Toonstone

I caught this animated film on Amazon Prime recently. Its banner logo intrigued me because I had never heard of it, it had an art style that didn't fit into any existing molds, and was a Western. To give you an idea of what it's like, think A Million Ways to Die in the West, only not as raunchy: Both movies star a character who is out of place in the Wild West. The gimmick here is that the main character, a singer, sort of falls into being the town sheriff due to some fortunate coincidences, but he's very much not the sheriff type.

I'll admit: The first 20 minutes were kind of a slog. Part of why I felt this way was because the movie is extremely dry in its humor. I don't mind dry humor, but at times the dialogue was a little TOO casual and subdued. But the movie grew on me and by the end, I'm glad I didn't give up on it; I adapted to its easygoing pace and unique feel. There were only a handful of laugh-out-loud jokes, such as one at the end where he tells off a woman who initially dismissed him but warmed up to him, but there were many instances where I was smiling or chuckling. The Matthew McConaughey-esque horse provides many of such moments.

The animation also takes some getting used to, since it's basically digital puppetry. The lower half of the arms rotate independently of the upper half, resulting in some awkward poses and unnatural movements. It's not The Life and Times of Tim bad, but you've definitely seen better and you can tell they were working with a low budget. Apparently the same team did Battlefield Friends, a show I've never seen, but looking at stills, it seems to have the same animation style.

If you're looking for a unique animated film, Toonstone fits the bill. Besides being one of the few animated Westerns (I think Rango is one of the only other ones, not counting certain anime that mix the western genre with sci-fi and space), it has a unique humor style that grows on you and it subverts certain cliches you would expect from the genre.