After watching “The Secret of Kells”, it was definitely not what I expected. To be honest, I anticipated the film would be similar to the BBC documentary shown in class or some other sort of “real-life” drama. I was happily surprised that “The Secret of Kells” was an animation, and I would go as far as to say this was one of the most unique films I have seen for a class.
My favorite parts of the movie were the artistic filming techniques and elaborate settings, mirroring the illustration of a manuscript. For example, the landscapes contained geometric symbols and some of the movie frames featured borders with detailed designs. I liked how the idea of intricacy manifested throughout the film. Additionally, I enjoyed the Irish undertones. Not many children’s movies, or movies for that matter, employ bits of Irish culture.
I agree. The visual effects that were used do a nice job of tying in with illuminated manuscripts in the sense that their organic, almost wavy borders appear in other aspects of the movie. You also make a good point about the Irish undertones, which I also found to be particularly enjoyable. I agree that The Secret of Kells is a very unique children’s movie.