Wes Anderson’s films are quirky ensemble pieces that many people love.  I’ve been ambivalent about some of them, but I have really enjoyed his unique animated stories.  First it was Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009); now it’s Isle of Dogs.  Anderson’s anthropomorphic allegories have much to say and can do so without the viewer being distracted by the casting and performances of his traditional comedies.  His technique is stop motion animation utilizing puppetry, and it is both striking and entertaining.

The film is a futuristic fable set in Japan, where fears of a canine flu have caused Megasaki’s mayor to banish all dogs to Trash Island, with plans to eliminate them completely.  A complicated backstory explains why; meanwhile, the mayor’s adopted son sneaks off to Trash Island to try to rescue his beloved pet, and discovers that there is a great deal more to the situation than he realized.

This is a film that would definitely benefit from repeat viewings.  There is so much material to absorb, from the complicated plot to details about each dog, from the propulsive percussion that accompanies the images to the anti-scientific attitudes of the politicians, that this begs to be seen and re-seen.  At least twenty important (mostly canine) characters populate the story, which indicates how busy it is.  Yet Anderson and his writers manage to make the story not only deep but compelling and intriguing.  It isn’t always fun (I didn’t need to see the kidney transplant in such detail), but it is different and unique.

While I have enjoyed some of Anderson’s live-action comedies it seems to me he is even better suited to this unusual, funky animation style, where he can explore things that bother him or excite him about the world without having to document them in simply human terms.  Using puppetry and allegory allows him more freedom to comment — and entertain — than traditional filmmaking does.  He could become the American version of Japan’s master animator, Hayao Miyazaki.  Just sayin’.  ☆ ☆ ☆.  26 April 2018.