Dog (2001)

There is something really quite macabre about this animation. The story finds a young boy grieving for his recently deceased mother, as does his father who seems incapable of leaving their damp-ridden house. To add to the woes of young “Joe” - their dog “Jake” also doesn’t look long for the world. Despite having been repeatedly assured that his mum’s passing was peaceful, events occur towards the conclusion that make the young man wonder if that were really true. These characters look eerily like really malnourished dolls, and with the audio of the relentless rain augmenting the sparing dialogue, this delivers a creepily poignant observation of grief, poverty and loneliness. It’s a disturbing five minutes that is really quite sad.