super cute, but not quite as good as I would have expected from Miyazaki
Being a huge fan of former masterpieces like "Princess Mononoke" and
"Spirited Away", I had really high expectations, and was a bit disappointed, unfortunately. But lets first comment on the good features of this movie. The animation and the artwork is as brilliant and stunning as you would have expected from a Miyazaki movie. Ponyo's cuteness is mind-blowing, and you will fall in love with her the first second. The soundtrack is also excellent, and a perfect fit. So, what is missing? Well, since the cast of characters in the movie is quite small compared to other animes, I would have expected to be able to form an intense bond with all of them, not only Ponyo and Sosuke. Which was not really possible, since they lack personality and intensity. Ponyo's father, for example, should have been presented a bit darker, since he is the "villain" after all. Don't't get me wrong, I don't think that he should have been characterized as the bad guy, but rather his concern for Ponyo seems a bit too shallow. Sosuke's mother is stereotypically nice and caring, really sympathetic, but that's all. Sosuke's father is reduced to a dummy with only some few seconds screen time. That's the flaw, I think: Most characters in the story merely fulfill their function (being concerned, being caring, being absent, ...), but don't have enough soul that you can really relate to them. Maybe this is deliberate, since the story focuses on Ponyo and Sosuke, but I had the feeling that something was missing, though. The ending was also a little bit disappointing for me, in terms of the pace of storytelling. Until the very last moments the story runs quite slow and gets lost a bit in beautiful yet longish day-dream like scenes with some dramatic cuts now and then. And suddenly there are only a few minutes left to go, and lots of unresolved issues. Therefore it gets quite hectic when they try to tie up all loose ends in the last minutes. Well, some minor flaws in an otherwise excellent and nearly indescribable beautiful movie. I would rate it 10, but I hold a production from Miyazaki to higher standards, I guess. Definitely worth watching with your whole family, if only for the perfect hand-drawn animation, which excuses any hole in the plot.. marianne_ane@yahoo.com watch Apt Pupil movie
review added.
mai_noa4 watch The Crimson Pirate movie
Howard's castle is a magical and wonderful movie. It has a really nice love story to go with it too.
.
mai_noa4 watch Lower Learning movie
Howard's castle is a magical and wonderful movie. It has a really nice love story to go with it too.
Pokemon 3 is a good movie to watch. The adventures are awesome in there.
.
mai_noa4 watch Restraint movie
already did..............
.
aisha_texas watch Bible! movie
funnyyy
.
aisha_texas
nice.
porneonthelow
beautiful.
missyminx
truly heart warming, funny and cute.
missyminx
amazin fun loving cute a bit like little mermaid.
hannahannette
i love this movie.
A delight for young children and adults alike.
To date the films of director Hayao Miyazaki have not disappointed me and 'Ponyo' is no exception. While this film as aimed at younger children it is a delight for adults too, transporting them to a magical childhood world. Ponyo is a goldfish who one day swims out to explore the sea around her home, as a trawler approaches she gets trapped in a jar that was amongst the rubbish it dragged up from the seabed. Even in the jar she manages to swim to the sure where Susuke rescues her. He puts her in a bucket and takes her to school and also shows her to the ladies at the old folks' home where her mother works. One of the ladies is shocked to see a fish with a face and warns that it is an omen of an impending tsunami. When Susuke goes down to the shore again a large wave and he wash Ponyo away things he has lost her. She has other ideas and manages to escape from her father again, summoning a giant wave to transport her back to Susuke. Something else has changed too… Ponyo is now a little girl! Transformed by the potions made by her father, a wizard who has abandoned life on land to live under the sea. He is desperate to get her back and in searching for her causes a huge flood that covers most of the town. Luckily Susuke's house is at the top of a cliff so he is all right, he is however worried for his mother Lisa who attempted to drive to the old people's home. With the help of Ponyo's magical powers they set off to find her and to face a test which will decide whether Ponyo can remain human. This film was an utter delight from start to finish, possibly the most delightful Studio Ghibli film since 'My Neighbour Totoro'. The animation was stunning throughout, although it did have a slightly different style to previous films. The story was such that very small children could probably follow it as well as enjoying the visuals. There were plenty of laughs to be had along the way such as when Ponyo the Goldfish ate the ham out of Susuke's sandwich and his mother's somewhat reckless driving. These comments are based on watching the film in Japanese with English subtitles. . |
Trailers: |
