Prince
Laurence is quite a distinguished-looking primate, even more so than Dr. Zaius
in the Planet of the Apes movies. He is a warrior, an inventor, an
explorer, and the leader of his people. He also finds himself a stranger in a
strange land in Jean-Francois Laguionie & Xavier Picard’s animated feature The
Prince’s Voyage, which screens during the 2020 New York International Children’s Film Festival.
Prince
Laurence always believed there were lands beyond his realm. Following a pitched
battle, he fatefully washes up on its shores. Young Tom saves his life, seeking
help from the eccentric scientists squatting in an abandoned museum and their
kindly servant. Prof. Victor Abervrach considers the Prince vindication of his
widely mocked theories, so he intends to introduce the regal Laurence at an upcoming
academic conference. The Prince has intuitive contempt for Abervrach, but he
quickly develops a deep rapport with Tom, who very much resembles Kom, in whom
he took a similarly paternal interest in during Laguionie’s earlier feature, A
Monkey’s Tale (but think of Voyage as more of a companion film than
a sequel).
Eventually,
the Prince starts exploring the hyper-industrial Nioukos megapolis, with Tom as
his guide. However, he eventually learns there is more to this world than even
its pompous scientific community realizes. In fact, the comparison to Planet
of the Apes is rather apt, except the human outsider is a monkey—and the
ruling Nioukos monkeys are too. Admittedly, Laguionie & co-writer Anik Leray
make some rather heavy-handed points regarding the perils of living out of
synch with nature, but the fable-like atmosphere and strange-but-familiar
environment are a pleasure to sink into.
