Every once in a while I watch a film that enlightens me or disgusts me so much that I feel the need to share my thoughts of it with the world, and this film is just one of the latter.
The funny part is that this whole thing is fueled by the fact that the same baboons reviewing Keiyta Amimya's films, giving them horrible review's, gave Otik high praise. Now onto the review.
I find it amazing how many people go on about the sheer imagination of this film while bashing highly imaginative directors like Keiyta Amimya and his special effects. Well, let me say, if ripping off a fairy tale and Roger Corman's brand of film making is "Imaginative" then I guess I just have no imagination.
After finding out that they are lucky, er infertile, a mindless housewife falls into a painful depression. Her husband digs up a stump from the backyard in a vacation home which vaguely looks like a sapient figure. He inturn, for no good reason, spends all night carving and sanding and making it look somewhat, and I mean somewhat, like a human baby. The wife, when presented the hideous thing, doesn't do what a normal human woman would, which would be feel incredibly chastised by her husbands general insensitivity, falls in love with it as if it were a baby. I mean, honestly, a real woman would find it kind of insensitive and more of an insult, but oh well. Anyway, the the thing comes to life, and eats, eats, and eats some more.
The baby has no personality beside "hungry". Which is a bit weird considering that I feel like the director might want you to feel sympathy for it...? In fact, the whole character list with the exception of the gardener lady, are all incredibly unlikeable. The father shouts and bull roars most of the film while the wife boo hoos about the fact that he logically wants to put the piece of wood out of its misery. The neighbors are mundane and share many lovely disgusting close shots of them eating horrible looking local food choices. I mean horrible close ups that are incredibly unnecessary and seem to be there in some attempt as gross out scenes... I assume?
The neighbor's daughter is a stifling child whose character is as scitzo as she is hideous. I had an easier time looking at the horribly stop motioned Otik, and I mean this is the worst most insulting stop motion I've ever seen. Willis O'Brien would be turning over in his grave if he seen this trash. Which is sad considering almost eighty years later you'd think it'd be a bit easier to pull off.
In the end the wooden baby is a menace that must be dealt with. For a surreal film, it was mostly ugly, hard to look at, and very dated feeling. Unlike most surreal films, which spend way to much time on their imagery, this one actually had somewhat a structured story. Too bad there was time wasted in the film which lead to the general rushing of important '

lot' (and I use that term loosely) points.
The acting, specifically from the father and the little girl in the film often feels very forced and though it sometimes hits the mark, there are several times that it just it is simply cringe worthy.
So, I say if you are looking for an imaginative film or a dark fairy tale, don't go here. This is a horrible representation of the genre that feels more like a bad episode of the outter limits then a film.
Do yourself a favor and rent Pans Labyrinth instead.
And, before you chastise me and give me angry messages saying "You just don't understand it" shut the hell up, neither do you. There is a huge population of baboons out there that watch surrealistic film making and hold them selves high above people who just enjoy structured good films, when in reality they watch surrealism and psycho babble crap in some attempt to just feel as though they are watching something deep.
I'm sorry, you aren't. Most directors who make surrealism films have some message to convey, which is fine, however, surrealism can hurt my head if it isn't in the least bit entertaining. There are too many surreal films that borderline mind numbing more then they do mind opening. The reality is its just bad story telling and funky imagery to make up for the fact that they have no real imagination or story structuring abilities.
This isn't always the case, but in too many cases it is. So, please, don't waste your time trying to argue with me. I don't do the internet troll game.