But I'm so glad the Americans did, as these Oscar Nominated crop of Aussie Animated shorts are nothing short of sublime. This
is what Box Sets are all about. Films of like mind - and quality. I'm
not talking about those bullshit "Schwarzanegger Action Sets" which
have one good flick and the three others which are made in his native
Austrian tongue that only four boys and an old leper saw upon their
original release. Yep, every single inclusion in this Box Set (Harvie Krumpet, Birthday Boy & Jasper Morello) is superb, touching and visually stunning in their own way. First off the bat is the Oscar winning Harvie Krumpet.
A short stop-motion film, which arguably, put Aussie animations - and
films - back on the international map. It's a delicious piece of
melancholy which trumbles along at slow and steady pace - but
consistently hits the mark with dashes of black humour, morality and
heart-string-pulling. It follows what is essentially a biography of an
ordinary man seemingly cursed with bad luck. From being born with
tourette Syndrome, to getting struck by lightning; from having his
testicle removed to developing Alzheimers disease; Harvie's troubles
seem unending! Yet, Harvie learns many lessons in life and enjoys its
many fruits. He finds love, freedom, nudity and ultimately the true
meaning of what it is to be human. It's a marvelous piece
of work, which succeeds largely because of the superb narration by
fellow Aussie Oscar winner Geoffrey Rush. It's a testament to his
talent, the amount of emotion he can express through his vocals. His
voice is so soothing, with such empathy in it - without seeming to do
much at all - Rush creates and runs the grey-ish world in which Harvie
lives. A fantastic performance, and emotionally, the most outstanding
piece within this Box Set. Next up is the Oscar Nominated Birthday Boy.
Again, this is goes in a completely different animation and narrative
direction to Krumpet (the major key of this Box Set's success is it's
diversity of styles). It follows a small boy in the Korean War and the
arrival of an unexpected package. It is the most awarded Australian
short film ever - and it's not hard to see why, fans of Japanese and
Korean anime will absolutely adore this. Last, but not least, in the box set we have the astonishing work of The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello. Again,
this does just about everything right. I don't know what it is about
mono tonal melancholy within animation - but it just works. Perhaps
because of the years of over-coloured Tiny Toons zaniness we were subjected to as kids, films like Jasper and Harvie seems to strike such a chord because of their ability to tell a story - without the jizz and the jazz of a Looney Tunes pic. Jasper
is - visually - the single most stunning piece of Animation found
within this box set. Director Anthony Lucas' world (which he has
developed over a number of years as "The Shadowlands") is a brilliant
mix of a modernised Victoriana - a future where computer chips failed
to take off, and the steam and iron revolution continued well into the
night. Set in a world of iron airships, this silhouette animation tells
the story of Jasper Morello, a disgraced aerial navigator who flees his
plague-ridden home hoping to redeem himself. His expedition leads him
to an island which is home to a monster that may hold the cure for the
Plague. The journey back is filled with dangers but, Jasper soon
discovers that the greatest horror of all lies within man himself. Again, the voices artistry compliments the visuals to perfection (this time, it's Star Wars'
Joel Edgerton) in creating such a uniquely wonderful - and ultimately
bleak - society. Anyone who fell in love with 2004's Lemony Snicket and it's fantastic opening and closing credits will be right at home here. The only problem with Jasper is that there isn't more - let's just hope there are more adventures in the Shadowlands to come! Three fantastic animations, one perfect box set. Captivating entertainment. DVD
Extras With
the actual features being, in their very nature, short - it's fantastic
to see that the Extras package is nothing short of bulging. Harvie
delivers the goods with several other shorts - which essentially act as
a genesis and family biography for the Krumpets. Each of the 4 or 5
shorts (dating back as far as 1996) are filled with the same sense of
depressed optimism. Be sure to check out Cousin
which features William McInnes showing just as much vocal depth as Rush
does in the feature. It also includes commentaries and several
storyboard features. Birthday Boy
offers much of the same, Audio commentaries along with several
featurettes looking at the journey from storyboard to finished film -
the most interesting being "Bringing Manuk to Life" which looks in
depth at the film's amazing look and feel. Not to be out done, the extras on Jasper
are fantastic, with several audio commentaries, a fascinating interview
with director Anthony Lucas on how his "Shadowlands" evolved, as well
as Lucas' previous the short films - all of which are part of the
genesis and on-going narrative of the Shadowlands universe. Conclusion:
Movie 95% Extras: 90% 
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