Stop-motion master Phil Tippett presents his three decades in development magnum opus with Mad God. In a Miltonesque world of monsters, mad scientists, and war pigs, an intrepid special agent travels on a special mission. Along the way, he passes through a landscape of corruption and decay, with plenty of horrors on the road ahead.
Throughout a career spanning nearly five decades, Phil Tippett became best known for creating stop-motion animation effects for films as the original Star Wars trilogy, Dragonslayer, and Robocop. Tippett first began work on his personal project Mad God back in 1987 and finally saw the light of day with a trilogy between 2014 and 2018. Now Phil Tippett's vision is fully realized with this feature-length of Mad God, three decades in the making.
It's difficult for me to talk about the actual plot of Mad God since this dialogue-free film is much more of an experience than a narrative. In many ways, Mad God is like a journey through the depths of hell and back against, with much nightmarish and grotesque imagery on display. I do have to say that I was quite impressed with this stop motion world Phil Tippett has created, though there are some moments in the film that incorporates live-action character, which breaks the illusion somewhat. That said, Mad God still ends up being a visual treat and one of the most impressive stop motion films that I have seen.
Mad God is streaming as part of the virtual 2021 Fantasia Film Festival
Related Links
Trailer for Mad God – Fantasia 2021
