The best of Laloux's films seem to create worlds that combine a quiet, lyrical beauty with a cruel brutality and this film achieves this in an unflinching fashion. Meanwhile, it poses questions about art and reality, loyalty and deceit, and has a surprising, inexplicable conclusion that defies logical interpretation, but is tonally perfect for the film and had me thinking about its messages for days after. Wonderful, and achieves so much in its short running tme.