This is going to be a weird and really personal thread but I want to talk about the novel/animated movie “Watership Down” by Richard Adams and why I can’t watch the ending of the original animated film without sobbing uncontrollably, especially now. (1/)

For those who don’t know - it’s a tale about a group of Rabbits who lose their home and have to struggle and journey to find a new one. It was written by a British vet of WWII. There’s a lot of themes about survival, community, and oppressive regimes. (2/)

I saw the movie adaption when I was a kid and it’s stayed in my mind since. I appreciated it more as an adult and read the book (it’s a good story, not without flaws but I really enjoyed it). But the movie is still fascinating to me - the art style, the moods it evokes... (3/)

It hits me on some primal level which might’ve been the point of the story! Or maybe the author just put a lot of stories he used to tell his kids on car trips together into a cohesive novel. Maybe both! (/4)

But the movie still sticks with me in a different way. One of the central characters is Hazel - a rabbit who, by way of both his compassion and desire to protect - becomes a de facto leader of the group. His character is less complicated in the movie. (/5)

But that’s not of much concern in this thread. Movie Hazel is who I met first and his persona is what sticks with me the most. There’s a scene that I absolutely love where they’re trying to cross a river to avoid a dog (6/)

And only some of the rabbits can swim. They’re running out of time. One of the others, the gruff Bigwig, says that the ones who can’t swim will just have to make do. But Hazel goes a different route, “That’s not good enough”, he snaps. (7/)