I don’t know if Director Lucas Ansel was attempting to mimic a dream, if so, he comes damn close to the general feeling of being in one. Created with some striking stop motion animation, “99¢ Pizza” is a bizarre short but sweet thriller that works as some really trippy animated fare.
On a stormy New York City night, a man finds shelter in a small 99¢ pizza shop. However things begin to quickly unravel when he asks for a slice of pizza, and it’s revealed that all is not as it seems. Implementing stop motion animation, much of what we see in “99¢ Pizza” may or may not be out of someone’s dream or delusion.
I don’t know if it was the use of the stop motion or not, but the movie comes off as some weird fever dream that’s relentless in its surrealism. Director Ansel even breaks the fourth wall as our character discovers that he is in this ever changing environment and situation that amounts to him wondering where he even is. Director Ansel’s atmosphere paired with the unusual premise is memorable, and I appreciated how the short embraces its inexplicableness and sense of randomness. It leans in to the whole experimental tone in favor of an experience that’s completely unexplainable but downright memorable.
CINEJOY featuring CINEQUEST Artists is held from March 1st through March 12th.