THE CONGRESS [2013]

Ari Folman crafts a uniquely beautiful live action/animated work with The Congress, a philosophical satire loosely inspired by Stanisław Lem's The Futurological Congress.
In her best performance to date, Robin Wright portrays a science-fictionalized version of herself that echoes that of a character that wouldn't be out of place in a Charlie Kaufman piece.  The Congress explores a number of themes including mortality, appearances, the pro & cons of advanced technology in film, all while taking some mature and delicately executed swipes at the Hollywood mainstream.  Folman returns to his Waltz with Bashir crew to help animate a world that looks like a Jean-Pierre Jeunet world seen through the eyes of Ralph Bashki.
A very important cinematic achievement that I urge any lover of thoughtful storytelling in cinema to experience.

4½ animated Dwarfs out of 5

Waltz with Bashir (2008)

An ex-soldier with large gaps in his memory seeks out his fellow veterans in the hope that hearing their recollections will encourage his own to return. The memories he’s missing all relate to a massacre in Beirut. Was he a part of it or did his mind reinvent the scenario?
I adore films that explore the mechanics of memory, and Waltz does it in style. It's flash animated but it's so well done that there were moments where I almost believed it'd been rotoscoped.
It's a documentary but also a memoir, a private understanding of a public event and a film with an important message for all who watch it.

4½ silences out of 5