Viewed in a theater. This is an excellent movie. I was originally drawn to the film when I first saw the preview because of its comic book style of animation, which reminded me of the Marvel cartoons from the 1960s that preserved the great art from the comic books and relied on minimal animation (i.e. not much stuff moved). Some may view the technique as a crude form of animation, but I think the tradeoff is well worth it. Waltz with Bashir, about a man’s recapturing of lost memories from the early-eighties Lebanon war through reconnecting with his old war buddies, may be in comic book form but it is as powerful and engaging as any film you will see this year. It is very educational and thought-provoking, and has a great soundtrack. Not surpisingly, it gets a 91 from Metacritic. At one point in the film, it transitions from comic-book to live action, which is an interesting technique and has an impact that one can safely say is greater than the black-and-white to color transition from the Wizard of Oz.
