MOVIE REVIEWS : Plympton’s Animated ‘The Tune’ Has a Tin Ear

An animated feature requires such a staggering amount of work, it’s remarkable that independent filmmaker Bill Plympton and a handful of assistants could create “The Tune” (opening a limited run at the Nuart Theatre today) without help from a major studio.

But at one hour and 12 minutes, “The Tune” seems longer than the proverbial summer in Philadelphia and is every bit as exciting as watching a tray of ice cubes thaw.

The story, such as it is, might have been lifted from an old ‘50s “B” musical. Nerdy would-be songwriter Del (Daniel Neiden) wants the Mega Music Co. to publish his songs so he can marry Didi (Maureen McElheron), the secretary he adores. On his way to an all-important meeting with Mr. Mega, Del wanders off aimlessly, hearing other people’s songs (which he’ll pass off as his own) and learning a hackneyed lesson about listening with his heart.

Plympton has built a career on such plotless shorts as “Your Face” (1987) and 10-second gag spots for MTV, and he’s clearly no storyteller. He doesn’t satirize the formulaic tale he’s chosen, or reinterpret it or look beneath its veneer as John Waters or David Lynch might; he just uses it as a vehicle for the 10 songs, which are supposed to spoof various musical genres (a beach party number, an Elvis song, a love duet). But none of these parodies rises above the level of the most amateurish drivel, and an ersatz blues number sung by an ugly black character about his unfulfilled romance with a huge white nose, is tasteless at best.

The plot’s limping progress is further impeded by Plympton’s decision to include his 1991 short “Push Comes to Shove” in its entirety. After watching this exercise in deadpan mayhem, Del mirrors the audience’s reaction by asking, “Why am I watching this?”

The awkward, jerky animation looks more limited than the worst Saturday morning TV shows. Plympton reportedly used only 30,000 drawings for the entire film: An average 22-minute episode of a kidvid show requires 16,000 drawings. Viewers can experience more interesting animation by holding up two pictures and blinking in tandem.

“The Tune” screens at the Nuart Theatre in West Los Angeles through Sept 20.