The Red Turtle

If Japan’s Studio Ghibli is attached to a project then that it is almost a given that it will be high quality storytelling and animation. The Red Turtle – directed by Michael Dudok De Wit - is just that, and more. It is one of the most beautiful, memorable and thought-provoking films of the year so far.

The film opens with a man lost at sea being tossed about like a matchstick. He ends up on deserted island with only wildlife for company baby turtles, crabs and birds. Deciding he has to leave he builds a raft but once in the water, the raft is mysteriously bumped and eventually destroyed. This happens repeatedly and eventually he comes face to face with his antagonist; a huge red turtle.

Despairing that he cannot leave the island he turns the turtle, which is on the beach, on its back leaving it to suffer and die. It’s at this point that the film changes and the magic begins. The man, now as comfortable and contented, as he is ever going to be starts to live his life anew.

The island however is not an idyllic paradise, life and death co-exist: A baby turtle is grabbed by a crab, a crab is taken by a gull. The man also faces natural disasters and has to handle profound loss.

The animation is minimalist and the colour palette relatively limited but that enhances the film’s supple qualities, as in the stunning first appearance of the red turtle in the blue ocean with man and turtle contemplating each other. These daylight scenes contrast wonderfully with the monochrome of the night scenes.

The film is almost silent save for a few incoherent shouts. There is however no vacuum as the sounds of the island – the rustling of leaves, the lapping waves - are deftly rendered. As important is Laurent Perez del Mar’s wonderful music which is used sparingly and with resonance: the tsunami sequence is a masterclass in combining images, music and sound.

De Wit has said that Robinson Crusoe was an inspiration with the castaway facing life’s hardships but yearning for companionship. It could certainly be seen as an allegory and meditation on life and it’s many travails. What also came to this writer’s mind was the device used in William Golding’s Pincher Martin but that’s a discussion for another day suffice to say that this a must see film, and on a big screen.