After five years in the pipeline, Thru the Moebius Strip finally premiered in China last Friday, having already created ripples in the animation world both at home and abroad with its unparalleled production team and budget.

 

The movie is the first Chinese made full-length 3D animation, by the Institute of Digital Media Technology (Shenzhen) Limited (IDMT).

 

With a total investment of 130 million yuan (US$16 million), it involved more than 400 animation workers, plus a world-class team of producers that included director Glenn Chaika (The Little Mermaid, Mulan II), animation supervisor Bob Koch and Kelvin Lee (Toy Story), and model supervisor Wayne Kennedy (The Mummy, Star Wars).

 

 

Meanwhile, an overseas version is to be released soon in the US, Britain, Japan and France, with a star-studded voice cast including Mark Hamill of Star Wars and Michael Dorn of Star Trek.

 

As expected, incredible scenes and images of outer space, extraterrestrial beings and battle fights fill the film to stunning visual effect.

 

A survey by the Beijing News shortly after the movie's debut showed that nearly 70 percent of the audience attributed the movie's appeal to its 3D animation technology, while approximately 60 percent expressed their confidence in its competitiveness with foreign blockbusters such as Finding Nemo.

 

"It is one of the best animation films I've ever watched. The scenes are so vividly presented. It really surprised me a lot," said Wang Ping, 17, who could hardly contain his excitement after a showing.

 

Praise has also been sprinkled with doubts and questions over the movie's plot and brand name.

 

"Banal storyline"

 

Though based on an idea by legendary French graphic novelist and Hollywood veteran concept artist Jean Giraud, who broke new ground in comics art in the 1970s with several sci-fi classics like Star Wars, Alien, and The Fifth Element, the movie has led to some disappointment among audiences.

 

Quan Yinsheng, a Beijing-based professional cartoonist, expressed his disappointment with the movie's plot though gave due credit to its artistic design and visual effects.

 

"Simply put, it is just a retaliation story. It even reminds me of Hamlet, whose father is also murdered by his brother," Quan commented after watching the movie.

 

The film tells the story of a young lad named Jack who traverses through the Moebius Strip to a planet 27 million light years away, where his father is prevented from returning by giant aliens. During the process, however, Jack and his father Simon become entangled in a royal conspiracy and finally help a prince to reclaim his throne.

 

"The plot is too old-fashioned," said a woman surnamed Huang after watching the movie with her 5-year-old son. "It is easy for my little boy to be impressed by the fabulous scenes, yet for me, I would expect to see more interesting stories."

 

Xiao Yan, visual effects supervisor at the Digital Studio of Beijing Planetarium, claimed the plot was the movie's weakest point.

 

"However, it is a problem faced by most filmmakers," Xiao added. "The movie is already a success with its breakthrough in 3D animation technology. Maybe we should be more tolerant with the fledgling Chinese animation industry."

 

"Traditional Chinese animation films have been exclusively based upon either legends or classic literary works, which won't put animation technology under strain," said Xiao's colleague Guo Yu. "By trying space subjects or science fiction, I believe the movie will help promote the development of the Chinese animation industry, even though the subject seems kind of stale right now."

 

Sarah, a cartoon lover and interior designer from the UK, said: "The plot is mediocre, to be frank. Yet if explored with more details, I believe it will be more touching. Perhaps the producers have been preoccupied with visual effects, which unfortunately ended in a broad-brush depiction of characters."

 

Aside from the storyline, the movie's Westernized style has also drawn criticism from some moviegoers who claim there are too many similarities to Hollywood blockbusters.

 

The flying spaceships and bizarre extraterrestrials are somewhat reminiscent of scenes in Star Wars, while the dramatic fight between two troops at the end of the movie look very much like those in The Lord of the Rings.

 

(Xinhua News Agency August 10, 2006)