Bruno Bozzetto
West And Soda

It's a bit of a childhood time for me, or rather more of preadolescence, in fact, the film I am about to review I saw for the first time in 1985 on an obscure (but forward-thinking, given the quality of the products it offered) private broadcaster in my area...

"West and Soda" by Bruno Bozzetto, animated feature film from 1965 is the film in question and I want to claim right away one thing, it's very difficult for me to be objective given the emotional value this work has for me, but I will still try to bring some detachment.

Parody of the western genre the little masterpiece by the brilliant Italian cartoonist tells the story of Clementina, a delicate precursor to all the various ladies of the West dealing with the villain of the moment, aptly named Cattivissimo, who is determined to snatch her fertile land for mere profit purposes. To aid the charming Cow-Girl will come the brooding Johnny, who in various encounters against Cattivissimo and his henchmen (Ursus and Smilzo) will bring about a happy ending.

This film would deserve a viewing just for being the first animated feature film (lasting 85 minutes) made by a totally Italian production after 16 years from that "The Rose of Baghdad" by Anton Gino Domeneghini, a true milestone in the world of Italian animated drawing, but not only for documentary reasons do I recommend spending some time on it...

The thing that stands out most is the absolute simplicity, almost minimalism, of the drawing which, by Bozzetto's own admission, at the time compared to other foreign productions, might have seemed really "poor" but over the years has taken on an almost avant-garde aspect and it's very pleasing to find in very recent works citations (more or less veiled) of the beautiful style of the national Bruno. If we want to find a weak point, perhaps it is the script that suffers from being a first work and probably the Milanese cartoonist (assisted by co-screenwriter Attilio Giovannini) was not yet well versed in the timings of a feature film therefore the story appears far too linear without too many plot twists, filled with humor that nowadays seems way too benign.

Sure, there are no shortage of very funny moments but they are those of pure parody (visual, above all), rather than those of topicality that stand out in the whole, creating moments of such delicate fun as to seem almost naive but I appreciate it for that as well. The soundtrack is beautiful, typically "Spaghetti Western", listen to believe...

I would like to quote in conclusion Claudio Colombo: "Teetering between Jacovitti and Buster Keaton, on the wings of a drawing which, as Bozzetto observes, seen today is very modern (...). Simplicity aside, some special effects, for instance, those of the storm and the brawl in the dark in the saloon are works of art."

The child inside me can only agree! (and the adult too...)