Rabbit

There is something surprisingly macabre about this quite powerful critique on greed and venality. Two youngsters are gamboling around in a meadow when the espy a rabbit. Rather than play with it they take it home, chop it in half and discover a mischievous golden idol residing inside. He's quite an enthusiastic chap and is soon bounding around the room turning things into either feathers, jars of ink or glittering jewels. It doesn't take the folks long to realise that it's insects that are his favourite things, so they go about feeding him jam whilst slaughtering whatever they can to attract more bugs. Then when they decide to capitalise on some of their gains and lock their new-found friend in the house, he becomes a bit miffed and summons some help of his own. Now, perhaps, things begin to look like retribution will not be far away for the people who return expecting their roast to keep on dripping! Stylistically, it's a rather basic animation with shades of that used in "Watership Down" (1978) to it, but philosophically it doesn't miss and hit the wall with it's message and I must confess to finding the ending suitably fitting.