Horus: Prince of the Sun

I wrote this for a class, which explains why it's a bit more analytical/spoiler-filled.

I was impressed by this film's animation quality, considering the time period it was made in. There are a few scenes where massive corners were cut, notably when the wolves attack the village and they show only still images with sound effects. But generally it was pretty smooth. The character designs are also a bit simple, but that was part of the era, and overall it was a nice movie to look at.

It started off very promisingly with the introduction of the rock giant, and had the potential to be a nice fantasy epic. Horus is a bit standard as a character, purely good and simple, but he wasn't unlikable. The plot was interesting, but it stagnated a bit after Hilda was introduced and spent a good deal of time waffling over whether to be good or succumb to her demonic heritage. Grunwald was an interesting villain if a bit hands-off most of the time. The other featured villagers served their purpose but weren't particularly likable.

The resolution played out well enough, as it faced the question of self-sacrifice. Hilda is reluctant to disobey her brother because he gave her the charm that supposedly keeps her alive, but when faced with the demise of her young friends she is willing to give it up to save them. The fact that she lives anyway gives people the happy ending they want and also shows that people who try to be good can get good things in return. The climax is suitably exciting and wraps up a reasonably good, family friendly movie.