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Jan 18, 2018 8:58 PM
#1
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Feb 2013
7
At the time of writing this, the current score is 7.33. This somehow ranks lower than Pom Poko, which, no offense, constantly has tanuki balls hanging out? Mary isn't bad at all, and in my honest opinion, it's stunning and wonderful. It captures the magical feeling of Ghibli movies of my childhood, and for sure this will be many kid's first exposure that same feeling too. I know that's what Ponoc was going for and they really hit it out of the park with Mary.

Is it because of the weight of being Ghibli's successor? Are people being just hypercritical? I'm a little annoyed if people can't accept Ponoc as Ghibli's successor, but very curious as to why people just weren't that interested in Mary.
Jan 18, 2018 9:27 PM
#2

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Jun 2011
821
7.33 isn't a bad score, relatively good. As for me, I enjoyed the film a lot, but I think it lacked something compared to Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle, but I'm not sure what.
Jan 18, 2018 9:28 PM
#3
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Jun 2017
23
I was wondering the same thing just went to go watch it qnd i thought it was excelent
Jan 18, 2018 11:24 PM
#4
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Feb 2013
7
Rayla said:
7.33 isn't a bad score, relatively good. As for me, I enjoyed the film a lot, but I think it lacked something compared to Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle, but I'm not sure what.


I agree on a 7 being good, but when most Ghibli movies score around an 8, it feels a bit low. That may be just me though. And if you ever figure out what you felt was lacking, I'd love to hear!
Jan 20, 2018 12:08 PM
#5

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Jul 2017
578
I'd give it a 6/10.

It's clear that the film was more focused being a "Ghibli film" than an original idea. It generally felt shallow and boring.

At least the animation and soundtrack was well average.
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Jan 20, 2018 3:04 PM
#6

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Apr 2013
1348
I don't think it helps the director was a regular animator on Ghibli films, so it's a style he's too used to. When I go see it, I'm just going to judge it as-is, regardless of the style. At face-value, it looks like it's a cute movie about a witch, and that's probably what I'm going to expect. I don't particularly care if it's a Ghibli knock-off (my guess is this may be the anime equivalent of Katzenburg leaving Disney to found DreamWorks), I want to see if the studio will be worth keeping an eye on based on their first theatrical effort.
Jan 20, 2018 7:06 PM
#7

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Jun 2011
873
I don't know about it having very low scores but I didn't like it. I don't think it's as boring as Tales of Earthsea but it's very cliched and childish to watch. Mary and Peter are your typical bratty children, there are too many parts that will remind you of past Ghibli films, and it just feels like Kiki's Delivery Service meets Harry Potter with a little bit of Coraline mixed in there. It brings little new to the table and it's quite bland to watch.

The development of Mary and Peter's relationship is rushed and shallow, two kids starting off hating each other and then they become best friends once Mary hears Peter's in trouble. Typical animated children's film.

Mary has little to entertain her, she reads and does chores but she appears to have no games or toys to play with. I don't know why her family doesn't give this poor child more things to do. And also, she told Tib she would feed him milk. I guess I'll let that slide, maybe Mary is too naive to know how to take care of cats but milk is bad for most cats.

The only few good things about the film is the magic and the action and that's basically all.
Numbuh 3, you've got to get off the couch, you cannot sit in that tree house, girl you like Rainbow Monkeys so grab your little shit and then swing!

Hand tracks be tracking me to different doorways. In a maze, and I don't know what to do. Guaranteed though, Ima find the emeralds.
Jan 20, 2018 9:52 PM
#8
Offline
Feb 2013
7
pinkarray said:
I don't know about it having very low scores but I didn't like it. I don't think it's as boring as Tales of Earthsea but it's very cliched and childish to watch. Mary and Peter are your typical bratty children, there are too many parts that will remind you of past Ghibli films, and it just feels like Kiki's Delivery Service meets Harry Potter with a little bit of Coraline mixed in there. It brings little new to the table and it's quite bland to watch.

The development of Mary and Peter's relationship is rushed and shallow, two kids starting off hating each other and then they become best friends once Mary hears Peter's in trouble. Typical animated children's film.

Mary has little to entertain her, she reads and does chores but she appears to have no games or toys to play with. I don't know why her family doesn't give this poor child more things to do. And also, she told Tib she would feed him milk. I guess I'll let that slide, maybe Mary is too naive to know how to take care of cats but milk is bad for most cats.

The only few good things about the film is the magic and the action and that's basically all.


But it is a children's film. I can agree to disagree on other points you bring up, but it's unfair to rag on a children's film for... being a children's film. I even remember reading on how the director kept his daughter in mind while creating Mary, sorry for not having a source at the moment.

Also, I have a cat and I agree, it's not great to give cats milk, but it's really common in animation. They even feed cats milk in Kiki's Delivery Service, but I don't mind. It's just a minor slight in my opinion.
Jan 20, 2018 11:02 PM
#9

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Jun 2011
873
raspberris said:
pinkarray said:
I don't know about it having very low scores but I didn't like it. I don't think it's as boring as Tales of Earthsea but it's very cliched and childish to watch. Mary and Peter are your typical bratty children, there are too many parts that will remind you of past Ghibli films, and it just feels like Kiki's Delivery Service meets Harry Potter with a little bit of Coraline mixed in there. It brings little new to the table and it's quite bland to watch.

The development of Mary and Peter's relationship is rushed and shallow, two kids starting off hating each other and then they become best friends once Mary hears Peter's in trouble. Typical animated children's film.

Mary has little to entertain her, she reads and does chores but she appears to have no games or toys to play with. I don't know why her family doesn't give this poor child more things to do. And also, she told Tib she would feed him milk. I guess I'll let that slide, maybe Mary is too naive to know how to take care of cats but milk is bad for most cats.

The only few good things about the film is the magic and the action and that's basically all.


But it is a children's film. I can agree to disagree on other points you bring up, but it's unfair to rag on a children's film for... being a children's film. I even remember reading on how the director kept his daughter in mind while creating Mary, sorry for not having a source at the moment.

Also, I have a cat and I agree, it's not great to give cats milk, but it's really common in animation. They even feed cats milk in Kiki's Delivery Service, but I don't mind. It's just a minor slight in my opinion.


Screw the old "It's just a kids film" saying. Look at Howl's Moving Castle and Laputa, they had more appeal to adults than just kids. I don't remember seeing a cat get fed milk in Kiki? It's been almost a year since I seen it, and I don't recall any other examples of cats being fed milk in animated films but that doesn't sound like a good thing. I know it's a cartoon but it's not logical.

I don't see how my review came off as unfair? I didn't intend for it to be unfair, I mean, they can make a children's film without making the kids bratty and rushing them to become friends for a shallow reason after they hated each other in the beginning.

Cliches and ripping off other animated films does not make a good children's film to me.
Numbuh 3, you've got to get off the couch, you cannot sit in that tree house, girl you like Rainbow Monkeys so grab your little shit and then swing!

Hand tracks be tracking me to different doorways. In a maze, and I don't know what to do. Guaranteed though, Ima find the emeralds.
Jan 23, 2018 11:00 AM

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Dec 2017
222
I saw this movie in theatres, and I thought it was alright. Not a terrible movie, and it did have some enjoyable parts, but it wasn't a great movie either.

You could tell that they were definitely going for something akin to Spirited Away. It has a very similar construction, with a young girl going into a fantasy world, going on an adventure, developing a close friendship with another boy, etc. but it doesn't have any of the charm of those films.

It felt a bit flat. I wasn't expecting anything too complex given that it is supposed to be a children's fantasy film, but even in that regard it still kind of generic. The magical fantasy world isn't that interesting, the characters weren't that likable, the story was pretty lackluster, and it all just felt very bland.

Overall I'd give it a 6/10. Slightly above average, but not exceptionally memorable.
Jan 28, 2018 11:56 AM

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Nov 2014
18
pinkarray said:
raspberris said:


But it is a children's film. I can agree to disagree on other points you bring up, but it's unfair to rag on a children's film for... being a children's film. I even remember reading on how the director kept his daughter in mind while creating Mary, sorry for not having a source at the moment.

Also, I have a cat and I agree, it's not great to give cats milk, but it's really common in animation. They even feed cats milk in Kiki's Delivery Service, but I don't mind. It's just a minor slight in my opinion.


Screw the old "It's just a kids film" saying. Look at Howl's Moving Castle and Laputa, they had more appeal to adults than just kids. I don't remember seeing a cat get fed milk in Kiki? It's been almost a year since I seen it, and I don't recall any other examples of cats being fed milk in animated films but that doesn't sound like a good thing. I know it's a cartoon but it's not logical.

I don't see how my review came off as unfair? I didn't intend for it to be unfair, I mean, they can make a children's film without making the kids bratty and rushing them to become friends for a shallow reason after they hated each other in the beginning.

Cliches and ripping off other animated films does not make a good children's film to me.

I feel your review was a bit nitpicky of the film. Essentially:
- It's a film for children.
- Mary has no source of modern day entertainment because she's living with two old women in a cottage in the English countryside...?
- A cat being fed milk.
- Children being children and developing a relationship.
- You have beef with Mary.
Are these really things to give an anime a low score on? I 100% understand not liking something, but I don't realize why those points make the entire film deserving of a low rating.
puckerjugsJan 28, 2018 12:03 PM
Jan 28, 2018 1:44 PM

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Jun 2011
873
puckerjugs said:
pinkarray said:


Screw the old "It's just a kids film" saying. Look at Howl's Moving Castle and Laputa, they had more appeal to adults than just kids. I don't remember seeing a cat get fed milk in Kiki? It's been almost a year since I seen it, and I don't recall any other examples of cats being fed milk in animated films but that doesn't sound like a good thing. I know it's a cartoon but it's not logical.

I don't see how my review came off as unfair? I didn't intend for it to be unfair, I mean, they can make a children's film without making the kids bratty and rushing them to become friends for a shallow reason after they hated each other in the beginning.

Cliches and ripping off other animated films does not make a good children's film to me.

I feel your review was a bit nitpicky of the film. Essentially:
- It's a film for children.
- Mary has no source of modern day entertainment because she's living with two old women in a cottage in the English countryside...?
- A cat being fed milk.
- Children being children and developing a relationship.
- You have beef with Mary.
Are these really things to give an anime a low score on? I 100% understand not liking something, but I don't realize why those points make the entire film deserving of a low rating.


But there are studio ghibli films that are for children and are better, such as Howl's Moving Castle, Ponyo, Castle in the Sky, Nausicaa, My Neighbor Totoro.

Still, are these people so poor that they can't buy this child some toys or something? Why didn't Mary take her toys with her when she was moving anyway?

Most cats can't stomache milk so her saying she was going to feed a cat milk was not a good idea.

Not all kids are brats which Mary and Peter are, if you look at some of Miyazaki's protagonists such as Sheeta and Pazu, who are close to Mary's age, they behave much more well-manneredly. And Mary developed a relationship with a person she hates too quickly over the course of the film, how she develops a relationship when she hears he's in trouble is beyond me.

I don't like Mary because she was a brat at the beginning of the film and even lies, she became fast friends with a boy she hated once she hears he's in trouble. She also is like a rip off of Kiki and has a storyline similar to Chihiro's in Spirited Away.
Angry_Anime_NerdJan 28, 2018 1:49 PM
Numbuh 3, you've got to get off the couch, you cannot sit in that tree house, girl you like Rainbow Monkeys so grab your little shit and then swing!

Hand tracks be tracking me to different doorways. In a maze, and I don't know what to do. Guaranteed though, Ima find the emeralds.
Jan 28, 2018 3:34 PM

Offline
Nov 2014
18
pinkarray said:
puckerjugs said:

I feel your review was a bit nitpicky of the film. Essentially:
- It's a film for children.
- Mary has no source of modern day entertainment because she's living with two old women in a cottage in the English countryside...?
- A cat being fed milk.
- Children being children and developing a relationship.
- You have beef with Mary.
Are these really things to give an anime a low score on? I 100% understand not liking something, but I don't realize why those points make the entire film deserving of a low rating.


But there are studio ghibli films that are for children and are better, such as Howl's Moving Castle, Ponyo, Castle in the Sky, Nausicaa, My Neighbor Totoro.

Still, are these people so poor that they can't buy this child some toys or something? Why didn't Mary take her toys with her when she was moving anyway?

Most cats can't stomache milk so her saying she was going to feed a cat milk was not a good idea.

Not all kids are brats which Mary and Peter are, if you look at some of Miyazaki's protagonists such as Sheeta and Pazu, who are close to Mary's age, they behave much more well-manneredly. And Mary developed a relationship with a person she hates too quickly over the course of the film, how she develops a relationship when she hears he's in trouble is beyond me.

I don't like Mary because she was a brat at the beginning of the film and even lies, she became fast friends with a boy she hated once she hears he's in trouble. She also is like a rip off of Kiki and has a storyline similar to Chihiro's in Spirited Away.

I guess you're kind of missing what I was saying - why do those points make Mary & the Witch's Flower deserving of a low score? Does music, animation, character development, plot, overall production, etc not take priority over biased opinions on how a character rubbed you the wrong way and how milk is bad for cats?

Also, Mary and the Witch's Flower is based off the 1971 novel The Little Broomstick. Kiki's came out in 1989, and Spirited Away in 2001. If you read the summary, they didn't seem to stray from the direction of the author. I mean, there's no way Mary is a rip off - though as they're a studio comprised of members originally from Studio Ghibli, they're definitely going to show influences from previous films.

Not to mention Studio Ponoc was founded in 2015, while Studio Ghibli has been around for 32 years. Mary the Witch's Flower was their first feature film, so to compare it to something like Howl's Moving Castle is quite unfair, imo.

Anyways, I do realize everyone rates their anime differently! Not everyone is going to like the same thing.
But in regards to why it's been rated so low, people can't seem to accept not only that Studio Ponoc is a successor to Ghibli, but understand that they're just starting out. The film wasn't perfect, but it was promising!
Jan 28, 2018 4:01 PM

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Jun 2011
873
puckerjugs said:
pinkarray said:


But there are studio ghibli films that are for children and are better, such as Howl's Moving Castle, Ponyo, Castle in the Sky, Nausicaa, My Neighbor Totoro.

Still, are these people so poor that they can't buy this child some toys or something? Why didn't Mary take her toys with her when she was moving anyway?

Most cats can't stomache milk so her saying she was going to feed a cat milk was not a good idea.

Not all kids are brats which Mary and Peter are, if you look at some of Miyazaki's protagonists such as Sheeta and Pazu, who are close to Mary's age, they behave much more well-manneredly. And Mary developed a relationship with a person she hates too quickly over the course of the film, how she develops a relationship when she hears he's in trouble is beyond me.

I don't like Mary because she was a brat at the beginning of the film and even lies, she became fast friends with a boy she hated once she hears he's in trouble. She also is like a rip off of Kiki and has a storyline similar to Chihiro's in Spirited Away.

I guess you're kind of missing what I was saying - why do those points make Mary & the Witch's Flower deserving of a low score? Does music, animation, character development, plot, overall production, etc not take priority over biased opinions on how a character rubbed you the wrong way and how milk is bad for cats?

Also, Mary and the Witch's Flower is based off the 1971 novel The Little Broomstick. Kiki's came out in 1989, and Spirited Away in 2001. If you read the summary, they didn't seem to stray from the direction of the author. I mean, there's no way Mary is a rip off - though as they're a studio comprised of members originally from Studio Ghibli, they're definitely going to show influences from previous films.

Not to mention Studio Ponoc was founded in 2015, while Studio Ghibli has been around for 32 years. Mary the Witch's Flower was their first feature film, so to compare it to something like Howl's Moving Castle is quite unfair, imo.

Anyways, I do realize everyone rates their anime differently! Not everyone is going to like the same thing.
But in regards to why it's been rated so low, people can't seem to accept not only that Studio Ponoc is a successor to Ghibli, but understand that they're just starting out. The film wasn't perfect, but it was promising!


Well, the English dub was relatively good but it still couldn't save this film, most of the music was good, the film is...eh...too Ghibili-esque, you can see influences from Howl, Kiki, Ponyo, Chihiro and more, like they can't just do something new with the film instead of taking influences from other Ghibli films? Because other Ghibli films have their own styles, they don't take influences from other Ghibli films. The plot was like a Harry Potter rip off, it was bland and cliched. It did have some interesting magic in it but it still reminds me too much of Harry Potter.

I can't find any character that I have got attached to.

I rated it low because I rate fiction by the writing and directing, stuff like animation, music, production quality, voice acting etc. don't usually save a film if it has poor writing and directing. Some actors can make a character who was written to be annoying seem enjoyable but unfortunately, this did not happen with the english dub.
Numbuh 3, you've got to get off the couch, you cannot sit in that tree house, girl you like Rainbow Monkeys so grab your little shit and then swing!

Hand tracks be tracking me to different doorways. In a maze, and I don't know what to do. Guaranteed though, Ima find the emeralds.
Jan 28, 2018 8:16 PM

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Nov 2014
18
pinkarray said:
Well, the English dub was relatively good but it still couldn't save this film, most of the music was good, the film is...eh...too Ghibili-esque, you can see influences from Howl, Kiki, Ponyo, Chihiro and more, like they can't just do something new with the film instead of taking influences from other Ghibli films? Because other Ghibli films have their own styles, they don't take influences from other Ghibli films. The plot was like a Harry Potter rip off, it was bland and cliched. It did have some interesting magic in it but it still reminds me too much of Harry Potter.

I can't find any character that I have got attached to.

I rated it low because I rate fiction by the writing and directing, stuff like animation, music, production quality, voice acting etc. don't usually save a film if it has poor writing and directing. Some actors can make a character who was written to be annoying seem enjoyable but unfortunately, this did not happen with the english dub.

I do hope to see them build from this and develop something new, their studio is definitely talented and can learn to grow from working for Ghibli in the past.
I can understand expecting something different and having it fall short in that regard, or even having higher standards as they're Ghibli's successor.
Also things may get lost in translation with English dub anyways, when I first watched Ponyo as a kid I hated Noah Cyrus as the voice actress for Ponyo.

Offtopic:
- Because other Ghibli films have their own styles, they don't take influences from other Ghibli films.
I'm sorry, what?

- The plot was like a Harry Potter rip off, it was bland and cliched. It did have some interesting magic in it but it still reminds me too much of Harry Potter.
The Philosopher's Stone came out in 1997. XD
Jan 30, 2018 8:47 PM

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Jun 2011
873
puckerjugs said:

Offtopic:
- Because other Ghibli films have their own styles, they don't take influences from other Ghibli films.
I'm sorry, what?


Did you notice many influences from other Ghibli films in this film? I don't remember them taking influences from other Ghibli films and putting them in their films like they did in Mary. Even they have a giant talking water a la Spirited Away and talking fire a la Howl's Moving Castle.
Numbuh 3, you've got to get off the couch, you cannot sit in that tree house, girl you like Rainbow Monkeys so grab your little shit and then swing!

Hand tracks be tracking me to different doorways. In a maze, and I don't know what to do. Guaranteed though, Ima find the emeralds.
May 13, 2018 10:46 AM

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Apr 2015
6728
pinkarray said:
And also, she told Tib she would feed him milk. I guess I'll let that slide, maybe Mary is too naive to know how to take care of cats but milk is bad for most cats.


Jesus. Getting a little nitpicky, aren't we?
"No, son, you may not have your body pillow at the dinner table!"
May 15, 2018 7:23 AM

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Jun 2011
873
CatSoul said:
pinkarray said:
And also, she told Tib she would feed him milk. I guess I'll let that slide, maybe Mary is too naive to know how to take care of cats but milk is bad for most cats.


Jesus. Getting a little nitpicky, aren't we?


Viltas said:
CatSoul said:


Jesus. Getting a little nitpicky, aren't we?


That's not nitpicky that's just dumb.

OT: It's a bit more cartoony. In a lot of ways Mary screamed Disney to me too. The animations were superb, sometimes a bit over-the-top compared to other crowded scenes ghibli came up with. There were many creative visual ideas just thrown everywhere, I'd say that was the movies strongest aspect.

Ghibli felt more natural in the presentation of human emotions with most of the movies that I've seen. With Disney you have those super long scenes where they show you exactly what to feel at that moment. They take longer than 5 seconds to let a character make a long face then dragging his shoulders along the way when they make their leave.

Ghibli in a sense isn't "putting it in your face" so much like for example the ending of Mary did. It was a bit to direct for my taste. The "villains" if you wanna call them that felt quite fictitious too. I'd say it's the perfect movie to watch for younger girls. That's the best I can come up with. Hard to put into words.

Edit: Oh, but regardless I really found myself liking Mary. She's no Kiki, but she was a sassy version of her which makes the movie good on it's own.


It's neither nitpicky nor dumb. I know because I have a cat, she has licked milk from I guess my cereal off the floor and she threw it up. Also, if you google on the Internet, you can see that milk is bad for cats.
Numbuh 3, you've got to get off the couch, you cannot sit in that tree house, girl you like Rainbow Monkeys so grab your little shit and then swing!

Hand tracks be tracking me to different doorways. In a maze, and I don't know what to do. Guaranteed though, Ima find the emeralds.
May 15, 2018 8:46 AM

Offline
Apr 2015
6728
pinkarray said:
CatSoul said:


Jesus. Getting a little nitpicky, aren't we?


Viltas said:


That's not nitpicky that's just dumb.

OT: It's a bit more cartoony. In a lot of ways Mary screamed Disney to me too. The animations were superb, sometimes a bit over-the-top compared to other crowded scenes ghibli came up with. There were many creative visual ideas just thrown everywhere, I'd say that was the movies strongest aspect.

Ghibli felt more natural in the presentation of human emotions with most of the movies that I've seen. With Disney you have those super long scenes where they show you exactly what to feel at that moment. They take longer than 5 seconds to let a character make a long face then dragging his shoulders along the way when they make their leave.

Ghibli in a sense isn't "putting it in your face" so much like for example the ending of Mary did. It was a bit to direct for my taste. The "villains" if you wanna call them that felt quite fictitious too. I'd say it's the perfect movie to watch for younger girls. That's the best I can come up with. Hard to put into words.

Edit: Oh, but regardless I really found myself liking Mary. She's no Kiki, but she was a sassy version of her which makes the movie good on it's own.


It's neither nitpicky nor dumb. I know because I have a cat, she has licked milk from I guess my cereal off the floor and she threw it up. Also, if you google on the Internet, you can see that milk is bad for cats.


It's nitpicky because you're overly concerned about a five-second throwaway scene in a feature-length animated film.
"No, son, you may not have your body pillow at the dinner table!"
May 21, 2018 8:46 AM

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Mar 2014
1597
pinkarray said:
CatSoul said:


Jesus. Getting a little nitpicky, aren't we?


Viltas said:


That's not nitpicky that's just dumb.

OT: It's a bit more cartoony. In a lot of ways Mary screamed Disney to me too. The animations were superb, sometimes a bit over-the-top compared to other crowded scenes ghibli came up with. There were many creative visual ideas just thrown everywhere, I'd say that was the movies strongest aspect.

Ghibli felt more natural in the presentation of human emotions with most of the movies that I've seen. With Disney you have those super long scenes where they show you exactly what to feel at that moment. They take longer than 5 seconds to let a character make a long face then dragging his shoulders along the way when they make their leave.

Ghibli in a sense isn't "putting it in your face" so much like for example the ending of Mary did. It was a bit to direct for my taste. The "villains" if you wanna call them that felt quite fictitious too. I'd say it's the perfect movie to watch for younger girls. That's the best I can come up with. Hard to put into words.

Edit: Oh, but regardless I really found myself liking Mary. She's no Kiki, but she was a sassy version of her which makes the movie good on it's own.


It's neither nitpicky nor dumb. I know because I have a cat, she has licked milk from I guess my cereal off the floor and she threw it up. Also, if you google on the Internet, you can see that milk is bad for cats.


Gotta admit mate the whole "Cats don't like milk" flaw in the film is a bit much... At least comparing to the other flaws of the film
"You can't spell slaughter without laughter".
May 25, 2018 9:12 PM

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Jun 2011
873
HueyLion said:
pinkarray said:




It's neither nitpicky nor dumb. I know because I have a cat, she has licked milk from I guess my cereal off the floor and she threw it up. Also, if you google on the Internet, you can see that milk is bad for cats.


Gotta admit mate the whole "Cats don't like milk" flaw in the film is a bit much... At least comparing to the other flaws of the film


Well, this film is poor. There's a lot of flaws in this film and I couldn't care for this film. I give it a 4 out of 10.
Angry_Anime_NerdMay 25, 2018 9:19 PM
Numbuh 3, you've got to get off the couch, you cannot sit in that tree house, girl you like Rainbow Monkeys so grab your little shit and then swing!

Hand tracks be tracking me to different doorways. In a maze, and I don't know what to do. Guaranteed though, Ima find the emeralds.
Dec 26, 2018 3:55 PM

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Jan 2014
330
i think it might be the fact that people expected something different and then didn't get what they expected, to me the movie was great but that was because i google it and saw that it was an adaptation from a 1971 children book so i knew what i was going to watch and was very happy with the result and even enjoyed the experience.

I hope the movie was successful enough so that they can make more, adapting western story books into anime might be a great idea.
Jan 26, 2019 7:43 PM

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Oct 2007
239
MadLane said:
i think it might be the fact that people expected something different and then didn't get what they expected, to me the movie was great but that was because i google it and saw that it was an adaptation from a 1971 children book so i knew what i was going to watch and was very happy with the result and even enjoyed the experience.

I hope the movie was successful enough so that they can make more, adapting western story books into anime might be a great idea.


I thought the movie was very cute as well. Great for children. I think a lot of folks are caught up with the nostalgia they have for the Studio Ghibli films, and can’t help but compare. The art style is similar but this is a whole new studio and should be viewed with a more open mind.

I thought the story was concise and handled most loose ends in the plot. The message was wonderful for young children and the art was beautiful. It’s telling that the majority of comments are debating why cats should not be fed milk.


Feb 11, 2019 7:10 PM

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Jun 2015
91
Yeah, the story felt a bit lopsided and convenient. That helps it avoid ever being boring, but it also makes it feel childish and surface-level. The entire first half felt like setup to a longer arc that never came and the last half was all pre-climax/climax.

I'm satisfied overall since it didn't leave any big issues on the table. And it did subvert my expectations that there was going to be a long subplot of Mary faking her way through the school for at least a few days or a week and eventually sneak into the strongroom. Instead nothing really happened though in its place save for some well-animated action scenes that were beautiful to look at. Endor College serves as a bit of an empty, undeveloped prop. No one there mattered at all. The villains were a bit shallow, even though it wouldn't have been too hard to give them more empathetic reasons for the testing and obsession with the flower.

Mary's a pretty nice character, though everyone else is pretty flat. They tried a little with Peter with his desire to grow up, but it's not enough.

Still, I really enjoyed it for at least one viewing. I don't know if I'll be returning to it anytime soon, but the negativity this has -- to me at least -- feels over-blown. It's a solid film, Studio Ponoc only needs to try a little harder with their scripts.
Jan 24, 2020 8:12 PM

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May 2019
3380
The thing is: 7,5 is an honest rate for a movie that was OK, but lacking originality, inspiration and a better built plot, by all the reasons already explained in this discussion (except by the milk thing, this is nonsense lol)

And some Ghibli movies as Pom Poko Taniki Balls, are simply OVERRATED for being Ghibli. This is what is wrong here.
Feb 9, 2020 6:34 AM

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Nov 2019
291
This movie was a 7/10 for me which is good but nothing praise worthy
Oct 2, 2020 9:03 AM

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Aug 2009
66
Angry_Anime_Nerd said:
The development of Mary and Peter's relationship is rushed and shallow, two kids starting off hating each other and then they become best friends once Mary hears Peter's in trouble. Typical animated children's film.


That's exactly how half of Ghibli characters' relationships started out.. LOL. San and Ashitaka start of "hating" each other and then become best friends once Ashitaka is in trouble. But, the point is that, it isn't real hate at the beginning. It's just like how little boys often tease the girls they're interested in, like how Seiji teases Shizuku in "Whisper of the Heart".

Ghibli also often had the male MC straight out flirt, hug and hold hands with the female MC right off the bat. Overall looking forced, too.

Spirited Away, Howl, Mononoke, Princess Kaguya are top-notch. The rest of the Ghibli films are overrated just for being Ghibli.
EternityWishOct 3, 2020 10:31 AM
Mar 9, 2021 1:34 PM

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Oct 2010
243
Being children film is a poor excuse to all plot holes and incoherent events this film carries with top-notch drawings and music.
Imagine parents who need to explain all of those to not-that-dumb kids.
"Do not ask why, Sam, it is a children film and you are a child so figure out something"
May 29, 2022 5:26 PM
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Dec 2018
247
this is a weirdly underrated anime movie
#kyoanistrong
Aug 20, 11:59 AM
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Mar 2023
4
I just was not feeling it at all. The first 15-or-so minutes, up until the magical stuff kicks in, was quite good, up to Ghibli standards. But as soon as she arrived in the magic school it just nosedived for me. Everything was so extremely safe, it was like... unwhimsical whimsy. It reminded me of generic stuff like League of Legends character designs and lore, stuff that's just so extremely bland and safe that it loses all flavour. The story was dull as well.

Addendum: When I say "Ghibli standards" I mean the best of the bunch. There are plenty of Ghibli films that I find almost as boring as this one was.
Nov 1, 9:53 PM
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Jul 2020
5
Just watched it. 7 isn't a bad score for me (because I'm basing it off both on the numerical and descriptive scores of MAL). I scored it a seven as well because it's a good film. I didn't mind the simplicity of it, I think it'd be a great gateway for kids to watch anime. It's simple enough to understand with subtle character development, however what I found lacking was the foundation of their world building and the development of the characters relationship with each other (Mary and the Great Aunt, the gardener and Mary, the professors and the students, etc.). We're shown the college, the characters, the conflict but not how the doctor and madam will be dealt with after their shenanigans and there are many lingering questions that were not answered nor alluding to an answer (are there any governing agencies who will punish them? Is the madam's powers forever gone? Did the madam really change her attitude towards the flower/transformation spells or was it just a spur of the moment why she chose stop the experiment because they were in danger? How about the doctor? How'd the other students react to what their professors were doing? Were some students in on it? Why were they so desperate for the transformation magic, I know it's a big deal but they were obsessive about like something was on the line to perfect it.)
Also it didn't have the tension or building up to the conflict either which is sad 'cause it had a really great potential to be much better. I think Mary being childish is a good thing (in terms of the story) and the professors unknowing boosting her ego and rearranging her worldview of her appearance was a great touch (I wish they tackled on this more).
Overall, for one of their first films, I think it's pretty good.
huh. weeb. (≖ ͜ʖ≖)

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It’s time to ditch the text file.
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