Link: Locus Online: Howard Waldrop & Lawrence Person review The Fabulous World of Jules Verne.
(((Steampunk Czechoslovak Communist analog special effects in 1958.)))
"It has the elaborate engraved drawings and wacky Victorian inventions that provide such glorious elements for Gilliam's Python work. However, instead of one guy doing crudely colored paper cutouts, imagine the entire weight of Communist Czechoslovakia's state film industry (circa 1958) crafting, and then elaborately animating, an entire feature-length film. (It's fun to imagine Tim Powers, James P. Blaylock and K.W. Jeter all viewing this movie in their youth, as it's the ultimate steampunk movie.)
W: In these days of CGI, you couldn't remake this for less than 100 million dollars. (It would not be as good and there's absolutely no need to.) It's of its time, about another time — you watch it now with a double-focus that wasn't there when 1958 was The Present. It was state-of-the-art then (people with pencils, brushes and optical printers + a great state-run scene shop).
Now, you marvel even more. "What is this scene I'm watching? How did they do that? Guys must have worked 6 weeks to get that shot!"
You'll have to see it for yourself before you'll know that me and people like Bill Warren aren't exaggerating.
(((Or, this being 2007, you could just click YouTube.
Yep, even blurry and grainy in low YouTube fashion, that's just about as unheimlich as Waldrop says it is.)))
