Director(s): Jan Pinkava
Date Released: 1997
Theatrically Released Alongside: A Bug’s Life
A miniature masterpiece.
Despite mentioning in The Adventures of André and Wally B. how each Short Review would be under 300 words, I couldn’t help but break the rule for Geri’s Game—otherwise, the review would’ve been a complete butchering. As a kid, I watched A Bug’s Life many times on VHS (it was the only Pixar film I owned)—and while enjoying the film, it was the opening short which always drew the most enthusiasm. Geri’s Game is a gem in the Pixar collection—one of the few shorts to exceed its proceeding feature film. Watching it as an adult, my appreciation has only magnified—noticing subtle aspects I missed as a child.
The plot follows Geri (whose non-verbal noises were done by Bob Peterson), an elderly man I presume living in France (though it really could be anywhere, the only reason behind my guess being the distinctive French sounding soundtrack). Geri arrives at a park to play chess…alone—setting up the pieces for no one but himself. After making the first move, Geri gradually gets up, removes his spectacles, and sits on the other side of the table, making the second player’s move before moving back over. The short’s editing begins speeding up as spectacles Geri and no spectacles Geri continue making moves, the game soon becoming a hilarious one-man competition.
Going directly from viewing Knick Knack to Geri’s Game is a bit overwhelming, with the animation skyrocketing in quality (as to be expected from an eight-year gap). The short wisely avoids unnecessary background designs, sticking to basic, blurry patterns (trees and houses looking similar to watercolor paintings) while focusing attention on Geri and the game. Geri’s Game is the first instance where a Pixar human doesn’t look uncanny—a result from experience, better CGI, and sensible planning. The company’s decision to use an old man is a wise one, with their previous tries at animating kids and young adults (Tin Toy, Toy Story) coming across as jagged, bizarre-looking and robotic. Pixar takes advantage of animation’s frequency to caricaturize elderly men, disguising any inhuman design flaws as mere artistic choice. Geri’s excessively large nose and full-moon spectacles (which augment his eyes to comical levels) come across as endearing rather than creepy. The character is given extra detailing such as swollen knuckles and veins popping out of his neck—little additions which show how far Pixar’s come in character designing. Interestingly, Geri’s appearance looks near-identical to the French lawyer from Disney’s The Aristocats.
If Geri is indeed meant to be a homage, this could explain why the soundtrack has such a distinctive French tone.
While impressive in animation quality, storytelling is where Geri’s Game truly shines. The short is Pixar comedy at its best—brilliance found in every shot. If I were wiser I’d leave it at that, but I’m young and rash and feeling up to a challenge—so here’s a play by plot examination. The short takes its time beginning, showing Geri setting up the chess pieces with the camera zoomed in. Around the minute mark, Geri makes his first move before looking up at his supposed competition. For the first time, the camera zooms out, revealing Geri to be alone in the park. The shot pauses to let the absurd situation sink in, with Geri still expectantly looking over at his invisible competition. Geri proceeds to remove his glasses before moving to the other side—there his mild personality suddenly changes, becoming more lively and arrogant while having this contagious, self-satisfied cackle (I’ll refer to this Geri as Dark Geri). The editing begins chopping down Geri’s movements until the only shots are the two sides playing. The silliness turns brilliant as Geri becomes two distinctive characters, competing in a battle of wits where the hero is also the villain.
Geri is no match as Dark Geri gleefully takes out his pieces. The short does a great job portraying Geri and Dark Geri as separate characters, so great in fact, that a subtle shot can go completely unnoticed. At little under the two-minute mark, less than a second long, one can see Geri and Dark Geri in the same shot. I never noticed this as a kid and would have missed it as an adult had I not viewed the short multiple times in a row. The shot, naturally, raises a ton of questions, yet goes to show how effectively convincing the “separate character” aspect works.
Soon Geri is down to his king, while Dark Geri has all his pieces. Stuck in a desperate situation, a panicked Geri fakes a heart attack, falling to the ground in a hilariously theatrical way. The soundtrack abruptly stops, with Dark Geri becoming distinctively worried—checking his pulse to see if he’s still alive (another detail I missed as a kid). With Dark Geri distracted, Geri switches the board around to ensure his victory. The animators deserve major props for the following scene, delivering an entire conversation using only facial expressions: Geri’s relief, Dark Geri’s concern, Geri’s assurance, Dark Geri confirming, Geri’s reassurance, Dark Geri’s go-ahead to proceed, Geri’s false concern, Dark Geri’s confidence at victory, Geri’s epiphany at finding a move, and Dark Geri’s utter disbelief. The expressions say all, in particular, the glorious smug smile on Geri’s face.
Geri wins, with Dark Geri conceding a set of dentures as the prize. Geri proceeds to laugh through whistled teeth (the same laugh as Dark Geri), with the camera zooming out once more to remind viewers they were, in fact, the same person (excluding the one questionable shot).