Kirikou and the Wild Beasts 2005

“He’s tiny, he’s black, he’s naked and he’s back! Kirikou, the razor-sharp little boy who emerged from his mother’s womb able to speak, and who moves as fast as the Road Runner, is the problem-solving lynchpin to four new stories… Using ingenuity, deductive reasoning and bravery, Kirikou outsmarts the evil witch who threatens his resilient African village. Simple but engaging, full of peril and resolution, this film should amply satisfy its built-in audience seven years after Kirikou and the Sorceress became a phenomenon in Gaul and beyond… The film is directed at kids, but never panders to them. A frightening witch, a scary hyena and the possibility of starvation and death are thoughtfully but matter-of-factly incorporated. The overriding message is to be generous to one’s fellows and to always endeavor to think things through… The animation, like the dialogue and narration, is simple and direct. Messages of the value of teamwork, pride in shared labor, self-reliance and resourcefulness are nicely embedded into compact, suspenseful adventures.” — Lisa Nesselson, Variety