Animated Films vs. Flesh-and-Blood Actor Films - Comparison Essay Example

Animated films have been in existence in the industry for a long time. They came to replace cartoon movies which were previously being used to create the unreal. With time, animated movies and videos have increased in popularity with the advertisement sector embracing animation as a means to market their products and services in the recent past. Animated storytelling has been typically reserved for childrens fantasy, tales, and lighthearted stories. However, in storytelling, animation appeals to people of all ages and backgrounds since it holds the ability to narrate a story compellingly. With the advancement of animation tools, it is likely that animation is set to become another way of telling stories, not just on the big screens but also in other sectors such as design or marketing. On the other hand, movies with flesh-and-blood actors still hold their position in the film industry and are still as popular as they have been. The aim of this essay, therefore, is to analyze whether animated films can measure up with flesh-and-blood actor films in telling its stories.

Animated films, just like cartoons had originally been associated with children entertainment. Until recently, the storylines of these films revolved around children narratives and entertainment, and this trend is yet to evolve. The use of unreal animals and human beings would not attract as much attention from adults as films with real actors do. Although the animated characters take the voice of live actors, the effect is not the same. One of the reasons why animated films fail to measure up with live action films is linked up with their seeming lack of clarity. Some of the characters used in some movies are too complex to relate with and would only interest those who are keen in following up the story. In other words, it is easier to follow up a story by live actors whom one can identify with, than one being acted by some made-up creatures.

Animated films are hard to understand as compared to live actor movies. As such, they require more description for what is taking place on the screen. On the other hand, live actions are easy to understand. For example, in a live action movie, a car chase is simply a car chase and requires no further clarity to understand. However, in animated movies, such a scenario would require more description. This is because the movies often use something we have never seen before for the characters so to understand what is going on, there is a need for detailed description. This is one of the reasons that make the production of animated films expensive. At other times, the use of too many different images for the characters might make one lose the flow of the story as one finds difficulty in connecting between one animated character to another. This is especially so when the movie involves the use of characters that one cannot relate. This affects the effectiveness of the movie to tell its story.

Another area in which animated films are yet to catch up with the flesh-and-blood actor movies is on the passing emotions. It is true animated films do pass emotions to the audience, but the level at which they do so is lower than that of live actors. For instance, it is almost automatic to feel sorry for a child who is being mistreated by kidnappers than it is for a piglet in a similar situation in an animated movie. The fact that the child is flesh-and-blood and one can easily identify with it makes the scene more powerful than when it is just an animal or an unfamiliar creature. If the passing of these emotions was part of the aim of producing the movie, failure to do so fails the goals of the movie. The effectiveness of the story is underachieved. However, it is advisable to note that the effect of movies will differ from one individual to another and more so between children and adults. As mentioned earlier, children will tend to identify with animated movies more than adults and, therefore, may flow with the emotions of the movie. However, flesh-and-blood actor movies still take the lead.

In animated films, there is also the use of unrealistic performance. Some of the occurrences are too exaggerated to the extent that they lose the connection with the real world. For instance, a character from an animated movie can fall down a cliff and not get hurt or stretch a few miles without breaking. Although this is entertaining, it does not reflect the reality of how things happen. If the children fail to understand that such occurrences are not real, they might end up trying them out which may be dangerous and could lead to harm. This obscures the effectiveness of the movie to pass the message it was intended. Additionally, the real characters playing the roles in the animated films can only be heard but not seen. At times, hearing and seeing amplify the power of a story. Seeing the real characters behind the voices would have a better effect in telling the story than hearing only. This is among the reasons why live action films are popular in telling their stories since they combine visual and audio to stress on the effect.

The discussion above is not meant to discredit the potential in animated films or undermine the progress this section has made over the years. In reality, animated films have shown great potential in taking up a bigger percentage in the film industry as it has presently been witnessed with the increase of adoption of this genre in the market. With improvements and new developments being incorporated into the filmmaking, the sector will prove competitive with the live action films in the near future. As for now, however, the sector is still making its progress and has not yet measured up with the live action films in comprehensively telling its stories. The hindrances are in its inadequate clarity, the aspect of difficulty in following or understanding the story, its low ability to affect emotions or the audience as compared to live action movies, its use of character images that have never been seen thus making it hard to relate, and the use of exaggerated performances. However, animated films can be used as an effective way for storytelling for children with the presence of an adult to break down the story to enhance understanding. It is, therefore, correct to conclude that animated films are yet to measure up with live-action films in telling their stories.