ZooScope

Category: Imaginary Animals: Yes

  • Babe. Dir. Chris Noonan. Universal Pictures. 1995.

     Babe’s belief in his capability to function within his new identity role as sheep-pig is shattered when he learns his true purpose as bacon for the farm. Deflated of self-worth and betrayed by ‘The Boss’ he descends into a torrent of psychological self-harm, unable to eat at the prospect of his failed ambitions. [1]

  • The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. Dir. Wes Anderson. Touchstone Pictures. 2004.

    Animal Misunderstanding and Mystery in Wes Anderson’s The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou In The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou (dir. Wes Anderson, 2004) Zissou, the famous oceanographer, tackles familial issues while on board his ship The Belfonte. When Ned Plimpton, a man claiming to be his son, comes on board, Zissou’s marriage begins to…

  • The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. Dir. Wes Anderson. Buena Vista Pictures. 2004.

    Wes Anderson’s fourth full-length film, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, details the life of oceanographer and documentarian Steve Zissou following the death of his professional partner and best friend. The film, like many directed by Wes Anderson, ultimately became a cult classic, but not before being met with serious criticism from film critics. The dissonance…

  • Pan’s Labyrinth. Dir. Guillermo del Toro. Warner Bros. Pictures. 2006.

    Pan’s Labyrinth (Original Title: El laberinto del fauno) Guillermo del Toro’s visually arresting Pan’s Labyrinth is set in 1944 against the backdrop of post civil-war Spain. It follows the story of the young Ofelia, whose heavily pregnant mother has transported her across the country to live with her fascist stepfather, Captain Vidal, as he carries out Franco’s…

  • Blade Runner. Dir. Ridley Scott. Warner Bros. 1982.

    Dystopian L.A. 2019 Blade Runner (1982) takes place in a futuristic and dystopian Los Angeles. Heavy industrialisation has caused great damage to Earth’s atmosphere and ecosystem, wiping out most of the planet’s animal species. ‘Replicants’, androids visually identical to humans, are engineered to perform manual work on off-world colonies. Their use is banned on Earth, where…