Examining the emotional impact of Raymond Briggs’ “The Snowman” – and this song, in particular – could be an eternal endeavor. Like trying to decipher the magic of The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds. I mention the latter because the musical score is integral to “The Snowman,” which is otherwise a silent film. I can’t think of another score that conveys surprise, wonder, joy, sadness more effectively. It serves those emotions to the audience on shiny, yet very textured platters; four courses to consume and savor in under a half-hour.
Sadness. A delightful children’s holiday movie that not only has an element of sadness – but a sad element that is the ending? But in that sadness, the boy is holding a reminder of what had occurred the day before; a keepsake that will always be with him. And, a reminder that perhaps on another snowy December day, the snowman could return. Or, perhaps not.
I’ve come to think of “The Snowman” as an allegorical tale of life, or the cycle of life. Santa as a god, the North Pole as His heaven; The Snowman, a divine being. The boy, for some reason, given a whirlwind tour of the wonders of the world – and a snapshot of the next world; perhaps as a motivation or guide for his long life ahead. Then again, this could be my own imagination gone awry. Listeners have come up with all sorts of interpretations of Pet Sounds, after all.
- Steve Stav
