Beginning with a worldwind world premiere at SXSW earlier this year and a wide release earlier this fall, this richly textured evocative dark animated fantasy, from a pivotal part of the team behind “Love, Death & Robots,” “The Spine of Night” tells an engrossing parable of greed. Surreal, strange, experimental, boundary pushing, and imaginative, this dark horse of the animated feature film Oscar race offers a unique palate cleanser from child-focused content.
Brought to life by an epic all-star cast of Richard E. Grant (Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker, Bram Stoker’s Dracula), Lucy Lawless (Ash Vs. Evil Dead, Xena: Warrior Princess ), Patton Oswalt (The Secret Life Of Pets 2, Parks And Recreation), Betty Gabriel (Get Out, Upgrade), and Joe Manganiello (Justice League, True Blood), also featuring Abby Savage (Orange Is The New Black), Larry Fessenden (The Dead Don’t Die, Depraved) & Rob McClure (Person of Interest, Evil).
“The Spine of Night” embraces the hand drawn cult classic rotoscope animation fantasy, and is a tantalizing mix of “Conan The Barbarian,” and “A Scanner Darkly,” with an elemental edge of “Heavy Metal,” telling a spellbinding dark fantasy that spans the evolution of time.
An innovative ode to Ralph Bakshi, Gerald Potterton, and the other god-kings of rotoscope animation this first writer/director collaboration between innovative animator Morgan Galen King (Exordium, Max Thrust), and prolific filmmaker-comics writer Philip Gelatt (Love Death & Robots, Europa Report) the film’s visuals & story aim squarely for geek nostalgia and hit their target with uncanny precision. Galen King led the animation, and Gelatt produced with Will Battersby (They Remain, The Bleeding House), and Jean Rattle (The Break-Up Date, Exit Strategy).
In this ultra-violent, fantasy epic, ancient dark magic falls into sinister hands and unleashes ages of suffering onto mankind. A group of heroes from different eras and cultures must band together in order to defeat it at all costs.
Synopsis: This epic begins many years ago when an ambitious young man steals forbidden knowledge from a sacred plant and, as he falls to its darker temptations, unleashes ages of suffering onto mankind. As his power grows over the years, there are many who stand against him. Among them are a daring tomb-robber, star-crossed lovers, a maniacal necromancer, winged assassins, and an undying guardian.
