Following up an Academy Award-nominated directorial debut is a daunting task for any creative, so it stands to reason that writer-director Claude Barras took the best part of a decade to conceptualise, craft and deliver his sophomore feature, Savages. Tackling the environmental and ecological crisis through the eyes of children, animals and indigenous people, can Savages’ pack its big ideas into these tiny clay figures?
A visually gorgeous adventure that clearly strikes you as an impossible labour of love, Savages is a beautifully animated and stunningly rendered feast for the eyes that captures the possibilities of the medium for anyone still in any doubt. With each frame rich in depth and texture, Savages presents a vivid portrayal of the natural environment and the people who make up a community, thoughtful in its depiction with an attention to detail that enriches the viewer's experience. A vibrant use of colour and character voice work further enhances the imagery of Savages, crafting a strikingly distinct tale in a visually powerful way.
Savages' environmental and ecological mindset is admirable, one that seems positioned to educate and inspire a generation of young people to recognise the importance of protecting and conserving the natural world and all its wonders. One major strength of Barras with Catherine Paillié's screenplay is its thematic maturity, provoking discussions regarding current issues in bold yet accessible ways that enlighten and educate an audience that has likely not been exposed to these discussions before. It’s thought-provoking and good-natured work that deserves to be discussed and acknowledged on this scale.
In that respect, it is a shame that Savages cannot find a more interesting way of telling its worthy story. A disappointingly straightforward narrative with lacklustre plotting that feels both overly simplified and predictable, the bland narrative performs a disservice to both the filmmakers' vision and the incredible visuals created. It is as a result of this narrative simplicity that the character's emotional arcs are not given the space to breathe, and hit the heights they should; these stories should be rife with tenderness and sentiment, but the story itself lacks a sophistication which could have enriched it tenfold to deliver something with greater earned emotion.
With so much to appreciate and admire in Savages, and given the talents displayed by this team previously, it's disappointing to see that any narrative inventiveness and emotional throughline is forgotten amongst the courageous themes and brilliant visuals on display, leaving the plotting to feel considerably underdeveloped. And while that will leave older audiences feeling like they are have gained little from the film, it's worth celebrating the Savages' ambition in bringing important contemporary ideas to a younger audience - and it will certainly give them enough to sink their teeth into.