When the Wind Blows (UK, 1986)

When I was growing up, one my favorite times in my life was when my parents would take me to rent movies. Even as a child, I loved films, so much that I would watch anything, whether it was made for kids or not. Luckily I was raised by loving parents that would, for my benefit, protect me from content that my growing mind might not be able to process. As a child, I saw this selective editing of my choices to watch everything as an insult to my capability of comprehending good from bad. It drove me to rages of anger.  As an adult, I am grateful for their patience and protective nature, especially after seeing the cartoon "When The Wind Blows".

                 Still maintaining an "R" rating, this lesson driven cartoon has no visual violence, no foul language, no nudity or sexual content, yet with its absence of foulness delivers an emotional  shock to your system. In the near future, an old English couple prepare for what may be a nuclear attack. And we the viewers then watch a loveable and naïve couple deal with the physical effects of a nuclear bomb. we see them bicker like an old loving couple, chat and gossip, worry about their loved ones and go on with their lives as they bodies slowly react to a nuclear attack. Their innocents and lovable characters bring this morality lesson to such an emotional jolt to your system, that this movie will sit with you long after watching it. I found myself moved to tears watching the final 20 minutes of this gloriously important piece of art.

                And speaking of the art, while appearing simple, it is quite beautifully put together. The two characters are 2 dimensional cartoon characters as we are accustom to seeing, but they exist in a real 3-dimentional environment, which appears to be a house made for claymation characters.  When moving from one room to another, or from one character to another, we are treated to a 3D panning of the house, making the visuals pop off the screen.  They are fictional cartoonist characters dealing with a real world situation.

                If I were to have seen this as a child, and I had often requested renting this movie because it was obviously a cartoon and therefore cartoons are made for children, I might have missed out on how amazing powerful this film truly is.  Even worst, if I were to have seen this as a child and understood the films dark depressing atmosphere and message, it may have destroyed a part of my childhood. This is powerful stuff. 

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