Jiu Se Lu

Somewhat brief review for this anime;



There's not much story to this short little film. At its core it portrays themes of greed, love and your brothers keeper. The story is centered around a magical nine colored deer who has the power to grant one happiness and health. Naturally, being Ying and Yang in the world, there are those who both abuse and cherish this magical deer and its powers. A greedy snake merchant trying to turn his luck around (although there is equal exchange between the deer and the snake merchant), from a spoiled queen who uses sympathy to get what she wants. On the ... flip side there are some humans, more-so other animals of the wild who appreciate the magical deer for taking care of them. The deer really resembles, in a spiritual sense, that of a God who is here to help those willing and expose those who would like to take advantage of the deer's kindness & power.

Really felt like an homage piece to Osamu Tezuka's Hi no Tori (Phoenix for N. American crowd)


The animation is really where this short film shines. The setting reminded me of Disney's Mulan while maintaining a super-flat art style like that of a Samurai Jack. Very fluid for its time and some spectacular sequences with the magical deer hopping around as well as other characters. The color scheme is very good and probably my favorite thing about this anime. If you are a fan of zany or art house like animation you will enjoy this watch.

Characters are pretty simple nothing to out of the ordinary. I couldn't really find time to enjoy them as much because it is a short little film. If the film had been longer and went a little more into the themes the characters present, it would have been much more enjoyable.

Overall though, I found this film to be very enjoyable and I highly recommend for fans who would like a taste of older animation or just brilliant artistry.

7.5/10

It's a morality tale. What I learned:

1. Humans are terrible, awful, short-sighted and greedy creatures.
2. Don't *u** with the gods.

Not the earliest of animated works I've seen from China, but this is pretty early. A self-contained tale in about twenty minutes. The artwork is very, very stylized and animation equally stylized with exaggerated movements. The story itself is pretty straightforward, as a magical deer saves some humans, the pampered empress gets word, and they go out hunting for the deer, tricking it to come out. But if there's one thing ... you should never do, it's go back on your word, if you value your life.