This short justifiably won the Academy Award for Animated Short. At turns sad and funny, sweet and cruel and with a marvelous ending, it offers proof that the animated short is still being done well and is still a viable art form. Available on The World's Greatest Animation, anyone who takes animation to their heart and particularly the short form, should have this compilation. This short is just one of many reasons to pick it up. You won't be sorry. This short, by the way, was not made with young children in mind. They may not understand it particularly well.
8 Reviews
What a wonderful short!
planktonrules9 February 2008
This film won the Oscar for Best Animated Short Film in 1986 and it's pretty easy to see why. The film, while very good has an ending that is so sweet and so disarming that it makes this a wonderful short.
The film begins with two sisters playing and spending time together. Through all of this, the scenes continue to move forward a few years at a time, though periodically, the film jumps way ahead and you see the sisters now as older adults looking through a scrapbook. Apparently, the scenes you have seen and will continue to see all are reminiscences they are sharing together as they look back at their lives.
Ultimately, the film ends in a rather unexpected manner--leaving me impressed with the way they were able to bring it all together. The film is sweet, interesting and has a simple but very memorable animation style that is sure to please. Give this one a look.
The film begins with two sisters playing and spending time together. Through all of this, the scenes continue to move forward a few years at a time, though periodically, the film jumps way ahead and you see the sisters now as older adults looking through a scrapbook. Apparently, the scenes you have seen and will continue to see all are reminiscences they are sharing together as they look back at their lives.
Ultimately, the film ends in a rather unexpected manner--leaving me impressed with the way they were able to bring it all together. The film is sweet, interesting and has a simple but very memorable animation style that is sure to please. Give this one a look.
admirable
Kirpianuscus2 April 2020
At the first sigh, a lovely portrait of sisterhood. In essence, a beautiful short animation, what an Oscar short film must be. But, more significant, a precise, honest, adorable definition of life. So, a just great work.
the Dutch make some of the best movies
lee_eisenberg26 January 2016
Børge Ring's Oscar-winning "Anna & Bella" focuses on a pair of sisters looking back on their lives. This cartoon affirms that the Netherlands make some of the best movies. "Soldier of Orange", "The Assault" and "Antonia's Line" are but a few. Of their cartoons, I've only seen this one and the animated feature "The Dragon Who Wasn't (or Was He?)". I should note that "Anna & Bella" is not for little children. There are some intense scenes. But that doesn't subtract from the movie's quality. Quite the opposite, it reminds us that animation is simply another kind of filmmaking, and it doesn't have to be for children. In my opinion, these short cartoons are more interesting than the features voiced by the celebrities of the moment.
Anyway, good little cartoon.
Anyway, good little cartoon.
Disliked because of personal preference
Horst_In_Translation25 September 2015
Warning: Spoilers
"Anna & Bella" is a 7.5 minute short film from over 30 years ago, actually from the Netherlands, even if the director is Danish. Borge Ring is in his 90s today and this Oscar-winning film may be his most known work. It is about 2 sisters who think back about their past together. However, as sentimental and emotional as this film may be, it went a lot south for me due to the animation, which I am not a fan of at all. Certainly not my style. Also the story indicates far too much for my taste instead of just presenting us the facts. As a whole, I found this one fairly forgettable and I am surprised the Academy honored it. Sometimes being different is enough. But different does not mean good in this particular case. Not recommended.
Sad and Poignant
Hitchcoc26 October 2021
As two elderly sisters sit looking at a scrapbook, the hearken back to their lives. They were inseparable as children and continued that way for always. But nothing is perfect and there is a jealous romance in the middle which tests their love for each other. The conclusion is worth waiting for. The animation is not attractive, but it works anyway. Academy Award winner and I see why.
An endearing tale
Rectangular_businessman31 December 2023
Warning: Spoilers
A very endearing tale following two sisters looking back at several moments from their life, since their childhood.
It's amazing how a whole life can be encapsulated so well in less than eight minutes, almost in a similar manner to the "Married Life" sequence from Pixar's Up.
I remember watching this short during my childhood. Back then I found it amusing and sweet. As an adult, my impressions are still pretty much the same.
Definitely worth-watching, and the Academy Award it got at the Best Animated short category was more than well deserved.
Anna & Bella is such a bittersweet (More sweet than bitter, I think) experience, pretty much like life itself.
It's amazing how a whole life can be encapsulated so well in less than eight minutes, almost in a similar manner to the "Married Life" sequence from Pixar's Up.
I remember watching this short during my childhood. Back then I found it amusing and sweet. As an adult, my impressions are still pretty much the same.
Definitely worth-watching, and the Academy Award it got at the Best Animated short category was more than well deserved.
Anna & Bella is such a bittersweet (More sweet than bitter, I think) experience, pretty much like life itself.
Good animation of the memories but the music and the "lesser" ending hurt it for me (SPOILERS)
bob the moo11 February 2014
Warning: Spoilers
I guess something is wrong with me deep down because late in this film there is a very dark twist that I thought would be the ending and suddenly I was a lot more engaged in the film, only for it to prove me wrong and have more of a safe ending. Anyway, the plot here is two old sisters looking back over family photos reminiscing about their lives and all the good times together. The animation of the memories is good and I liked the black and white sketchiness of it and the way it changed things to be more representative of the feelings and sense of the time rather than the specific memory of the events. This allowed the creator to have some imagination in there and I appreciated this.
The two older women were less well animated and I didn't care for their sections as much, which was a problem. The key scene in the film is the message we take away, where one sister is hurt and angry at the other, nearly causing her death. At this point I was impressed that it went so dark and I assumed that the best and only ending would be to reveal that there is really only one old woman now, drinking alone and imagining the other – which would have made the same point but in a much harsher way. Again perhaps something is wrong with me that I prefer such darkness but I would have liked this more than the actual ending.
The actual ending sees the two women called for dinner by an angel and then fly off to get it. As an idea it is nice that they are together but it adds to the rather comic feel to the short, which I did not like as much. The music I also could have done without as it is annoyingly twee throughout – again the "near death" scene impacted me some also because that music stopped. On top of the lesser ending, we immediately have a joke credit that it was made "on location" – which is a silly joke for an animated film set in heaven and again just grated with me that it undercut itself with touches like this. It is all still a nice short and mostly it works with the memory sections being very well done, but the music, the lesser ending and the unnecessary comic tone hurt it n my memory.
The two older women were less well animated and I didn't care for their sections as much, which was a problem. The key scene in the film is the message we take away, where one sister is hurt and angry at the other, nearly causing her death. At this point I was impressed that it went so dark and I assumed that the best and only ending would be to reveal that there is really only one old woman now, drinking alone and imagining the other – which would have made the same point but in a much harsher way. Again perhaps something is wrong with me that I prefer such darkness but I would have liked this more than the actual ending.
The actual ending sees the two women called for dinner by an angel and then fly off to get it. As an idea it is nice that they are together but it adds to the rather comic feel to the short, which I did not like as much. The music I also could have done without as it is annoyingly twee throughout – again the "near death" scene impacted me some also because that music stopped. On top of the lesser ending, we immediately have a joke credit that it was made "on location" – which is a silly joke for an animated film set in heaven and again just grated with me that it undercut itself with touches like this. It is all still a nice short and mostly it works with the memory sections being very well done, but the music, the lesser ending and the unnecessary comic tone hurt it n my memory.
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