LITTLE FROM THE FISH SHOP

Sebastian, Disney’s calypso-inclined crustacean, may despair at “Little From the Fish Shop,” a sly update of Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid” in which his catchy counsel to remain underwater goes entirely unheeded. Relocating not just Andersen’s yearning heroine but her entire royal family to dry land, Jan Balej’s wittily designed stop-motion outing honors the sorrowful romantic narrative of the original tale to a far greater extent than the Mouse House’s 1989 smash — despite a radical shift in milieu to the red-light district of a seamy city harbor. Not especially suitable for, er, small fry, this touching, technically inventive twist on a classic will nonetheless be treasured by animation buffs. With distribution in a handful of territories already secured, more should follow in the wake of festival slots at Annecy and Karlovy Vary.

Genre: Animationsfilm I Stop Motion Film
Work: DCI P3 Colorgrading