November 4th marks the release of the Moominvalley DVD set. I had the opportunity to watch show when it was released over Easter with my two young daughters and wife. They knew the characters from the various items strewn around the house, the children's books and our visit to Moomin World but had never seen the show so this was exciting for them.
They greatly enjoyed the show and so did I. The lush vistas of Moominvalley and the crystal clear rivers and lakes were wonderfully realised in computer animation but I do always feel that there is something lost in translation when a comic undergoes a CGI movie transformation, although the recent Charlie Brown movie did have texture and expressive lines to bring those characters and world alive. Here, it was quite difficult to bring large white hippopotami to life as they had quite a basic shape and tiny mouths at the side of their faces.
Yup, the Moomins are back and this time they’re CGI!
The voice acting was very strong and Taron Egerton shone as young Moomin troll. Matt Berry voiced Moomin Papa but with his distinct voice and cadence I found it hard to take his character seriously, he does pompous and self-aggrandising well but does subtlety less so. The music was sublime, all slow acoustic sounding stuff with lush vocal from Tom Odell, Mo, First Aid Kit and many more acoustic musicians that suited the mood of the show well.
The highlights for me were episode 5, The Secret of the Hattifatteners and episode 10, Ghost Story. The Secret of the Hattifatteners is quite spooky and sets up an interesting mystery and the finale really does leave you in awe and wonder, while Ghost Story is sweet and the conclusion of that is a bit of a tear-jerker, when the credits rolled I was blinking quickly as it really got to me.
Overall, at the time I felt that the show wasn't going to set the world alight but was a slow, meditative half hour of animation with interesting stories to tell that were heartfelt and gently affecting.
As time has gone by my reflections of Moominvalley are much kinder. It is a slow, meditative half hour of animation that is a tonic in this golden age of media. With the hyper-kinetic energy of other shows often being an assault on the sense, Moominvalley is a slow paced oasis of calm. It is a sweet and wonderful show that can be enjoyed by all the family.
LINK- The Moomins- Retro Soundtrack Review
LINK- Adventure in Moominland Exhibition at the Southbank Centre
LINK- The Wonder of Moomin World
LINK- Disenchantment- Complete Series 1 Review
LINK- Gravity Falls Complete Series Review
LINK- Scooby Doo: Mystery Incorporated Complete Series 1 Review