Movie Monthly: Irish Animation Illuminates Medieval Book of Kells

Reel 2 Real International Film Festival For Youth, running 9 to 16 April, was established in 1998, to provide “culturally diverse, authentic programming for youth.” While the festival has a younger audience in mind, with audiences engaging in the event through question and answer sessions, and linked classroom discussions, many of the films will have a broader appeal.

In particular, there's a chance to see The Book of Kells a wonderful feature animation that has picked up numerous festival awards and was nominated for an Oscar this year.

The Book of Kells is one of the oldest Celtic manuscripts dating back to the times when Norsemen terrorised communities along European shores raping and pillaging wherever they went.

The manuscript itself is revered for its intricate and beautifully hand-drawn illustrations, but is surrounded by mystery. The Secret of Kells, drawn in appropriately flowing, exquisite colours, tells the story of how the book survived the marauding invaders that ransacked Kells.

The Abbott of Kells is busy fortifying the abbey compound against the expected Norse invaders. In the midst of their preparations, a master Illuminator drags himself through the Abbey gates after surviving a pillaging of the monastery on the isle of Iona - where St Columba established Scotland's first christian settlement - clutching his unfinished manuscript.

Young, ginger-mopped orphan Brendan, against the wishes of his guardian the Abbott, secretly helps the newcomer, Brother Aidan, complete the magical and powerful work. It's a job that involves dangerous missions beyond the protective walls of the Abbey.

There are beautifully rendered scenes of Brendan gathering rare berries for green ink in the enchanted forest where he meets ferocious four-legged beasts and a playful faerie Aisling. When the authoritative Abbot finds out about Brendan's activities it drives a schism between the two and he locks Brendan up. But the boy has found his vocation and will combat Vikings and a serpent god to find a crystal to complete the Book.

The storyline follows a fairly standard mythical quest trajectory, with gentle humour and a sharing in Brendan's sense of wonderment at this magical world. It's gorgeous to look at, and the dark forces are memorably menacing (too much perhaps so for young children).

Canadian production Hungry Hills is a Fifties, Western melodrama about a 15-year-old, Snit, overcoming a pained history in an abusive boys' welfare residence after returning to his family farm in Saskatchewan. Faced with the animosity of small town folk, the essentially good Snit falls in with a bootlegger his age, another outcast Johnny who is struggling with his own demons. The film, adapted from novel by George Ryga, has a brooding atmosphere, although I felt there were too many gaps in the narrative for the story to gel. Scenes are thoughtfully composed, with impressive wide-open vistas. The cast is good, especially John Pyper-Ferguson as Kane, an unorthodox and laconic cop. And yet, because of narrative shortcomings, the film misses the mark.

Also showing at R2R is Home Is Where The Food Is, a chatty, 6 minute animation, which was made by Jodi Kramer for the 100 Mile Diet Society in Vancouver. As Vancouver Island resident Tina Biello cooks up a classic Italian pasta dish, the flowing black and white line-drawing (there are only a few splashes of colour here and there) traces the ingredients to their source: pasta made from Red Fife wheat grains (the popular heritage grain) sourced from a Cowichan Bay mill, prawns from the local marina, veggies from the garden, eggs from an honour stand, and cheese from a nearby farm. Only the cooking fat - butter packaged in Abbotsford, but sourced from Quebec – has a heavy carbon footprint. This slice of wholesomeness is also online at http://vimeo.com/7409888. The full programme for Real to Reel is at www.r2rfestival.org