Czech filmmaker Jiří Barta’s stop motion adaptation of The Pied Piper is a triumph of style as substance. Every frame is both immaculately crafted and dense with meaning.
The imagery draws obvious inspiration from German Expressionism: the sharp angles, bizarre proportions, ambiguous perspectives, and jagged, asymmetrical architecture contribute to the story’s eerie, haunting atmosphere. The characters that populate this surreal setting are likewise twisted—crude figurines of blocky wood and wiry metal, their features vague and indistinct; some are even carved directly into the scenery, indistinguishable from the environments that they inhabit. The implication is clear: in the city of Hamelin, human beings are only as valuable as their labor—synonymous with the goods that they produce or the services that they offer, mere cogs and gears in an all-consuming machine. It’s a nightmarish vision of industry and commerce gone awry—which is, of course, perfectly consistent with the subject matter, a decidedly anticapitalist interpretation of a folk tale that already explored themes of greed, avarice, exploitation, injustice, and karmic retribution.
I could argue that The Pied Piper probably influenced a number of critically acclaimed spiritual successors (including The Wolf House and Phil Tippett's Mad God), but such comparisons honestly feel reductive and superficial; the movie has a wholly unique voice, standing out within its very niche medium. Emotionally resonant and socially conscious in equal measure, I won’t soon forget this poignant animated parable.
Krysar is a German expressionist stop motion Pied Piper and it is as uncomfortable and unsettling as that sounds. Punches are pulled but the whole affair is pretty dark.
Krysař (Ratcatcher) by Viktor Dyk + paralels between the Ratcatcher and Wei Wuxian.
I couldn’t find the official translation, so I translated it into English myself (so please take the translation with a grain of salt).
1st gif:
Vadí vám vaše city, příteli. Muž, který hloubá, neměl by nikdy míti srdce. || Your feelings hinder you, my friend. A man who ponders, should never have a heart.
2nd gif:
Uvidíte že na ně zhynete. || You will see that you will die because of them.
3rd gif:
Bude vás škoda; bude škoda vaší píšťaly, stvořené k lepším věcem. || You will be pitied; you and your flute, made for better things.
Full quote + paralels under the cut!
Full quote in Czech: Vadí vám vaše city, příteli. Muž, který hloubá, neměl by nikdy míti srdce. Uvidíte že na ně zhynete. Bude vás škoda; bude škoda vaší píšťaly, stvořené k lepším věcem.
Full quote in English: Your feelings hinder you my friend. A man who ponders, should never have a heart. You will see that you will die because of them. You will be pitied; you and your flute, made for better things.
So the other day I was rereading Krysař, when I spotted some paralels between the character of Ratcatcher and Wei Wuxian:
Both are feared/hated by their society because of their power
However despite that society needs them (to get rid of the rats/to defeat the Wens)
They both are shunned by society
They both use a flute (fife in Ratcatcher's case) as a main weapon
They can control creatures that are unwanted by society (Rats/Corpses)
For those of you who love German Expressionism, here is an animated film that really encapsulates it. It’s called “Krysar,” by legendary Czech animator Jiri Barta.
He really is exquisitely experimental when it comes to stop motion. I just love his work.
