Decorated. Synopsis and review of Decorado

Arnold is a mouse going through a full-blown midlife crisis. The suspicious death of his best friend awakens an almost unhealthy curiosity in him to find meaning and freedom in the world around him.

To those who have seen psychonauts y Unicorn Warsboth winners of the Goya Award for best animated film, in 2017 and 2023 respectively, the plot and style of this new peculiarity by Alberto Vázquez will not be strange to you. With a sense of humor that is as acidic as it is accurate, and an animation that takes full advantage of the possibilities of 2D, the film is a tribute to the art of telling and disconcerting, and to the power of the metaphor of the world as great theater that Calderón de la Barca already advanced.

Aimed at an adult audience, this story of grotesque twists has an admirable logic, full of counterpoints and ingenious dialogues from dozens of fleeting characters, in the purest style of Ibañez’s best comics. The protagonist’s descent into hell has trepidation and pause in precise measures, thanks to characters like the original Tinkerbell. Its creator says that he has tried to reflect in his feature film “a complex moment with many changes. He wanted to talk about these themes and the crises we are experiencing in the current era.”

Thus the shortcomings of the human being of the 21st century appear naturally in this story: technological slavery, authoritarianism disguised as protective mothers, perpetual happiness in small doses with side effects… But along with this tableau of disasters, the reconciliation and trust of a marriage adrift that knows how to rebuild itself, the redemption of a broken friendship and an inveterate loser also emerge. A very complete set of captivating moments of talent, with an elegance that is not broken at any point in the film.