The differences in technique and tone are very drastic when comparing Czech animated films pre- and post Communist rule. In “The Hand”, we saw the artist represented by a literal puppet of the state struggling to keep something very dear to him safe from the oppressive rule of the floating hand which represents the communist regime. The mood of the piece is dark and foreboding, with little color or joy expressed by the artist character. It is not difficult to interpret this film as being critical of the state. Much of the work we saw from the period of communist rule is very critical of the government and the limitations on free speech imposed by the government.
In the later films we saw, this sense of grim criticism is nowhere to be seen. In films like “Swimming Pool” and “Mythopolis”, we see animations with loose, cartoonish styles and whimsical stories. The colors are bright and the ideas are original and creative. The characters are not required to be criticisms or representations of any larger themes; in most of these films, it is enough for the characters to simply interact with each other and their environments. It is evident from these later films that animation has been thriving and animators have learned much from those who used the art form to criticize their leaders.
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