The Snowman

Today is Christmas Day and I wanted to review a special which is particularly meaningful for me. This 30 minute British animated short is based on the Raymond Briggs book of the same name. Released in 1982 it became a massive success and ended up being nominated for an Oscar for Best Animated Short. Oddly, the book it's based on has no words whatsoever and the story is told by illustrations. The short does the same, but it instead uses music to reflect what's going on and how the characters are feeling with no dialogue at all, except for the famous flying sequence which has choir boy Peter Auty (often confused to be a young Aled Jones) singing the renowned song Walking in the Air, which was written and composed by score composer Howard Blake. A sequel short was released in 2012 called The Snowman and the Snowdog, which I haven't seen yet, but I think I'll take a look at it and review it for the next animation December month/advent calendar as well as a stage adaptation of The Snowman which can be seen at Christmas in London. So did this quaint British short deserve that Oscar nomination, or is it as bas as discovering someone destroyed the snowman you just built? Let's find out!

Story: Even though it has no dialogue, I actually like the plot. It's about a boy who decides to build a snowman when he sees it snowing outside. The snowman ends up coming to life in the night which the boy discovers and ends up causing hijinks in the house, as well as riding a motorbike around a small village. The snowman and the boy end up flying to the North Pole with other alive snowmen and meets Santa Claus. By the next day the snowman has melted, but the boy still has his scarf given to him from Santa, making us question whether or not the events were real. The story manages to be entertaining and funny, and nowhere else does that come through the music and animation. I was never bored by it as a child, even with no dialogue, and I think what shines is the friendship between the boy and the snowman. At times it may seem like some scenes are pointless like when the snowman rides a motorcycle or tries the boy's parent's clothes and make up, but they are entertaining to watch.

Animation: even if it was made for TV, the animation is actually really good! The overall style is very reminiscent that of the book it's based on, with a more sketchy feeling to the backgrounds and character designs, as well as appearing flat, with only a bit of natural lighting to give it dimensionality. In fact, it's as if the illustrations are taken straight out of the book and are animated. The character designs themselves are rather kid friendly and the character animation is actually pretty top notch. I'm surprised with how good the animation is, and it's almost as if a child created it, but in a good way!

Characters: There are only 2 main characters, so this will be quick. The boy, called James, is pretty much the cliched kid who likes to play in the snow and is implied to be a bit mischievous as he shows the snowman around. Speaking of the Snowman, he's likeable and is shown to be friendly and enjoyable when it comes to the human world. Santa Claus himself is a kind man and all the snowmen at the party are interesting and have individual personalities, but we only see them for one scene. I know, it may seem short, but the characters are memorable and likeable!



Overall this is a holiday classic with a sentimental story, good animation and likeable characters. I recommend this to everyone during Christmas because it's a staple in my childhood and I still love to watch it even now!
Story: 9/10
Animation: 8/10
Characters: 10/10
Overall: 9/10