101 Thrills

Rating: 10/10 (22 April 2018)

The Animation Industry saw a decline by the mid 1950s due to increased production costs, change in business practices, and television. However, the artists still had a few tricks up their sleeves.
Ub Iwerks saw the invention of xerox technology as a possible way to speed up animation production and bring costs down. After some tinkering, he modified it so that animation drawings could be xeroxed onto cels instead of having them hand traced. However, many scenes looked "sketchy" as rough outlines of drawings were copied over onto cels. Ken Anderson got around this by stylizing the backgrounds and outlining everything, giving the film a unique look. They really got creative with this sketchy technology. Even the opening credits are the most intriguing of sequences to come from Disney.
Despite, the setbacks with the xerox photography, this is actually of one Disney's greatest films all around. Animator Andreas Deja said a while back, that although the characters are stylized and sketchy looking, they still come across as very believable and relatable characters. What also makes the film very strong is the engaging flow of the story, supplemented by creative use of camera angles and perspective shots. There is never a dull moment in the film. The climax is done well timed and suspenseful, keeping the viewers of the edge of their seats.
This is one film that I've enjoyed just as much when I was a kid as I do an adult.