Though I was a young child for most of the ‘80s, I do
remember some of the nuclear hysteria that accompanied the Cold War. I remember
having nightmares about being blown up by atomic bombs and the fact that it
could happen at any time frightened me immensely. Thankfully, the powers that
be came to their senses (for the most part) and the crisis was averted. However,
this part of my childhood kindled a lifelong fascination with post-apocalyptic
nuke stories/films for me. Films such as The
Day After and Threads
simultaneously intrigued and terrified me. While these films took a much more
direct and realistic approach to “mass assured destruction”, there were other,
more subtle, films made about the dangers of nuclear war. When the Wind Blows is one such film.
When the Wind Blows
is an animated movie based on a graphic novel by Raymond Briggs, who is most
well-known for his charming work The
Snowman, which was also adapted into an animated film. The Snowman is beautiful and whimsical, which is a stark contrast
to the grim tale he tells with When the
Wind Blows. The story centers on an adorable old couple, James and Hilda
Bloggs, who live out in the isolated English countryside. Nuclear war is
looming over them and the husband and wife have to prepare both themselves and
their home to survive the atomic blast. The couple are portrayed as very simple
and naïve, almost childlike in a way, which makes the situation even more
desperate. It’s frustrating to watch them fumble through all the emergency
preparations because we know how truly devastating the effects of nuclear war
can be.
The animation style is classic Briggs, with his soft,
rosy-cheeked character designs and storybook pastel color scheme. It’s suited
to a much more fanciful style tale, but serves as an interesting disparity to
the somber tone. While most of the animation is hand drawn, there is some
clever use of stop-motion for both the foreground and the actual model of the
house itself. It allows the “camera” to rotate around the environment in a
novel way and is effective. There are times when the art style deconstructs
itself into wispy pencil lines and whirly scribbles, mostly when the main
characters are daydreaming or remembering past events. All of it comes together
to make a cohesive work and it is a pleasure to watch.
Jimmy Murakami directed both When the Wind Blows and The
Snowman and did a wonderful job of capturing the essence of both graphic
novels. I have read the books and both of these movies follow the stories
almost exactly. While this isn’t always necessary when adapting books, Briggs’
style just lends itself to the process of animation so well—his novels
basically serve as storyboards. Both of these men working in tandem is an
incredible combination of passion and talent. The soundtrack is great as well
with songs by David Bowie and Roger Waters adding to the atmosphere.
Viewers should be forewarned: this film will rip your heart
right out of its chest and crush its still quivering mass into a bloody mess of
despair. When the Wind Blows is
second only to Grave of the Fireflies
for the “saddest animated film” award. You will
be a blubbering, sobbing mess by the end of this movie. However, that is
exactly the point, it’s supposed to make you feel for these people and lament
their completely avoidable suffering. I’m not sure how much pull these films
had at the time or how much weight was given to them, but in a time of fear and
uncertainty, it was all these artists had to express themselves. What better medium than animation to use to
paint a prophetic picture of what the future may hold for humanity?
-Michelle Kisner