sildarmillion This was a very, very, very, strange film. But strange in the way some legends and folktales are - babies born with the mind of an adult and incredible speed and strength, etc. It was at times charming, and at times just SO strange - again, in the way legends can be. It seems it is based on African folktales. It has to be. given the nature of the story.The story is about the newborn Kirikou who manages to accomplish all kinds of amazing feats and is amazing all around. He would have been a very annoying Mary-Sue kind of character because he was just awesome at everything and he knew everything, but because he was just a tiny baby, it stops just shy of annoying is just simply kind of intriguing.But..watching this you think....boooooobs. Wow, so many boobs. The women went about bare-chested, which I believe is very common in certain regions of Africa. And because it was no big deal for them, the exposed breasts were treated as common place and they weren't necessarily sexualized, but it was quite a shock having entire scenes full of topless women. I have this a 6/10, simply based on my viewing experience. I don't feel like I am necessarily the best judge of this material, since I lack much of the context.

brittybits Kirikou is by far one of the most unique characters I have yet to come across in a film or a book. For one, who ever heard of a baby that decided on his own that he was ready to come out from his mother's womb? In addition, Kirkou has a mind of his own and makes it his goal to get rid of the sorceress. However, I think it was very wise for the writer of this film to ensure that once Kirikou found the reason for the Karaba's agony and sufferings, Kirokou then understood them to be accidental and had to put an end to them. The graphics were beyond belief beautiful and the personality of each character were spot on. Karaba had a mystical voice which sounded purely evil and her hair was not unlike that of Medusa's. The warthog was also greatly reminiscent of Pumba from the The Lion King. Kirikou's journeys through the ground and around the mountain were nonetheless entertaining. His antics of camouflaging as a bird and constantly asking "but why?" were warming. The illustrations of the different sizes of the women was greatly acknowledged, for it is well known that women come in all shapes and sizes. The tree that was put into the forest by Karaba was much like the Tree of Good and Evil in the book of Genesis, representing temptation at its finest. I especially enjoyed the lessons put forth in the film, particularly from the grandfather.If you enjoyed this film, I highly suggest you check out The Secret of Kells. It's an animated fantasy about a boy who discovers the Irish Book of Kells, which does in fact exist.

Chris Bregger Kirikou is the story of an African boy in a small town that in the end proves that you do not need to be of great stature to be an important asset to your community. Although Kirikou was unbelievably tiny, he saw things that others did not. He was able to see the true problems with Karaba the sorceress. When the watering hole no longer produced water, Kirikou went right to the source of the problem and fixed it himself. He was unlike the other people in his village; instead of fearing and complaining about Karaba the sorceress, Kirikou sought a way to fix the problems Karaba had caused for the people of the village.The fact that this film is a cartoon drastically changed the way in which I perceived the message that it was relaying to the viewer. By using animation the viewer is much more able to focus on the points that the story is making socially about modernity versus tradition. Because almost every person in this story is partially nude I think that the important social commentary that Kirikou has made might be lost on some audiences. In America we are not used to seeing as much nudity as is exposed in this film, especially in a story that is intended for children, so in my opinion it is nice that this film is a cartoon as opposed to real actors and actresses. I do not think that this film would have been nearly as helpful in the understanding of the struggles that African's have with modernity if real people were used as opposed to the cartoons that were. For example the men of the village have all been taken by the sorceress Karaba and are being used as her slaves. They represent modernity because they have been transformed into robots. This is a not so subtle way of showing the evils associated with modernity as seen by the African people.Anyone that enjoys films like the Lion King or Aladdin will love Kirikou. The thing that I found most interesting about this film was that it gave American's a way to see what stories African's use to teach their children lessons. In America we use animated films to teach kids lessons much the same as they do in Africa. The main differences between the two are the lessons that are taught. I thought it was fascinating how Ocelot taught such an important lesson to children and people alike with the use of animated people in Kirikou and the Sorceress.

betzke In this film, "Kirikou and the Sorceress", the director is not only focusing on the revival and retelling of a famous African hero by the name of Sundiata, but he, like most African storytellers, announces to his audience the true nature and theme of the film. So what is the meaning to the film? The director believes that with modernity comes sacrifices and loss of tradition, which in turn leads to not only detrimental change but culturally damaging affects. Whether through subtilties of music and color or boldness of characterization and storyline, the director uses the story of Kirikou as a background for the viewer to be entertained and captivated while simultaneously able to relate and understand the struggles of such once seemingly inevitable metamorphoses.The movie begins with a small child crawling from his mother's womb asserting his independence while containing the wisdom far superior to that of the village elder and the courage of more than ten warriors. This boy is Kirikou, he is the living embodiment of all that is African bravery and intelligence. Kirikou is a relatable and lovable little boy, he is the force against evil but his small stature condemns him to the underdog role. Every American roots for the underdog, but in Kirikou's case, he is a confident, courageous and fast hero; he is the life of African hope against evil. Kirikou is tradition, he is the purity and innocence of African tradition, therefore, the director uses this main heroic figure as the personification of tradition itself, which rises to any challenge and ultimately prevails against evil.In contrast, the director's motivation for creating the sorceress, Karaba, as a man-eating, "mean and evil" presence is because she is the representation of the evil of modernity. She possesses evil fetishes, which are her lookouts and minions, but each of these evil followers is mechanically operated and functions only as a robot. These mechanized beings are portrayed as evil, therefore there is no doubt that the director believes that modernity is corrupt and in a sense, evil. Karaba herself is also the personification of evil in modern society and machinery because she is a soul-less entity who possesses not even one friend. Just her presence turns trees, shrubs and flowers into dead and dying weeds. With such bold interpretations and opinions, the director's characterization clearly states his view of modernity and how its presence kills all of Africa's cultural traditions as surely as Karaba kills all living plants and beings.Although the director does use obvious portrayals of evil modernity and the goodness of tradition, he also hints at the main theme through subtle musical inflections. While the camera pans in on Kirikou's village the music is soft, almost unnoticeable, calming and soothing. The beats are as beautiful as the pink leaved trees and as elating as the infectious hugging chipmunks in the garden beyond the sorceress' hut. The melodies are uplifting and simply happy while the kids are swimming in the lake and the women and children sing in unison while praising Kirikou. But just beyond the village there is a different sound to be heard. The music turns solemn and black as the sky blends to grays and dark hues. All melodies are lost and ominous feelings overcome the body as the scene focuses on Karaba's perimeter of darkness. With musical changes from happiness to fright, the theme of evil and purity can be witnessed and all the viewer has to do is have a watchful ear.The colors are also an indicator of modernity's evil ways and tradition's healing power. As mentioned briefly before, the colors change as often as the music, therefore indicating the transformation from the dark, gloomy and controlled reign of Karaba to the warm, rich colors of freedom as expressed in the village landscapes and natural forests. Colors seem to be just a significant in the interpretation of the story of Kirikou as the characterization that the director relies on as the literal and easier form of indicators of good and evil.The director does not stop there, however. Although, the director believes that evil describes modernity and that traditions is inherently good, there is another piece to the main theme puzzle. The main question of the movie revolves around why Karaba is so mean and evil, and as the ending reveals, Karaba is mean and evil because she has a thorn embedded in her spine supplying her with evilness and wrong doing. But as Kirikou bites the deeply embedded thorn with his teeth, and removes the painful object, Karaba is cured of her evil and is ultimately saved. By adding the salvation ending, the director believes that there is hope for tradition to thrive and that modernity is not an inevitable evil, but an evil that is deeply good but on the surface, contains an evil face.The story of Kirikou and the evil sorceress is a tale of overcoming adversity and extending hope to those who seem to be as drained of hope as the spring of water, but the story is also more personal than that. With evidence such as characterization, musical and color differences as well as ending plot, the main theme of Kirikou is to hail the significance of tradition and to preserve culture while undergoing moderate changes without dramatic and modern assimilation.