A classic love story in need of animation

As the first animated work to adapt the classic Chinese love story of the same name, Butterfly Lovers: Leon and Jo (蝴蝶夢: 梁山伯與祝英台) is the first cartoon feature made locally in the past five years.

It is an acceptable film. As a tragedy, it makes you cry. And as a story about Chinese culture and sentiment, it has also got the right feel. There are even two Mando-pop divas singing love songs in the movie, adding more touching sentiment.

However, it is not hard to find some obvious problems.

The story of Liang Shan-po (梁山伯) and Chu Ying-tai (祝英台) goes back to antiquity and has been called the Chinese Romeo and Juliet. In this animation Liang has his name changed to Leon, and Chu is changed to Jo, perhaps to cater to young or Western audiences.

In order to pursue her studies, Jo dresses as a boy when she meets Leon on the way to school. They quickly become best friends, carrying on a flirtation that hints at Jo's sex. When Jo is revealed as a woman, Leon immediately falls in love with her, only to find out she is about to married, forced by her father to couple with the son from a rich family.

Those familiar with Disney animations will find the animation work in this movie a little raw and the movement of the characters a bit stiff.

Those seeking a Pixar-standard of 3D animation may be a little disappointed. Fortunately, the music and the dubbing has added some class to the movie.

Both Rene Liu (劉若英) and Jacky Wu (吳宗憲) have smooth vocal performances portraying Jo and the buffoon character Ma, respectively, while Elva Hsiao (蕭亞軒) sounds a bit rusty in portraying Loen.

The music for the movie adapts the world-famous Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto, by Chinese composers Chen Gang (陳鋼) and He Zhanhao (何占豪). The concerto adds to the momentum of the drama and matches the emotions of the characters.

The flowing Chinese-style violins represent the "falling in love" segment; and the high and rapid tones represent the

"refusing to marry part."

At the end, the powerful sounds of gongs represents the climax of the tragedy -- as the protagonists metamorphose into butterflies.

The picture also improves when the pair are ready to sacrifice their love. The colors are glowing and their use is wilder, making for a more imaginative section of the movie.