‘Isle of Dogs’ brings out the dog lover in all of us

The newest stop motion animated film from Wes Anderson, “Isle of Dogs,” is continuing to make its slow but steady arrival to theaters, finally making its way to Atlanta this weekend. After delivering distinctly crafted films in recent years, how does Anderson’s second stop motion venture match up to his previous work, “Fantastic Mr. Fox?”

“Isle of Dogs” takes place in a near-dystopian future where, due to a rampant illness, all dogs in the Japanese metropolis of Megasaki City have been confined to a disgusting trash island. We follow a group of pooches led by a vicious stray named Chief (Bryan Cranston) who come in contact with Atari, a young boy who has traveled to the island in search of his dog, Spots. While Chief finds it difficult to like the child, he eventually helps Atari look for his missing pet. Along the way, the team must outrun a squadron ready to take them down as they begin to uncover a dirty secret to their way of life.

To say that this film’s attention to detail is outstanding would be a huge understatement. Anderson has perfected his technical craft, far outdoing “Fantastic Mr. Fox.” Every shot has a staggering level of care put into it—staging and framing that helps further build this world.

The visuals keep a consistent level of stylization that perfectly blends an overall grungier tone while lending itself to some clever visual gags. Everything from the subtle movements of the dogs’ fur to the cotton dust clouds made during big fight scenes are images that stick in your head.

It is clear that Anderson was given a hearty amount of creative control and many of his choices worked in the film’s favor. He makes his stamp on this film very clear, allowing many strange ideas to flow. Set in Japan, many lengths are taken for the film to have a level of authenticity. The most notable is how all of the Japanese characters speak in their native tongue, plus the translation is rather creative. Also, the magnificent score from Alexandre Desplat brings in the culture by utilizing traditional Japanese instruments to create exhilarating work.

The film’s themes on government corruption and scientific experimentation make up some of the larger messages the film tries to get across. At the same time, the relationships people have with their dogs make up the heart of this story. This can primarily be seen in the development of Chief and Atari’s relationship. While it can be easy to see where certain beats will go, the film executes their friendship with such charm that you don’t care, ultimately giving the film a classic feel.

The supporting characters, while not as deeply developed as our two leads, are a lot of fun. They have great voice performances and traits that are both amusing and help us better understand their world. The story emphasizes the stakes that face our heroes in brutal detail, adding to the danger this world presents and making us care for these characters more.

Those who are sick of Anderson’s style and are hoping to see the director try something new will be disappointed. Anyone going in should also know that this is not a movie for young kids. The film contains brutal violence, swearing and sexual references.

There are some more objective problems that come from Anderson’s style permeating this film. For one, while Chief and Atari are well-developed as characters, much of the side characters’ dialogues are exposition heavy and can be distracting. Also, while the choice to keep the Japanese-speaking cast in their traditional language is nice, the film does have moments that are confusingly translated with narration or subtitles that feel unnecessary. Anderson very easily could have found a more subtle way of translating or allowed the visual storytelling to do the work.

Overall, while this may not be a film for everyone, “Isle of Dogs” contains the kind of charm, adventure and wonder that only a unique auteur like Wes Anderson can create. It’s ultimately a celebration of why people love originality, stop-motion and of course, dogs, and who can go wrong with that? For those looking for something drastically different in their animated films and want to help move the industry into a new direction, then this is a must-see.