In Paris, 1910, panic sweeps the city. Floodwaters are rising and a monster is on the loose! Formidable Commissioner Maynott and his men hunt it down day and night, with no luck. It could be that in the limelight at The Rare Bird, a Montmartre cabaret isn't a bad place to hide after all! It is here that we meet feisty songstress Lucille, the star of The Rare Bird cabaret (voiced by Johnny Depp's real-life wife, singer/actress Vanessa Paradis).
This is the world and story created by French writer-director Bibo Bergeron, who worked at Dreamworks animation for eight years where he made films like The Road To El Dorado and Shark's Tale, before returning to France to set up his own Bibo Films in Paris.
Bergeron gives you a story you will never forget; filled with vibrant and well-defined characters, colourful spectacle, delicious humour and heartfelt romance, A Monster In Paris is unique in every sense of the word, following proudly in the tradition of stories like A Phantom Of The Opera and Beauty And The Beast (which clearly inspired his creation).
Without revealing too much of this thrilling adventure, it tells of a fiend unlike any you have seen before - an unthinkable creature that is born out of peculiar circumstances and forced to survive in an unkind and unsympathetic world. It would be totally unfair to unmask the phantomish and grotesque creature who lurks in the shadows; let's just say that you will truly applaud this unsung hero.
The animation of A Monster In Paris is sumptuous in its meticulous detail; every frame is a masterwork of inspiration. Bergeron uniquely uses the style of documentary filmmaking to contrast the vivid colours with stark-and-gritty black-and-white footage shot by Emile (voiced by Jay Harrinton), an avid young filmmaker and projectionist, who is a dreamer who can't bring himself to tell Maud, the young woman he meets every day at the theatre entrance, that he loves her.
Emile's best buddy Raoul (Adam Goldberg), is a charmer, a showoff, a big-mouth and incorrigible ladies' man who has skilfully turned his delivery van into a vehicle that James Bond would be happy to call his own.
Then there's Commissioner Maynott (Danny Huston), an egotistical, overambitious and unscrupulous man who leads a spectacular monster hunt to show everyone that he is the man for a crisis.
A Monster In Paris is a charming film, capturing a projectionist's passion for film and filmmaking, a songstress' affection for music, an inventor's desire to create the ultimate gadget, and a monster's search for compassion.
If you are looking for a film that you can happily escape into, A Monster In Paris guarantees a cinematic experience that will not only transport you to the city of love, but offers entertainment that is worthwhile and significant.
The screening of A Monster In Paris in South Africa is the English-language version and is shown in 2D and 3D.
Although Bibo Bergeron had made Los Angeles his home, he still missed Paris. That's when he began dreaming of making an animated movie with a very distinct French flavour. "I was in LA for years and a little homesick," Bergeron said. "I wanted to write something set in my home city, Paris. In addition to that, I've always loved the turn-of-the-20th century, when arts, science, technology innovations were moving ahead at full speed. Altogether, I wanted to make a fun, romantic and musical movie."
Bergeron said that he didn't start out to make the movie in CG, but was simply looking for a way to translate the "artist paintbrush strokes on the screen". He added: "I love all techniques-and, for me, it was more important to have a great story first." The ambitious project has had its share of challenges. The production had to shut down a couple of years ago on account of financial issues that had to be resolved between the producers. Bergeron said artistically, designing the lead monster in the movie was the toughest aspect of the process.
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