Director: Julian Glander
Writer: Julian Glander
Stars: Jack Corbett, Grace Kuhlenschmidt, Elisie Fisher
Synopsis: A teenager in suburban Florida desperately hustles to make $5,000 in this dreamy and surreal animated coming-of-age story.
Animation is a medium often pigeon-holed into the realm of all ages entertainment, but it can express something more than simple stories of general interest. Sometimes it can interpret the thoughts, feelings, and dreams of its creators in a medium that has no limits. It’s a portal to distant worlds and while some computer generated animation has snuck into and evolved live action filmmaking, there’s nothing like a purely rendered experience. The experience of seeing a film like Boys Go to Jupiter is like no other.
Boys Go to Jupiter is a classic coming-of-age tale. Billy 5000 (Jack Corbett) needs money to escape his circumstances and the prison of his home town in Florida. Yet, the life lessons imparted by writer and director Julian Glander are not so simple. The story takes on capitalism, family, friends, and first love in a way that is bizarre, but utterly human. Even rendered as designs that look like the first versions of what we know as 3D animation, these characters are droll and truth driven.
The script is a wonderful tapestry of dry humor and relatable circumstances. We’ve all felt the pangs of first love, outgrew friends, and learned even when we find a life hack, we can be slapped and dropped back down to the start of the game. Glander’s world is magical, but is earth bound in spirit and the pragmatic aspects of life. No amount of chants, hacking, snatching, or performed nonchalance can keep Billy from failing like the rest of us. The beauty is in when he finds a different path.
That is the beauty in the film’s medium as well. Glander could have done as many animated films do and used the latest and slickest of technological devices to create his film, but he chose instead to cultivate an aesthetic. Even as most of the characters look like Playmobil figures, their faces are as expressive and emotive as their rubbery limbs and bodies. As soon as you get settled in the world as it is, Glander adds depth. The sequences move beyond the parameters we think this film’s style should have into a transcendent world of shape and color. As much as you may balk at first, if you let it wash over you, the animation can take hold of you as anything coming from the latest millions spent by Dreamworks or Pixar.
The music featured in the film is also gorgeous. All of the songs are written by Glander and performed by the cast. Don’t be fooled, though, Boys Go to Jupiter is not a traditional musical. While the songs are sung by the characters in the moment, they don’t explain the plot or advance it. The songs are more like conduits to a character’s thoughts or a transitional experience to introduce a new motivation or character. They’re all lusciously layered synth-pop gems that could stand on their own as much as they enhance an already joyful experience. The haunting melodies sink into your skin and envelop you warmly while you contemplate the lyrics that evoke something primal inside of you. The song “Winter Citrus,” featured twice in the film, is a dreamy testament to the power of creation and commerce and where the two connect in our always striving human ambition.
Boys Go to Jupiter is not going to be for everyone, but the people who let it into their psyche, who hum the music, and meditate on how much time we spend in search of meaninglessness are going to have an incredible experience. Julian Glander has been steadily working in animation for a while, but with his feature debut he has gone beyond the short form and proved he can make something that stands on its own. Boys Go to Jupiter is an experience like nothing else you will see in a theater this year and it’s well worth every second of your time.
