JUNK WORLD

In a far-flung subterranean future, last seen in Takahide Hori’s 2017 stop-motion animated opus Junk Head, an uneasy alliance between humans and an emancipated clone workforce is shaken when a terrorist cell of sadomasochistic cultists interrupt their joint expedition to research a mysterious anomaly. Soon, the various factions find themselves confronted by distinct possible futures born of their respective meddling with interdimensional distortions, and it falls upon a dutiful robot named Robin to restore a timeline that won’t compromise the integrity of the space-time continuum.

Newcomers to this universe may not appreciate the observable rhymes that Hori sows into this epic prequel, set over a millennia before the picaresque events of the original film. But they’ll share in the wonder and irreverent wit as a new host of characters traverse a bizarre ecosystem of fungal flora and mutant fauna.

With a haptic animation aesthetic that draws influence from Jan Švankmajer, Phil Tippett, and the Brothers Quay, Hori’s intricate and idiosyncratic vision makes for an insightful vehicle for ruminations on human nature, particularly our capacity to create and corrupt. It’s also hysterically gross and very funny!

When you further appreciate that, for this instalment, Hori has only grown his animation staff from three to six artisans — all of whom also lent their voices to its strange and unusual denizens — one can understand why filmmakers such as Guillermo del Toro have lauded Hori for his “monumental will and imagination.” JUNK WORLD is not just a triumph of sci-fi fantasy storytelling, but an awe-inspiring, independent and human-made testament to the creative spirit.

PETER KUPLOWSKY

Content advisory: strobing, explicit violence, nudity, crude content, coarse language, suicide