Sita Sings The Blues

Get this into your Netflix queue now! In one of those rare moments of the week when all family members found themselves in one room at the same time, we watched this wonderful animated 82-minute mashup by artist Nina Paley. In an unlikely but inspired convergence of the Hindu story of Ramayana, '20s jazz vocals by Annette Hanshaw, shadow puppets with unscripted commentary, Flash and Quicktime animation on a Macintosh, scans of hand painted art, and more in a seemingly impossible blend of five different animation styles (!), all juxtaposed with a parallel story of the breakup of Paley's own marriage, we shared some of the most enjoyable entertainment of the whole summer, right on our own TV screen.

Paley, a self-described "free culture activist", released her film in 2008 under a Creative Commons license. Freely download it in varied formats from her site at http://www.sitasingstheblues.com and learn more fascinating background details. And spread the word!

As an example of reviews the film has garnered, here's what the New York Times had to say.