What a wonderful short animation this was.Taking cues from fairy tales and silent comedy films, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore it's a very heartwarming and whimsical story about the love for reading and books, resulting in one of the most satisfying viewing experiences that I've ever had in my life.Not only was the animation of this short film wonderfully made (Having the same level of quality than some of best films from Pixar) but also, the plot was very inspirational, moving and subtle, having an unique charm that not many other movies (animated or not) had. The final result is pretty, rewarding and moving, being able to express in a very sensitive way all the joy, sadness and hope that any story could contain. And the most amazing thing is that it is able to do it in only 15 minutes.A must-see.10/10

A splendid film with many layered metaphors. Engaging and moving, well executed and paced. This film could be a precursor to some new and interesting talent in this genre, I certainly hope we hear more from the large team involved.The trailer for this short wasn't adequate but I wonder if any trailer could have been. To sum up any elements in this film would miss several others and render the point confusing at best.Books are our children, but unlike people they never die which means they can go on delighting us and our human children many years after their authors are dust. They can take us back in time to days of different ideas and different beliefs, they can transport us into the minds and hearts of others giving us a wide range of experience. In short, they're the Gutenberg version of the tribal tales that kept tradition and legend alive.That's the core I got but there's a great deal more in this little gem of a short. Really worth seeing.

This is a simple story, told without spoken word but rather by pictures and music. I wasn't sure what I was seeing at first, but was willing to give fifteen minutes. At the end, there were no reasons for regret, and I was in full agreement with the Academy for acknowledging this work with the Oscar for Best Animated Short.*** WARNING: Possible spoilers ahead ***Is this film a sort-of sideways slap at technology, such as e-books and devices like the Kindle or Nook? Perhaps, especially as the main character performs "surgery" on the old bedraggled tome rather than merely scanning it into a database. But the point I took away from this scene was that books live only so long as they are read, and to stop reading them is to kill them. The other thing to remember is that while e-books offer a way to put the printed word in front of more people more economically, not everybody, especially in developing countries or following natural disasters, will have access to the needed technology or infrastructure to fully take advantage of e-books. Not to mention that sometimes curling up with an actual physical book, turning the pages and idly wondering who else might have held this volume transcends the convenience of glowing letters on a glass screen.Librarians and bibliophiles will be drawn to this, of course, but one can only hope that ordinary people will also see this. One hopes that they will take away the underlying lesson — that books and stories live on, but only so long as people continue to read, write, and tell them.

In comparison, Dimanche (2011) currently has a score of 6.3, a point and a half less than this one's 7.8. I give this 7, and Dimanche 8. Anything less than 7 is quite harsh for either one.(I'm not saying Dimanche should win the Oscar... just that I reviewed it here first, before coming to this one, and was shocked at the difference.)This is a good film, to be sure. It's seemingly simple, straightforward, and computer-animated. It has references to the The Wizard of Oz (1939). It has all the bells and whistles.But when you get right down to it, there's really not a whole lot there. It reminds me of Hugo (2011) in that respect, which I thought was also good, but the people who hand out awards seem to think is some kind of masterpiece.It's immediately out of date. Books don't come on paper so much any more. They fly on electromagnetic waves from router to tablet. Even the fax or modem connection sound at the beginning is out-of-date. The internet is always on, and it's silent.Flying books? Isn't that from the intro to "Amazing Stories" (1985)? And we've seen the idea that reading things keeps stories alive in Die Unendliche Geschichte (1984).Is a life lived without leaving a book implied to be worthless?I think I know what this short wants to be telling me, but what it actually is telling me is not real clear.