Story genesis;
Razors are always in short supply in the Great White North.
The Creative Process:
I hope the Academy Award winning producers took good care of the students who did professionals' work.
The Studio, C. O. R. E.
I wish they went into the mechanics of the co-production between NFB and C. O. R. E. The NFB is inscrutable to us Janquis. The relationship between the director and the studio is interesting.
DIRECTING:
The above sequence I find particularly interesting. I like to see how directors interact with their crew.
Landreth's previous film, "Ryan", was Academy Award winning and all. "Ryan" is a well made film, the creative conceits are original and exciting. The art direction and the timing make up for the shortcomings in character expression.
Ultimately, the film is hollow and incomplete for me. The parallel between Landreth and Larkin is forced and unbelievable. The hint that the director's mother was an addict is an unconvincing bit of trickery -the sympathy he asks for needs to be built not shown in a flash and expected. The director's prologue about not being able to control his finances and fearing failure is trite compared to the subject's deep addiction and likely schizophrenia.
"Ryan" resonates -especially with animators -because it's about "us". "Hey, I'm an artist -that could happen to me!" In our minds we know this, and the film exploits that knowledge.
Ryan Larkin's own "Walking", likewise, has many shortcomings. Time and legend have washed them away. Landreth's "Ryan" preserves that work, and is a much deeper -in many ways more artful (because of this more flawed) film.
I hope "The Spine" continues this progress.
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