Educational Media Reviews Online

This stop-motion animated film brings unique aesthetic vision to the body of films that showcase our contemporary fascination with America of the 1950s and its thinly-veiled veneer of self-satisfaction. This short, thought-provoking piece is set in a world populated by tin toys whose aspirations transgress the boundaries prescribed by the slotted tracks which plot every aspect of their daily activities. In a milieu that could be described as Mad Men meets the Brothers Quay, John Small, a hard-working but marginalized corporate employee, diligently performs his duties in hopes of someday earning the recognition of his boss. His wife dutifully prepares his breakfast every morning. Her dreams of vacationing with her husband fall on deaf ears, and decline precipitously from a Hawaiian getaway to an afternoon drive. Invisible within her own home, Mrs. Small eventually disappears, leaving behind a tiny assemblage of pins that had guided her through the motions of her confined life of domestic servitude. When John is passed over for a promotion, his loneliness is thrown into sharp relief. He strikes out in an attempt to gain some measure of personal autonomy, however the results of his actions merely underline his lack of agency. The contrast of these darker themes with the bright, sunny hues of the film's mechanized world result in an ironic blend of sweet and sad, as social commentary snugly nestled in satire. This film is recommended for collections highlighting art and animation.