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I’ve wanted to do this with you guys for a while, and well, now I’m finally doing it. Watch this hilarious Pixar short, and then we’ll pick it to pieces together and see what makes it tick. Ready, set, go!
I love this short. It’s awesome. It make me laugh.
I love how the two men are portrayed as completely the opposite of each other physically. I also think it’s so funny that they unite (though still in disagreement) against the forces of a common enemy, and that that enemy is a little girl. It’s just beautifully thought out.
OH. Tag. @kate-flournoy
Yes, @Adry_Grace! Very good point.
A few quick things I love about this short— one, the body language is amazing.
Two, the structure is perfect. We open with a bored musician obviously waiting for someone to come along and make his effort worthwhile— something instantly wanted. Enter little girl with coin; want becomes must have. The stakes are up— he needs that coin.
And just when he thinks he’s about to get it… along comes the conflict.
Several attempts are made to gain the coin, the stakes getting no higher, but becoming more and more important. Then, in their exuberance, they ruin their chances of gaining anything, which immediately creates more conflict as the girl demands payment for her lost coin. That conflict is not able to be resolved by either musician, creating the necessity for an unusual solution.
Unusual solution works— now, instead of being with either of the musicians, our sympathies lie wholly with the little girl. Therefore, her ‘revenge’ is one hundred percent satisfying. The last act closes with a hilarious visual… and it could have cut off there.
But it didn’t— and that last shot totally made the whole thing go out with a bang.
Three, the message— ‘greed will often destroy any possibility of gaining its object’, and ‘never underestimate seemingly simple people.’
I love it!And just when he thinks he’s about to get it… along comes the conflict.
Haha! @kate-flournoy That gosh darn conflict, always spoiling everything. 😀 I think what’s great about the conflict is that it never actually is resolved, but the ending is quite clear. And then the fact that even if the men had managed to get the coins, neither of them would actually leave with more than was offered to them in the beginning. They both lose to the little girl…. Its almost like halfway through the film switches protagonists. We open thinking the protagonist is the first man, but in the end it’s really the little girl. And like you said, ITS DONE SO BEAUTIFULLY. They make it impossible for you to not feel sorry for the little girl and so you have no problem when the person who opened as the protagonist ends up losing. In fact, you laugh at his failure!! You rejoice in the little girl’s victory.
I have said it before and will say it again, Pixar is genius.
Great film.
Here’s my thoughts on some of the different structural points.
Inciting Incident: Girl walks into square
Key Event: Second musician shows up.
Second Act: When the stakes rise, and the musicians are fighting over the coin.
Midpoint: Coin going down drain. (This changes the trajectory of the story and like @Adry_Grace said, the protagonist seems to shift)
Third Act: Little girl plays violin and gets large donation.
Climax: The little girl throws the coin into the fountain. Which, little side note here, is foreshadowed at the beginning.
What do you guys think?
I love Pixar/Disney shorts! (I may or may not love my Disney animation a little too much) Tick Tock Tale and Paperman have to be my favorites. The animation is spectacular! The stories are so simple but yet they are so clever and ingenious at the same time that I usually end up wishing I had thought of the idea and written it down as a short story or something. And like @kate-flournoy said that last single shot with the string breaking and it’s little twang sound is the best. Also, the way that little girl sticks out her bottom lip makes me laugh.
Theater kid. Currently depressed because I can't stop listening to sad musicals.
I totally agree @dbhgodreigns!
The stories are so simple but yet they are so clever and ingenious at the same time…
@Christi-Eaton I think the simplicity of Pixar’s storytelling style is a good half of what makes their stories so charming. It drives me to distraction that I can’t just ‘be simple’. It’s not that easy! 😛 So thumbs up to Pixar. 😉Another thing I like about this vid is how important the setting is to the plot. Seriously, if that grate hadn’t been there… if there hadn’t been a fountain… not to mention the whole air of Italy about it is absolutely charming. I can tend to forget about incorporating setting into the plot with my work. 😀 But really, it’s very important.
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