Projection of the 4K restoration of the animated science fiction film Gandahar by René Laloux at Digital Gym Cinema.
Digital Gym Cinema is screening a 4K restoration of Gandahar on Tuesday, October 13, at 7 PM. It's the final feature from René Laloux, a pioneer of alternative animation, and it's long been a cult classic of mind-bending science fiction. This version comes through Janus Films, which handles the distribution of the restoration.
The story takes place on a distant world where a merciless army of automata is attacking the planet and turning its peace-loving people to stone. A council of matriarchs enlists the warrior Sylvain, who teams up with the Deformed — a race cast out after failed science experiments rendered them mutants — and discovers that a gargantuan brain called Metamorphis is responsible for the society's strife. Alongside Airelle, Sylvain travels through time to defeat him. The film is celebrated for the surreal creatures and bizarre environments designed by comic-book artist Caza, and it runs 83 minutes. It was released in 1987 and is shown in the original French.
Laloux's work has always sat on the strange side of animation, and Gandahar is no exception. It's a slow-burn kind of sci-fi, more interested in its weird world and the creatures that inhabit it than in fast-paced action. The 4K restoration should do a lot of justice to Caza's designs, which are a big part of the film's appeal. If you're into animation that doesn't follow the usual rules, this is exactly the kind of thing that works better on a big screen than on a laptop.
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The screening is at Digital Gym Cinema, 1100 Market St. (2nd Floor), San Diego, CA 92101. Tickets are $13 regular, $11 for students and seniors, and $9 for members; no discounts or passes are accepted. It starts at 7 PM on Tuesday, October 13.
