A Review of ‘A Very Long Carriage Ride’: An appealing AI-generated period adventure about cutting the mighty down to size
An ambitious lady writer seeks investment for her work while coming to the aid of the local drunkard and three ill-treated women.
‘A Very Long Carriage Ride’: An appealing AI-generated period adventure about cutting the mighty down to size
Cast: AI-generated
Critic’s Rating: 3.5 Stars out of 5
Director: Hooroo Jackson
Duration: 1 hour, 22 minutes
Genre: Adventure, Animation, Comedy, Drama, Romance
Language: English, French
Release: 2025
What’s it about?
An ambitious lady writer seeks investment for her work while coming to the aid of the local drunkard and three ill-treated women.
Review:
Viewers are in for an often dazzling exercise in Artificial Intelligence filmmaking, courtesy this latest offering from writer/producer/director/editor Hooroo Jackson. After treating us to high jinks aboard an airplane in Window Seat (2022) and regaling us with the darkly comic DreadClub: Vampire’s Verdict (2024), Jackson transports us to a richly-detailed world reminiscent of 19th Century Britain. This venture which boasts the dual distinction of being the first ever simultaneous production of AI classic animation and AI stop motion animation draws the audience into a convoluted plot that is populated with quirky characters who speak in archaic literary fashion. However, while the film’s serio-comic narration is refreshingly original, it unfolds at a blistering pace - leaving the viewer both amazed and bemused.
This film is indeed A Very Long Carriage Ride that traverses the incredibly diverse topography of the fictional Goosebury - with drama, mishaps, humour, adventure and redemption at every turn. A mysterious male character sets the tone of the tale in rhyming verse, as he hops across rooftops dodging policemen’s bullets. We thus learn that the young lady protagonist Autumn Watt and her colleague Katie Bloom are set to embark on a road trip to attend three weddings. Autumn has earned fame for telling off the uncouth elitist Dame Whitetop, but needs funding to finance her gossip-fuelled newsletter. Meanwhile, she is approached by the haggard Laney Langdon who claims that she, along with two other women, are seeking to bring their abusive former employer (and one of the betrothed) Major Donaldson, to justice. Tension is also brewing between Goosebury two’s major communities – the Nicks and the Gillies - especially given that two of the couples to be married are from opposite camps.
Yes, there is enough of substance in this yarn to fill a novel. But Jackson compresses character development and plot progression into a mere 82 minutes. However, the astounding speed of the narrative is occasionally off-putting and the dialogue, though articulate, is often delivered too quickly to settle in the viewer’s mind. However, clearly a lot of thought and effort has gone into the visual and voluble technicalities, with Jackson choreographing his creations admirably. On the flip side, the deluge of information, intermittently over-lapping dialogue, surreal interludes and hurried scene transitions might be a tad overwhelming for some to grasp. Still, memorable characters include the fortune-teller Lena Gershwin with her “magic beans” as well as the perennially sardonic gentleman-turned-vagabond Hopkins Brand, who has his own score to settle against the villain Donaldson. Other surprising people also show up like the Brogue-accented “Muskateer” McCaven McShaven, the French-speaking Martini and Donaldson’s wily lawyer Mr. Crumb.
Recurring instances of ambiguity in the narrative mar the film sometimes, while the film’s conclusion seems a bit coerced and a little too convenient. Also, though presented as a pillar of morality, Autumn’s ethics come into question - especially where her attitude toward her Better Half Scott is concerned. Still, themes of conspiracy and blackmail, numerous misadventures in the Goosebury forest, and strange traditions during the weddings, all help sustain the viewer’s interest. One is kept pondering whether the victims will prevail, whether the abuser will suffer, and whether the heroine will succeed in her quest.
Amid the Road Movie genre, this film would most probably rate quite highly. One has seldom or never seen travel by horse-and-carriage across great distances, and that too, with unrelenting peril thrown in the path. There are even some instances that might remind the avid reader of Jane Austen and the Bronte Sisters, though this film is far more whacky than anything those celebrated ladies could dish out. As Autumn journeys from the lowly Peach Patch to the classy Rockspeare, her carriage is guaranteed to take you on a bumpy but pretty rewarding ride.
