I'm a huge fan of Hayao Miyazaki's movies. 'Princess Mononoke' and 'Spirited Away are some of my all time favorite movies. I've seen his other films and thought they were all very good. So with great excitement, I went to see his new film 'Ponyo' on Friday.
The movie is loosely based on Hans Christen Anderson's 'Little Mermaid'. In this version, a goldfish is adopted by a little boy named Sosuke. He pulls her out of the ocean and keeps her in a bucket for a day. He names her Ponyo.
Unfortunately, she's not a normal goldfish. She is the daughter of some king of undersea wizard. She comes from a magic family and she uses that magic to become a little girl. She then seeks out Sosuke to become reunited. Unfortunately, her actions have caused the balance of nature to be upset and the consequences are catastrophic.
The overall story is much more suited for young kids than other Miyazake films. Whereas most of his earlier films have very complicated plots this one is fairly simple and straightforward. Some of the background magic stuff is convuluted and doesn't bear close scrutiny but if you just accept things at face value you won't have any trouble with it. The animation is top notch, though the landscape shots are different than his earlier films. They're almost like chalk sketches or something. It still looks great but it adds a more childlike detail to the story.
Tina Fey voices Sosuke's mother and the character deserves a mention. She is one of the strongest moms that I can recall in film. She is courageous and strong. When an obviously supernatural girl shows up on her doorstep she takes it in stride and handles the situation wonderfully.
The movie is simply delightful.
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