Why Do Adults Love Animated Movies?為何成人愛看動畫電影？

蔡天航　馬士奎

You go home from work. You are tired， you want to sit in front of the TV， and watch something fun. Your children want the same. What better than an animated film？

Both children and （most） adults love animation. Of course， there are animated movies that are directed specifically to adults （like Anomalisa by Charlie Kaufman）. And there is also the chance that adults will love a kids movie more （for example The Incredibles）.

So， why do adults like cartoons so much？

They have well-written characters

Well there， are plenty of reasons. First and foremost， because a lot of them are really good. Plenty of talent works in producing animated films like Toy Story and Ice Age. Screenwriters， designers， programmers， musicians are all working together in order to bring the best outcome to the big screen. And usually， they succeed.

Animated films have well-written characters facing complicated situations. Like when Woody has to deal with the fact that he may not be Andys favorite toy after all （Toy Story）. Or when Mufasa sees his brother killing him （Lion King）.

Sometimes the scripts are even better than those in adult films. So， it comes as no surprise that animated films appeal to grown-ups as well.

They bring out the child in us

Remember the time when you were a child， it was Saturday morning and you used to sit in front of the TV and enjoy cartoons？ Well， animated films bring out that specific feeling， that nostalgia for our childhood.

Moreover， they reveal our inner child. By watching an animated movie， we forget the monotony of everyday life and we leave our problems behind.

Who wouldnt love to have his/her own personal Baymax （Big Hero 6） who wouldnt hesitate to share a hug every time there was sadness or problems？ If only our lives could be full of good-natured monsters， talking animals and brave children！

We love heroes

Almost every cartoon has to do with the journey of a character. A journey towards adulthood， or towards finding oneself， or succeeding in a quest. And who doesnt love a hero like that？ A hero that overcomes all obstacles trying to find true meaning and happiness in his/her existence？ Plenty of times， the characters in animated films are bigger-than-life and thats what we need in order to believe to humans （or animals） again.

Anything can happen

Well， when a director wants to make something extremely ambitious， something that would be difficult to shoot， there will be lots of people who would advise him/her to turn the film into an animated feature.

Thats because there are no limits to animation. A house can fly with balloons （Up）， or we can find elephants with huge ears ready to go to the air （Dumbo）. Our imagination is the only limit to what can be done. And usually， there are whole worlds out there， ready for us to discover.

Archetypes and their subversion

Every good bedtime story has its archetypes1： the innocent character （like Snow White for example） and the evil one （like her stepmother）.

Sometimes they blend， giving us interesting characters （like Gru who is supposed to be a super-villain， but in fact has a heart of gold）. We root for those characters because they remind us of ourselves. Our strengths and weaknesses.

Furthermore， animated movies deal with core elements of human existence： the idea of family， friendship， the fear of being alone.

A little treat for adults

Animated films are made for children， but sometimes filmmakers decide to put a little something for adults as well： Shrek， for example， has scenes with a sense of humor that is addressed mainly to grown-ups.

Its a treat that aims to help parents enjoy their time in the movies as well. And its a really successful practice.

A feast for the eyes

Colorful and vibrant， animated movies are a feast for the eyes. The viewers enter fantastic worlds and cartoons have become works of art.

Just remember the first scene in the Lion King. The sun comes up and animals from all over the jungle come to meet the new lion cub.

In recent years， animation uses photo-realistic environments in order to make the spectacle bigger and better （remember films like The Adventures of Tintin and Dinosaur）.

下班回家之后，你身心疲憊，想要坐在電視機前，看好玩兒的節目。你的孩子也有同樣的想法。還有比動畫電影更好的選擇嗎？

兒童和（多數）成人都愛動畫電影。當然，有專為成年人拍攝的動畫電影（比如查理·考夫曼導演的《失常》），但有些成年人可能也會喜愛兒童電影（例如《超人總動員》）。

那么，為何成年人如此喜愛動畫電影呢？

悉心打磨的角色

個中原因是多方面的。首先，它們大多制作精良。眾多人才參與到動畫電影的制作當中，造就了像《玩具總動員》和《冰川時代》這樣的電影。為了在大銀幕上呈現最佳效果，編劇、設計、程序員和作曲家們通力合作，往往使電影大獲成功。

動畫電影中的角色都經過悉心打磨。他們都面臨著復雜的境遇，例如胡迪發現他已不是安迪最喜歡的玩具（《玩具總動員》），木法沙親眼目睹弟弟謀害自己（《獅子王》）。

有時動畫電影的劇本甚至勝過其他電影。如此一來，動畫電影贏得成年人喜愛便不足為怪。

動畫喚醒童心

還記得你的孩提時光嗎？周六早晨，你常常坐在電視機前享受動畫帶來的歡樂。動畫電影喚起了那份特殊感受，讓我們懷戀童年時光。

而且，動畫電影展現我們內心的童真，使我們忘卻每天的單調生活，將煩惱拋諸腦后。

誰不夢想擁有一個自己的專屬大白呢（《超能陸戰隊6》）？不論何時陷入悲傷還是遇到麻煩，他都會毫不猶豫地將你擁入懷中。只愿現實生活中隨處都有生性善良的怪物、會說話的動物和勇敢無畏的小孩！

心懷英雄情結

動畫電影里總有一個角色會經歷一段旅程，或走向成年，或追尋自我，抑或在探險時所向披靡。這樣的英雄誰不喜歡？誰不喜歡會克服重重障礙、尋找生命的真正意義與幸福的英雄？很多時候，動畫電影里的角色通常高于生活，而這是為了讓人類再次相信自己（或其他動物）。

一切皆有可能

如果有導演想拍攝一部高難度的精彩大片，很多人會建議他/她考慮動畫電影。

因為動畫電影無所不能。一棟房屋綁上氣球就能翱翔天跡（《飛屋環游記》），或者我們還能看到大耳小象準備直沖云霄（《小飛象》）。限制動畫電影的唯有想象力。在此之外總有萬千世界等待我們去探索。

塑造并顛覆原型

每個精彩的睡前故事都有其原型：有的天真無邪（如白雪公主），有的無惡不作（如公主的繼母）。

有時，將這兩種原型融合會產生有趣的角色（比如，格魯本應是個超級大壞蛋，實際上卻有一顆金子般的心）。我們為這些角色叫好，因為我們從他們身上看到了自己，看到了自己的堅強與脆弱。

此外，動畫電影還講述人類生活中的核心要素：親情、友情和對孤單一人的恐懼。

特制成人笑點

動畫電影通常為孩童而作，但有時制作人也會為成人加點作料：例如《怪物史萊克》中一些場景就含有主要針對成年人制造的笑點。

特制笑點是為了讓父母們也能在動畫電影中享受時光，這種做法確實卓有成效。

一場視覺盛宴

色彩豐富、充滿活力的動畫電影令人大飽眼福。觀影者走進美妙的世界，動畫電影成為一件件藝術品。

不妨回想一下《獅子王》中的第一個場景。太陽升起，叢林各處的動物趕來迎接新生的幼獅。

近年來，動畫電影通過制造逼真的環境使畫面更為宏大精致（比如電影《丁丁歷險記》和《恐龍世紀》）。

（譯者單位：中央民族大學）