The Master's Voice: Caveirão

I'm not really sure of the story behind this short film; the subtitle suggest that there is some greater meaning here that perhaps I am not aware of – Google only tells me that Caveirão is the name for the armored car used by the police in the dangerous slums of Rio de Janeiro which I really don't understand in the context. But whatever, this film can be enjoyed without really understanding the context because there is really not a huge amount of plot going on. What is going on is that, in the middle of the night, time freezes for a split second – a split second which is an eternity for the ghosts and weird spirits that come out for a party, although even in their world the authorities are there to break it up.

Essentially what the film because is cool music and a huge amount of color and movement. Filmed in the real world, the animated characters are delivered over these cells and they are painted in a rather 1940's trippy way that I found enjoyable. Some of it is a bit leery in tone, but I guess this is part of the party atmosphere being sought by the film. The blend of real world and animation is nicely done and I liked the music under the whole short. Ultimately it doesn't amount to a whole lot; I thought the skull-faced policeman looked cooler than he actually was when it came to on-screen actions, but at least he brought a form of plot to the second half.

Its colorful and fun on the level it works on though, with a very good mix of animation and reality; the music is catchy throughout but the story is not really anywhere to be found.