Is it weird that the thing I find the most fascinating about Martin Rosen and John Hubley's Watership Down is the sound editing? It's so deliciously disconcerting. The actors each sound like they recorded their lines in completely different studios, some of them speaking with their lips right against the mic, other from across the room. They're all set to the same audio level, though; the dialogue being just as loud during close-ups as with long shots. It creates a bizarre effect where the dialogue seems to be coming from everywhere and nowhere. The film is also gorgeous to look at: rustic, pastoral backgrounds with realistic animals tempered with just the slightest bit of anthropomorphism. It's violent and shocking, but that stays true to the book. Would I recommend it for children? Only when they're old enough to truly understand the difference between movies and reality.
8/10
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