Fest Track On Sirk TV Film Review: POUPELLE OF CHIMNEY TOWN [International Film Festival Rotterdam 2021 - Summer -Virtual]

The aspect of hidden worlds and the societies they encompass has been a proponent of folklore but also the basis of upheaval depending on what the basis of said society is. In "Poupelle Of Chimney Town" which is the closing night film of the 2021 International Film Festival Rotterdam - Summer Edition, the idea of redemption is draped in family and loss. Although indulgent and melodramatic at times simply because of the style of the film, its themes work well and are not unlike those of Pixar. In fact there is a lot of relevance and simily to films such as "Wall E" and "Up" in terms of humor, story schematics and some visual cues. There is also some deeper cuts including reflections, interestingly enough, of the cart chase in "Indiana Jones & The Temple Of Doom" as well as "The Adventures Of Baron Munchausen". The key to the film is the relationship between a young boy who lost his father and a monster who appears made out of garbage from the darkness of that grief.

While their interaction is different, there is also an "ET" parallel in that that movie features a single mom and a kid looking for something to believe in. The path that the boy moves is being a chimney sweep in a town where the sky has been blocked by soot and people cannot leave across the ocean. They are trapped by their own isolation but the boy dreams of a life beyond the clouds...if only to know what happened to his father. The movie at one point reflects on what made the city this way. It sounds epic but balances its impact somewhere between a footnote and a deep cautionary tale. The story points and the reasoning are all nicely handled and the fluidity of the city in its animation and detail is both retro and modern without being steampunk. The humor floats a little younger but it works in the context of the family story it is trying to tell.

There is an essence of menace in the Inquisitors (the would-be masked bad guys) that is alluded to but never really goes darker (a feat considering the intimidation of the town's citizens). The heart of the film is of course "Garbage Man" also known as Poupelle. He is both gentle and unnerving. He is kind and yet not completely aware of his existence. This of course comes to bear in the conclusion as it should. The film, which is also set during Halloween, is not necessarily a morality tale but it is not a revenge tlae either. It is one of resolution in many ways. While a fable speaks to a different part of the story, there are more references to the act of thinking for yourself and not what the bigger society is telling you is truth. That subtle push mixed with the refection of a new generation makes "Poupelle Of Chimney Town" as an interesting parable to the idea of what a beautiful night sky can bring. B

By Tim Wassberg