A much darker, somehow more scathing, and overall better and more cohesive film than Bakshi’s debut Fritz the Cat. Everything about this is pure Bakshi, from the gritty urban environment, neon lighting, full frontal nudity and violence and even racism, to being the first film of his to make extensive use of live-action footage. It has more thematic similarities to American Pop, albeit much raunchier, since it touches on the dynamic within a dysfunctional family and the need for escapism. In this case, the main character Michael Corleone (no, not that Michael Corleone) is surrounded by bickering parents, the Italian father a union buster with links to the Mafia, the Jewish mother clinging to Michael, and uses his passion as an underground cartoonist for an escape. The seediness of the atmosphere and loud mouthed dialogue is right out of a 70s Scorsese movie like Mean Streets or Taxi Driver. And just like American Pop, it has an emotional core to it, in that Michael has a love story with a black bartender Carol, with a somewhat more fleshed-out story than Fritz. Overall, it’s definitely one of Bakshi’s better films.
A much darker, somehow more scathing, and overall better and more cohesive film than Bakshi’s debut Fritz the Cat. Everything about this is pure Bakshi, from the gritty urban environment, neon lighting, full frontal nudity and violence and even racism, to being the first film of his to make extensive use of live-action footage. It has more thematic similarities to American Pop, albeit much raunchier, since it touches on the dynamic within a dysfunctional family and the need for escapism. In this case, the main character Michael Corleone (no, not that Michael Corleone) is surrounded by bickering parents, the Italian father a union buster with links to the Mafia, the Jewish mother clinging to Michael, and uses his passion as an underground cartoonist for an escape. The seediness of the atmosphere and loud mouthed dialogue is right out of a 70s Scorsese movie like Mean Streets or Taxi Driver. And just like American Pop, it has an emotional core to it, in that Michael has a love story with a black bartender Carol, with a somewhat more fleshed-out story than Fritz. Overall, it’s definitely one of Bakshi’s better films.
