Ningen Doubutsuen

Ningen Doubutsuen, also known as Clap Vocalism or Human Zoo, is truly the most influential anime of the twentieth century. Uneducated viewers new to the anime medium may find it jarring or confusing. It requires an inquisitive and analytical mind to peer into the rich imagery and deep symbolism of Ningen Doubutsuen. Allow me to show you.

The title cards for the introduction and conclusion are minimalistic in nature. It seems to mock television programmes and movies which use overly-edited footage and effects to have a bombastic opening and closure. Ningen Doubutsuen says, "No, I don't need any complicated effects to make the movie good." And ... this is resoundingly true. The content of the movie is so good, so solid, so FRESH that it doesn't need any extra fluff to make it as good as it is.

Again, the avant-garde animation follows the theme of minimalism as I mentioned earlier. Ningen Doubutsuen doesn't need fancy animation or a unique artstyle to make itself shine. It is fantastic on its own already. The inclusion of drawings instead of just words seems to be a mocking gesture by director Kuri Yoji. He seems to say, "Okay, I'll add this stuff on top so that it qualifies as an 'anime', even though it is amazing already."

Ningen Doubutsuen goes straight to the point. It draws important parallels between animal abuse and domestic violence in twentieth century Japan. In the feministic society, men trapped in loveless marriages and "caged in" and tortured by their wives, similar to how animals are trapped in zoo cages and abused. The Man is expected to be the breadwinner of the family while the Woman sits at home and does nothing, just like how animals are made to perform for the entertainment of humans. The fantastic voice acting echoes Kuri's sentiments. Sharp, high-pitched voices mimicking animals which sound almost sarcastic in nature. Mocking, showing derision towards marriages, gender roles, society, the very nature of humanity itself... Brilliant. Simply brilliant I must say.

Ningen Doubutsuen is by far one of the most important works of the twentieth century, and is one of the best films Japan has ever put out. Its vibrant symbolism and detailed historical context give an insight into Japanese married life in the sixties. One simply cannot call himself a so-called 'anime' fan if he has not seen this masterpiece. Truly, it is director Kuri Yoji's magnum opus.

Kuri Yoji is a genius at experimental works. Granted, a ton of people will be turned off by the lack of story, bizarre art, but his genius lies at using minimalist art to convey sick and twisted themes. Thus, he is more interested in seeing our reactions and emotions to the work.

It is a pity that Human Zoo has so much potential, but it is almost wasted.

Like other Kuri Yoji works, the emphasis on provoking emotions is there in Human Zoo through twisted minimalist imagery. The art looks like a five year old's drawing, though I may be giving too much credit to the art. ... What is more important however is his usage of the drawings.

Human Zoo explores animal abuse, power, and marriages. We see repeated viewings of the wife abusing the husband; for example, a wife will sit on the husband.

And that's about it.

Compare Human Zoo to his other works like Ai and there is more substance; Ai is about exploring the dark side of love and Kuri Yoji uses the drawings and sound to create an eerie atmosphere. Human Zoo has nothing of that sort.

I feel that the idea of Human Zoo is noble and witty, but the execution is sloppy and lazy. How does 2 minutes of seeing wives sit on husbands be either entertaining or thought-provoking?

That said, I did not entirely hate the work nor did I like it. I prefer other Kuri Yoji works and for those starting to watch his works, I suggest Ai as a better starter. People who already have seen his other works can give this a watch.

I wished Human Zoo didn't disappoint me. I really do.

Let me begin by expressing my utmost disgust at how terrible and horrid many reviewers are at understanding and rating timeless classics, one example being the widely acclaimed "World of Golden Eggs", scoring only a 6.3 in MAL, despite its high sales. Ningen Doubutsuen, or Human Zoo in english, is no exception. It is truly the pinnacle of animu in the 20th century, it's influence was indeed paramount in animation, inspiring countless classics, in one way or another, that we have all come to enjoy, such as the great "Nyanpire the animation" and "World of Golden Eggs". Anime has flourished and this sole clip is ... one the few forebearers. Still, some insolent fools disregard the seed that birthed the tree of modern anime, unable to analyse and understand the heavy hand of deep symbolism in this short clip. Let me explain how this anime, is superior amongst all.

This short film's plot is not a convoluted one, yet it holds great meaning. At first glance, the movie just seems to be about people locked in cages, and behaving like animals, as can be implied from the title "Human Zoo". However, the story actually tells of the misogyny in our society and an ideal dystopian women-dominating society. In the clip, a man and a woman are stuck in a cage and are forced to mimic animals. In this case, the cage is a metaphor for a life restricted to only our basic and, I use this word to all of its extent, animalistic characteristics. It shows that, when humans are not affected by external stress or pressure, such as jobs, societal stature, it is the women who dominate men. Watch as the woman in the video whips the man to make him squeal, or how she squeezes him to convulsion with her erect mammaries. This dark symbolism depicts how gender inequality, especially regarding the females, can be greatly adverse if the situation is reversed. Men will be treated no different from animals, forced to moan and squawk, living their lives in zoos, an eternal prison.

Personally, Kuri's art and animation in this particular clip may not be the best, some feel that its choppy cuts are ridiculous and others find the figure drawings out of proportion. However, let me remind these viewers, that such, is a prime example of minimalism. Furthermore, Ningen Doubutsuen holds an extremely unique artstyle. Its features are experimental, and Kuri, doing what he does best, manages to capture the essence of a dystopian women-dominated society. Furthermore, its brilliant opening sequence thrills me even more. Each word on the black screen is like a large eye, staring at the viewer, compelling him/her to further his experience in this marvelous film by watching over and over again. Truly spectacular!

Ningen Doubtsuen is an incredible jewel in the 20th century, the magnum opus, the cream of the crop. Coupled with stylistic art, deep plot and amazing sounds, it thrills the viewer through a ride of emotions that end with him/her wanting more. Even as many do not fully understand the significance and greatness of this brilliantly animated gem, I urge the community to look at the larger picture and think. I suggest reading cumsussertod's review, as his insightful comments may help to shed light upon the situation. Ningen Doubtsuen won the Special Jury Prize at Annecy in 1963 and the bronze award for animation at the 1963 Biennale in Venice, it has touched the hearts of many, let it touch you too.

I will admit, when I first watched this, I had absolutely no idea of what in the hell was this trying to convey. My brain was too small. But then I read some info and found out what it was about.

When I watched this for a second time, something even greater had just occurred to me.

This entire 2 minute 13 second short was some of the earliest pieces of bdsm material. Certified bruh moment.

Now, with a quick google search, you can tell that bdsm is quite old, the idea is older than this short, but the fact that this piece of media explored such ... a concept at an early time only makes you think, maybe this was not a prediction to the rise in the genre, but a prediction of anime in the future with degeneracies people have as a guilty pleasure. To be fair, Kuri Yoji makes some pretty surreal stuff, whether this was intentional to play out such a theme or coincidence is something I will never know. But one thing is for sure, this brings way too many questions. Almost like a Simpsons prediction only actual a real natural prediction that makes some sense in the first place.

Anyways, the story is basically femdom and bdsm, and I say this because the males in this short do not seem to be retaliating, even though they are humans, as implied by the title. Yeah, I know, too many questions. Human Zoo merely presents this though rather than diving deeper into it, so there isn't a lot to get out of it unless you extrapolate as hard as I did to get some nonsense (though senseful) ideas that I have given.

As for audiovisuals, visuals are good, like a kid's drawing, but there isn't anything wrong with that, mostly just somewhat surreal animation with good colouring. Audio, "woof woof", well, someone predicted Makima simps early. Adds onto my idea too. No soundtrack to speak of other than that.

I enjoyed this, I honestly don't see how one could hate this really, yes, it tells literally dumb stuff, but I don't see how that would warrant it a 1/10 or some low score like that. Universally, I would imagine most won't enjoy this for reasons I am unaware of. But it is pretty damn harmless. Would recommend, well, if you want dumb stuff, otherwise stay away from it, though, you really should give this a try.

Let's call it a 6 (+1 for the bruh moment)/10.

Okay let me rephrase, just wanted to say this is the biggest disappointment that I have witnessed thus far. And I do not believe old anime or influential media should be above any form of criticism. As it is merely a perspective given by an individual on a work of art or entertainment that they have consumed.

With that being said I will proceed to the review.

"Ningen Doubutsuen" or "Human Zoo" also known as "Clap Vocalism" is a two minute short anime by Yōji Kuri. He was an important figure in the history of Japanese independent animation. So reviewing this will be a pain. As I ... do not look at his work from a biased point of view of a fan rather someone who is merely consuming it at face value and judging it on the basis of what it has to offer as a standalone piece.

This is a theme based short animation and with that being said, does not have a narrative, characters and the like. It is merely an exhibition of an idea or message if you will.

So given that I am consuming this not at the time it was concocted for I might be amiss to the message or themes that it is trying to tell me, but from my conjecture based on what I saw in this two minute short anime was a message that can be interpreted in several ways.

1. The societal power struggle between genders of the opposite sex as seen by the director.
2. The subjugation of Men and the frustration of the director. (Cautionary Tale)
3. The liberation of Women and the activist nature of the director. (Right to Equality)
4. The carnal fantasies of the director. (Femdom)

The problems that arise from this is a mixture of themes that does not harmonize well with each other and cannot be properly established in this short anime and thus will not resonate with the vast majority of people consuming this as of today.

So it makes sense for it to be in the category of dementia here on MAL. However. What is dementia? Dementia is madness. And in that it has excelled. In my humble perspective this is the best Dementia piece in the existence of anime thus far in terms of depth that I have witnessed. Even surpassing other well known dementia pieces such as "Nami" and "Utsu Musume Sayuri".

And the crude and discord nature in its execution and the repetitive nature in terms of its animation, art and sound only adds so much more depth to the dementia aspect that this short anime has to offer. So if you're an avid dementia fan you will find this a hidden gem or a treat if you will. As for me I'm not in this category as it is not my cup of tea.

I hope my review gives you a chance to understand how I personally feel about the work, as well as gaining an understanding of what the work is about. And that the review is ultimately delivered as fairly and objectively and detailed as possible, and done so in a way that does not spoil the artistic composition for you. To provide you with tools to decide by yourself if you wanna check this artistic composition out or not.

tldr; Better than Nami or Utsu Musume Sayuri in terms of depth if you're a fan of depth in dementia. Worse than Nami or Utsu Musume Sayuri if you're not a fan of depth in dementia.

the type of animation is not the best for the time, but suddenly it is its simplism what really attracts it is not the most complete work it is not the best that someone could see but it meets the basics for its time perhaps I am being condescending because of its antiquity , the idea is well developed, it shows a quite nice criticism that in its short time it manages to develop it will not have high votes for many reasons as I said before its animation is not the best nor its inclusive sound reuses several frames but it is not the ... worst I have seen I believe that the purpose of a work is to propose an idea, show the idea, surprise the viewer and give it an end, this is achieved in the most basic and simple criteria

As someone who’s watched some early experimental films before from this same era (albeit Western) I do understand you can’t view them in a remotely conventional way. They’re very brief usually and are ideas and lack a plot, characters, etc.

Nonetheless, this is simply a waste of time. It isn’t visually appealing and the unsubtle message appears to be about domestic squabbles or something. Male stick figures in a cage are shown getting whipped and making animal noises for the entire 2 minutes. Well, that summary was probably still overlong but even by experimental standards it sucks. My question is what was the purpose of ... showing all of this?