Waltz with Bashir

Waltz with Bashir used animation in a way I have never seen before, and after viewing it, I can’t imagine seeing that film any other way. Animation was an excellent choice for the medium of this film, it allowed the subject-matter to wander, perfectly depicting men’s terrified faces in battle and the realistic etchings of war. The film’s animation gave it a quality of surrealism that made these hallucinations and recounts by the characters plausible and mesmerizing. Waltz with Bashir deals with the psychological repercussions of war in a very distinct and unique way.

Of course we have seen many well-revered war films, which are fully stocked with gratuitous scenes of gore and combat. During which the main character has a moment where they have become psychologically damaged, and then there always flashbacks where they remember what happened. These remembrances can often be used to tell part of the story, but in Waltz with Bashir this method is not some Hollywood method of storytelling, it is used to help audiences see the horrors of what truly happened in Beirut, Lebanon in 1982. The whole story unravels, recounting everything that happened during the Sabra and Shatila massacre. The main character, is trying to find out what happened during the war because it seems he has forgotten his part. He is haunted by a vision that he is not sure even happened, so he tries to find others who were with him, who might be able to help him remember. The sequences in which the characters describe their memories are animated with deep grays and polluted yellows that make the memory so defined and vivid. The coloring is completely different than when the main character is just speaking with his friends in reality, but when they flashback it is very visually stimulating and hard to forget. Which is exactly how the men feel about the memories as they are narrating, so we the audience are there on the beaches of Beirut right alongside them. This was not just a story, this really happened and some of the film had deliberate camera movement resulting in a documentary style, including real interviews.

We are used to seeing animation with little puppies that can’t find their way home, and often animation is taken lightly and no deeper meaning or thought provoking is necessary, but in Waltz with Bashir that is changed completely and you become immersed in the plight of these people in a very confusing time in Lebanon. Not only the color and animation, but also the music is breathtakingly beautiful. Softly in the background a piano plays while people are being shot, hunted or chased. This accompaniment down plays the action so it is more emotional than frightening.

The end is surprising and will make you evaluate the film as a part of history, with the eyes of a human being, not just a voyer. I highly recommend this film as a wonderful look into the injustices of war and it’s repercussions on those involved. I also regard this film with much respect as one of the best war films of our time. You won’t need popcorn for this one, just observe thoughtfully.