a kind of stop-motion "shaky-cam". Stop-motion, of course, is usually a rigid affair, with stiff camera work. But here the film-makers have recreated an extremely free-form, almost cinema-verite quality. This must have been a nightmare to shoot, Szczerbowski's camera needing constant micro set-ups and micro adjustments. No wonder the film took five years to create. Harryhausen and Aardman never attempted anything quite like this.
8/10 – Worth one viewing.
It's technique rather than content which elevates "Madame Tutli-Putli", though. The directors, for example, used composited human eyes, which lend their characters a creepy, life-like quality. More jaw dropping is the film's second half, which essentially invents a kind of stop-motion "shaky-cam". Stop-motion, of course, is usually a rigid affair, with stiff camera work. But here the film-makers have recreated an extremely free-form, almost cinema-verite quality. This must have been a nightmare to shoot, Szczerbowski's camera needing constant micro set-ups and micro adjustments. No wonder the film took five years to create. Harryhausen and Aardman never attempted anything quite like this.
8/10 – Worth one viewing.