AMERICAN POP

(February 1981, U.S.)

There are some films like AMERICAN GRAFFITI (1973), SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER (1977) and FORREST GUMP (1994) where music of the era plays such a major part in telling the story, it in itself becomes a character in the film. AMERICAN POP is an adult-animated film that also falls into that category, but it's one you may not remember or maybe haven't heard of at all.

During a period of about ten years, Ralph Bakshi was considered one of the (if not THE) top animator in films, with titles like FRITZ THE CAT (1972) and LORD OF THE RINGS (1978). AMERICAN POP uses mixed animation styles that include computer graphics, live action shots, archival footage, watercolors and a technique called rotoscoping (look it up). This was considered pretty advanced stuff for its time, but today could probably never hold its own against anything you'd see on screen by Pixar (pity!).

In this film, though, it's truly the music that tells the story of four generations of a Russian-Jewish immigrant family of musicians whose lives and careers are paralleled with the history of popular music in America from the turn of the century right up to the present day of 1980. Through the music, we also catch glimpses of pivotal moments in American history and pop culture, including the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911, two World Wars, the '60's youth movement, Vietnam, the Kent State murders and the modern-day punk rock movement of the time.

While I cannot claim that AMERICAN POP is one of the finest films of its kind I've ever seen, it's musical and social context are undeniable.

Favorite line or dialogue:

Zalmie: "Hey, Louie, I just seen the most beautiful thing I ever seen in the world."
Louie: "Some pre-Prohibition booze, huh?"
Zalmie: "No. I seen the stripper gettin' dressed."
Louie: "A stripper gettin' dressed ain't beautiful unless she's ugly to begin with."