Sausage - a short film review
Do you read film reviews? If you do, do you read them before or after you see the film? One of my all-time favourite film critics was Roger Ebert, because he was terrific at writing incredibly well crafted, spoiler-free reviews — something which far too few film critics seem to know how to do these days. Still, I wouldn’t read his reviews until after I’d seen the movie, because I like knowing as little as possible.
Here is the link to Sausage the short film by Robert Grieves that I have reviewed, so you can decide if you want to watch it first, or maybe read my review to help you decide if you even want to click the link.
Either way, I hope you enjoy my attempt at a spoiler-free film review.
Sausage - by Robert Grieves
The Cold War may be over, but nobody told the street vendors in the Eastern-bloc style town square in Sausage, the award-winning animated short film by Robert Grieves. A sausage vendor and a baker representing traditional, hand crafted values find themselves in an arms race, of sorts, when the arrival of a modern mechanical marvel threatens to undercut their trade.
The escalating efforts to win over the wallets and stomachs of the sheep-like citizens is presented using stripped down visuals evocative of 1950s animation. There’s no dialogue, but tight editing and a chirpy Bossanova-style soundtrack (augmented with accordions!) makes for a swiftly paced 6 minutes. Stylistically, it’s Wes Anderson does Looney Toons: madcap antics you might only find in an animated feature, but with the kind of stylistic flair and sensibility for a good musical cue you often see in Anderson’s films.
Both the heroes and villain are drawn in a colourful style that sits in stark contrast to the drab grey townsfolk, who appear to be drearily going about their day looking for brief moments of joy. It’s a visual that will resonate with anyone who’s ever worked a 9-5 city job and struggled to find a cheap, tasty meal on their lunch break. They’ll also immediately recognise the exaggerated but momentary excitement that comes with the arrival of a new food option in town. (Some UK readers may be old enough to recall the genuine excitement that ensued when the very first Pret arrived in London!)
It’s a smile-inducing story lampooning the escalating efforts of capitalist competition as well as the modern consumer’s growing expectations of getting more for less, and the very real impact that has on those who produce the goods. Plus, it might make you hungry!