"Where's Anne Frank" is a fantasy cartoon reminiscent of terrible events

On May 5, Ari Folman's cartoon "Where's Anne Frank" is released on Russian screens. This director became famous all over the world in 2008, when he filmed Waltz with Bashir. In an almost autobiographical work, the author analyzed his memories of the Lebanese war.

This time, Folman again retells real events in an unusual way. Based on the famous diary of Anne Frank, the director visualizes the girl's experiences during the Holocaust. But, unlike "Waltz with Bashir", now Folman does not limit himself to documentary facts. He turns the action into fantasy, and at the same time draws parallels with the modern world.

The last component seems too straightforward and somewhere even drawn, but it does not spoil the viewing experience. An elegant cartoon raises important topics, but focuses not on scary facts, but on personal experiences.

"Where's Anne Frank" shows war and injustice through the eyes of a child

The diary of Anne Frank is one of the most important records of the crimes of the Nazis during World War II. A Jewish girl wrote down the main events of her life and her experiences in the form of letters from a certain Kitty. Today, the original is kept in a museum in Amsterdam.

One night, the diary comes to life. From the ink materializes the red-haired girl that Anna once thought up - the same Kitty. She does not know that the war is long over and wants to find her friend (i.e. the creator). Wandering the streets, the heroine learns that Anna has long been a kind of inspirational symbol. Kitty remembers the fate of her friend and at the same time tries to influence what is happening in the modern world.

War and tragedy through the eyes of a child is a standard idea for art, in particular for cinema. Films about the Second World War were made "Come and See", "Life is Beautifuland even Jojo Rabbit. But this does not mean that the topic has been exhausted or even banal. First of all, because Folman refers precisely to the primary source from which many such works originated. And it was this Israeli director, whose parents ended up in Auschwitz on the same days as the Frank family, who was able to correctly place the accents.

In the part that is dedicated to Anna, it seems that cruelty is not shown at all. But it is from the simplicity of what is happening on the screen that it becomes creepy. At first, the girl is upset that she is not allowed to go to the cinema. And then they show how students disappear one by one from the class. After the family moves into a secret apartment in the Netherlands, the characters often joke. But even in stupid humor, associations with war slip through. And the girl's first kiss will happen while watching the bombing.

Unlike the main charactersJojo Rabbit”and the tape“ Life is beautiful ”, young Anna is fully aware of what is happening. She just tries to fight him with the help of her imagination, mentally sending squads of her favorite movie characters to the enemies - this is perhaps the strongest scene in the entire cartoon.

Alas, this story cannot even have a formal happy ending: everyone knows that Anne Frank did not survive in the camp. However, in this gloomy finale, Folman does not tend to too cruel realism. He seems to turn a train going to Auschwitz, into the boat of Charon, and the camp itself - into the kingdom of the dead.

In addition to the obvious parallel with the impending death, there is another subtext in this course: in the years that have passed since the tragic events, the story of Anne Frank has turned almost into a myth. And this is the subject of the second storyline. Alas, not so slim.

Parallels with modernity seem drawn

Wandering the world, Kitty constantly comes across references to Anne Frank. And even to a direct question, where is her friend, passers-by answer: "She is everywhere." The dead girl has long been made a symbol of innocent victims. But many have forgotten that it was a simple living person. Memories and emotions were replaced with monuments and a grave over which you can cry clearly on schedule.

Perhaps this is normal for any historical event that has fewer living witnesses every year. But the problem is that, endlessly talking about the importance of what happened, people simply do not learn any lessons from it.

Alas, Ari Folman gives this idea literally on the forehead, often resorting to manipulation. He draws a direct parallel between the expulsion of Jews to camps in the 1940s and the aggression against refugees who came to the Netherlands and Germany against their will in our day.

If for most of the action it still manages to be hidden behind dynamics, two storylines and lively emotions, then by the end cartoon for a few minutes it turns into a poster with slogans.

But the author does not want to scold seriously for this. Folman expresses correct and important thoughts, and excessive simplicity only reflects the genre: after all, “Where is Anne Frank” is almost a fairy tale story. Perhaps it will make someone think about, alas, the eternally urgent problem of fleeing from war. And that's good.

The author presents serious topics in the form of a comic

As in the case of "Waltz with Bashir", Folman uses animation to reflect real events. Moreover, he does not lean towards 3D graphics, but turns what is happening into a comic book come to life. This brings to mind other similar works, such as "Persepolis» Marzhan Satrapi: a graphic novel about the revolution in Iran, the author herself turned into a cartoon. Or about one of the most powerful stories about the Holocaust - the comic book "Maus" by Art Spiegelman, who received a Pulitzer Prize for this work. award (the writer, by the way, refuses to film his work, intending to sell the rights only in case of extreme need for money).

“Where is Anna Frank” also grew out of a graphic work that Folman, together with his constant partner, artist David Polonsky, released in 2017.

Now Folman used the tricks from the comics and on the screen. The Nazis in his version resemble either Dementors or Nazgul: the figures in huge black cloaks have eyeless white faces. The warm tones of the houses where Anna lives contrast with the cold colors of the dangerous streets. Every now and then, dreams, fantasies and even jokes are visualized on the screen. And once the young heroine and her friend even get inside the old radio and walk among the lamps.

This approach adds to the work of fabulousness. And the events happening with the heroes are perceived even more harshly.

Perhaps, "Where's Anne Frank" in some scenes tries to manipulate the viewer, drawing clear parallels between the Nazi occupation and the current problems. But even this posterity cartoon can be forgiven. After all, first of all, he recalls that all the heroes who turned into legends were once people. And Anne Frank did catch the tragic events as a child. And in this case, it is more important to remember not about symbols and historical significance, but about the personal experiences of one little person.