Claymation a la “Celebrity Deathmatch” comes to the center ring in Joshua Meeter’s “The Award Showdown”, pitting Steven Spielberg against George Lucas as they duke it out for ownership of their joint Lifetime Achievement Award, as if the statue grants an all-access pass to officially lord over the entire Hollywood kingdom. Perhaps it does for these two men, but there’s more than just your typical MTV claymated slapdown. This is an entire epic in 15 minutes, that despite all the action involved, manages to remain grossly entertaining for all that time, putting delightful surprises in every possible scene, including Spielberg and Lucas’ creations helping them out in their battle onstage, and even Indiana Jones swiping the statue and heading through a portal to a much different time, which brings to life the rest of Spielberg and Lucas’ works (fictional works in the case of Spielberg, because Oskar Schindler couldn’t very well come out and kick the crap out of Lucas), and even has Willow make an arrival to turn back time on both filmmakers.
Currently, Meeter is in the process of remaking “The Award Showdown”, which will include improved effects and animation, a new score, and more, which I sincerely hope will not detract from the passionate, homegrown feeling Meeter has in his original version. At best, it should stand side-by-side with the original, a record of good skills, and a wonderfully creative mind.
