If the film has any villains it would be the pagan deity Cromm Cruach (more on him later) and the vikings, though they come across as some kind of demonic automatons, operating without any real agency or character.īrendan himself is an excellent child protagonist, exuberant and youthful without being annoying (or having what I like to call “Jake Lloyd syndrome”). The fact that he’s voiced by the extremely talented Brendan Gleeson, one of the most recognizable and talented Irish actors working today doesn’t hurt either. He sees Brendan’s new found sense of adventure and curiosity about the outside world, and wants to repress it, fearing that it will lead to his end.
He has a clear and understandable motivation for what he’s doing: he wants to keep the people under his wing, Brendan in particular, safe. Abbot Kellach is the antagonist of the film, but that doesn’t mean he’s a villain. The characters are similarly rich and well-developed. But while you can see the influences, the film still feels refreshingly original in its style and execution. The influences are clear to see, there are shades of works like Samurai Jack and The Thief and the Cobbler, which have been confirmed by the filmmakers. The colors are rich and varied, the movement is smooth and dynamic and several sequences in particular are unlike anything you’re likely to see in Western or even Japanese animation.
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Ok, so let’s just get right to the main thing: the animation in this movie is freaking gorgeous. Together with Aiden and a fairy girl named Aisling, Brendan vows to complete the book, which Aiden promises will bring light and illumination to these dark times.
But everything changes when the monk Brother Aiden of Iona arrives at Kells, bringing with him the uncompleted book. Our protagonist, Brendan, is a young boy living in the Abbey of Kells, which was established by his uncle Abbot Kellach as a refuge from Viking raids (Ireland had a nasty Viking problem back then). The film is set in Ireland some time around the eighth century, and tells a heavily fictionalized account of the completion of the Book of Kells, an illustrated book of the four gospels which is widely considered Ireland’s first and greatest national treasure. Writing about an Irish movie last week was fun ( Ondine), especially because I got to show off my particular knowledge of Irish folklore and culture, so this week I’m going to show you another great Irish movie from 2009, this time the animated feature The Secret of Kells.