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| THIS IS AN ANIME ONLY DISCUSSION POST. DO NOT DISCUSS THE MANGA BEYOND THIS EPISODE. ---------------------------------------- It was very interesting and educational. As someone pointed out on AniDB, "The act of "imagination" brings together the past and the present." I got into it after I saw that the art resembled "Only Yesterday" by Ghibli. The director is the same person that was the assistant director to Studio Ghibli's Kiki's Delivery Service. The Ghibli feel to it certainly came from the director having worked under Miyazaki. It's definitely an anime that deserves at least an 8 out of 10. |
| Team Leader & Manager of ray=out. A non-profit independent Japanese and Chinese anime/manga translation and subtitle provider. http://rayout.org/ - Browse through our site to get to know us better. |
| Anyone else annoyed by the music? I thought it was overbearing and over-bubbly. The director cut between scenes too fast and the story was unsatisfying. I expected some kind of revelation at the end but there just wasn't much tying the past/present worlds together. The movie felt like a weak imitation of Totoro and the atmosphere came off as forced. The writers also felt that they needed to show their audience "the ways of old" by flashing between an ice box and gas fridge ... comparing moped and bicycle ... showing off an old popcorn machine. We know what they are - but emphasizing these objects comes off as preachy. Whatever. 6/10 |
| You obviously haven't understood the story or the point of the film at all. It wasn't trying to compete with or be compared with Miyazaki's Totoro, but rather taking concept and ideas from the film since the director had worked under him in the past. There's a common saying right now in the anime film industry, which is, if you want your film to be a successful, the best method is to incorporate ideas and concepts from the "Greats," like Miyazaki and Shinkai. Comparing the two films is like comparing a Cucumber and a Pickle (I know, not the best analogy). They don't taste the same or look the same (after the pickle is cured), but one pretty much came from another, or in the sense of the films, the ideas and concept of Mai Mai Miracle came from Miyazaki (they worked on Kiki's Delivery Service together). Furthermore, both films are for completely different generations. Mai Mai Miracle brings in the old and the new because many people today, in developed countries like Japan,hardly know about what old "fridges" or how one travelled quickly looked like OUTSIDE of the city. The director also did that because he was already comparing the Heian period to present day. So there is a juxtaposition happening. By the way, the music was wonderful. It came from award-winning artists. Minako Obata who did the "Tree Song" for Kaiba and Murai Shuusei who is well known for his piano and jazz compositions. P.S. You need to read wikipedia and the response from the reviewers of the film to further understand what the director was trying to do and/or the story of the film. |
| Team Leader & Manager of ray=out. A non-profit independent Japanese and Chinese anime/manga translation and subtitle provider. http://rayout.org/ - Browse through our site to get to know us better. |
| The story was clear. Clear to the point of predictability. You could tell me that the film offered a glimpse into childhood through its characters and I'd agree - but the experience was weak. The writers failed to kindle a strong sense of attachment to their characters, past or present. The film also lacked the subtlety and elegance seen in Ghibli films. Director Katabuchi directed action movies, and it showed. No film tries to be compared to another (what kind of claim is that, anyway?). Nor do I see any harm in comparing this film with Totoro. Its influences, especially in setting and mood, are obvious. If Mai Mai is so different as you say, feel free to offer a better comparison. And being made for "completely different generations" ? Please. I didn't mean to step on any toes. You liked the movie; I didn't. I'm a huge fan of "Ghibli-esque" films however this one was disappointing. |
| i watched a very bad subbed one, so i didnt understand most of it but i liked the story and loved the music! i would watch this movie more than once :3 |
| That was a very nice film. Shinko is the sort of girl I would have loved to be friends with when I was little. Also, it was nice to see how people lived in rural Japan at that time, and in the ancient past. |
| It appears that everybody's interpretation of this will differ, whether it goes from simply reminiscing on childhood, to philosophical thoughts, it was a good watch. It started off a bit slow, but then it began to pick up. Was pleasantly surprised at how things progressed, from the teacher's unrequited love, to Kiiko's emotional outlet, I felt that this movie really illustrated the notion of growing up far too quickly. Enjoyed the watch. |
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| I'm glad I watched this, but I was left feeling like it was missing something ...not really sure what though. The song played during the credits was especially nice. 8/10, though I thought of giving it a 7. |
p r o f i l e 👀 |
| Enjoyed it but probably went into the film with wrong intentions. Was also rather astruck by some of the bluntness and unexpected twists. Good little watch though a bit disconnected, and I suppose there were one or two questionable/confusing little sections. Probably faults on my end for not picking it up properly. Whatever, kids eating alcohol chocolate is pretty cool. |
| Whoa WTH! Growing up in a rural area myself, some of those activities were my childhood memories! The first two-thirds of the scenes hit me so hard, nostalgia set in. >_< Then the imagination part, I guess back then I was one of those kids who imagine things and worlds in their waking moments, much like the Eight-grade syndrome from Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! LOL The last third of the film was the only thing confusing for me, it became disjointed somehow, and with all those goodbyes at the end it felt rushed. I was sad her grandfather suddenly died near the end but in my mind I was expecting anyway. 8/10 just for the childhood memories it evoked from me. |
| You see there's no need to wonder where your god is, Coz he's right here! ...and he's fresh out of mercy. |
| Pretty nice movie actually, like many already said it does have a similar feel like Ghibli movies and well in general it was actually pretty nice and had a overall lovely atmosphere to it! In the end it was a quite lovely movie with some great, some sad and some lovely moments! 7/10 |
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| For me this was a masterpiece. 10/10 I understand now why Mai Mai Shinko to Sennen no Mahou was playing in Japan for 7 months. |
| I needed this movie, seen so many sad and depressing movies recently so something light-hearted as this was perfect, nothing amazing but very enjoyable and heartwarming. |
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| Good movie but not great. It managed to bring feeling of post-war era pretty well and also characters and their interactions were great and really life-like. They captured some sense of naturalness in everything they did pretty well. But for me, the movie lacked some sort of overbearing message and story of the princess wasn't tied so well to the present. That part of the movie felt kinda undeveloped and unexplored. In the fifties storyline, everything was great until about half of the movie after policeman died. It almost felt like they forcefully wanted to add some drama to and it didn't go so well. The narrative kinda crumbled at the point when they went to avenge his father to Bar and then it didn't picked up until the very end. Still, I guess this movie is worth to see at least once if only for all nostalgic advantures of those kids and believable slice-of-life portrayal of an era. It's just not something you'll remember for long. 6/10 |
| I think they portrayed the rural life for children pretty damn well haha. |
| I had pretty similiar thoughts abot this film as Mich666. The drama sure did feel forced and i think the film should have been just about kids doing kid things and have it tied at the end on some otherway. I would have prefered the doctors girl having tougher time adjusting to the town and then using the rushed ending that the film had (this seemed to be one of the things that tied the ages so why was that aspect underdeveloped) The whole policeman and Yakuza plotline was kinda confusing honestly. Did they swindle him or what or did all the gambling happen outside the bar? Were they just encouraging his bad behavior and that's why they felt bad. Or did they feel bad because they didn't know that he had a family. I guess it really doesn't matter but not getting the whole picture just made it worse. Anyways. I didn't know that the director worked for ghibli before watching this but i was thinking while watching it that it probably was the case. I agree with the sentiment that it was giblish but it's just doesn't cut it. I also agree that the ost was kinda overwhelming at times. |
| People come, people leave, nothing last :children learning the ephemeral aspect of things in the 50s. This seemed very common, i have seen that so many times before. But it was well enough made, I found the bababa music to go well with the scenes. Imaginary sequences a bit long. 4/5 Score: 6/10 |
| Slightly more miserable than the bittersweet I was expecting (which was good, felt like it'd be a lightweight Ghibli knockoff), though I guess that's in the eye of the beholder. Clear nod to Totoro with the missing sister but this has quite a different tone (that quickly resolved to introduce the soon-to-be-dead father). Everyone's lives are objectively worse at the end - gramps died, father died, teacher was jilted by her true love, best friend moved away and you're left with her imaginary friend... the goldfish is dead :P Felt like a few plot threads didn't fully resolve but nothing major. The princess didn't matter and was just a tool of childhood escapism. Loved the music too. |
| It was a cute movie. I definitely expected it to be different. I loved the start. I found it to be so cute and relaxing. Watching shinko and kiko becoming friends was adorable. Not gonna lie though I was confused about the princess thing. At first I felt like she had powers to see them? Then it as her imagination? And then I almost felt like they were the reincarnations of these people? I'm still confused but it's okay XD I actually loved the princess parts the best. She just wanted a friend! The middle part I thought was okay. I don't feel like there was an actual storyline. Just watching them live their lives. Which is fine but I admit I did get a little bored in the middle. The ending as sad with that kids dad dying and I wanted to cry when shinko moved away :( I'm glad kiko has more friends now and seems more confident but they were like best friends 😭😭 But I enjoyed it and it was a calming movie. For me it's a 7/10 |
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| Movie was really good, too bad Shinko went to the city in the end. I guess now Kiiko has the mai mai now and I see the princess has finally made a friend at the end. My favorite part of the movie was when Shinko and Tatsuyoshi went to get revenge for Tatsu's father against the blonde woman from California bar. Too bad it didn't go as planned, but at least he got closure and was able to smile in the end, I will miss him too. Great movie but it had no real content, it was just for kids to enjoy. 7/10. |
How I learned to stop worrying and love the bomb --- Dr Strangelove  |
| A whimsical, yet serene and contemplative family film. The ever-presence of the past and the power of imagination, as well as the fluidity of the present, all intermingle to create a bittersweet and powerful little story. After Shinko moves, Kiiko will continue on in Kokuga, perhaps keeping the 'Squad' intact. And those memories will keep that world alive as they move on towards the future. Some mention should be made of the way the film kept the dream-like past connected to the present. A very powerful image was the juxtaposition of the seedy red-light district and impoverished home of one of the attendant girls. But there were many other similar scenes. The scene where they built the dam was very well done, I'll feel if anything that will be the most memorable part for me. It could have used an extra twenty or so minutes, some parts felt a tad rushed. |
syncrogazerFeb 13, 2019 7:51 PM
| Wow, why is it so underrated? I loved it. The animation gave me Ghibli vibes and that's enough for me to get attached to it. The soundtracs were amazing . A solid 8/10. I'd love to watch it again. |
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| Disappointing. I like SOLs and can enjoy something technically meant for children, but this didn't have much substance to it and felt disjointed. The imagination stuff was cool in the beginning but ultimately went nowhere. I thought it was going to be like Miss Hokusai where they blurred the lines between imagination and reality, but it was pretty much forgotten halfway through. It felt like they were trying to force weave a fairytale (the Princess' story) into a bunch of inconsequential vignettes (the kids' playing). I get that they were both about friendship and stuff but didn't feel that they had a strong enough connection. I didn't get the thing with the father. Was he really corrupt or was he just jilted by the blond woman? Either way, it felt like a forced bit just to inject some drama. And what was up with dirty kid with the turtle? He was like Pig-Pen from Peanuts (Charlie Brown) 6.5/10 |
| "You can't decide the future, but I'm going to re-educate you in the past!" - Erna Kurtz |
| This was a little boring movie. I expected something more. |
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| It's hard to find but this may be one of the more hardcore Japanese movies about Japanese culture I've ever seen. I went into this sucker blind so I didn't expect a film to take place smack dab in the 50's. Which I do find iherently interesting. I really like Only Yesterday and My Neighbor Totoro, films that take place post WW2 Japan but before the modern age of the 80s has this very time and place vibe that is very rare in anime actually. I feel pretty on par with everyone else. I'm probably the most patient I've ever been and this thing still had a hard time graping my attention. It's not even because it's primarily a kids story or even about kids. In fact the scenes with the kids, especially Shinko and Kiiko were some of the best parts of the film. It felt almost relaxing and I love pure friendships like theres. The issue is what this movie seems to think is it's backbone structure rooted in the past of this town and the Mai Mai imagination feel so clumsily added and feels very first draft. I know this is based off a novel which I couldn't find a lot of information on to see how much of the novel was restructured for the film unfortunately but I feel this underlying way through out the run time that reeks of poorly constructed visuals to convey the novel's premise. However it could be possible that the novel is also just bad, hard to say. In paticular of weirdly rushed scenes, almost the entirety of Tatsuyoshi dad's death feels so out of nowhere, Shinko leaving the letter at Kiiko house, the entirety of them in the redlight district, and the Tatsuyoshi just fucking off. It feels like it was added for the climax of the fish being found and conflict but I kind of hated it? It really did nothing and they got over it immensly quickly and Shinko mentions Tatsuyoshi dad's dead and it was just reported that afternoon. It's just a lot of holes for a very unessecary part of the film that wasn't fun and built up to nothing. Kind of like everything that isn't surface level in this film. If nothing else it is a very lovely looking film and I do feel bad ragging on it considering how beloved this is to Japanese audiences it seems. I just think it could've done immensly better with the concepts it had but not really tying it all together into a cohesive whole. And though I've funnily enough critisized how weird it is for very "Japanese" grounded stories should be listened to sub not dub just because it is a little off kilter with the cultural sense (i.e. see Grave of the Fireflies). But I did watch this dubbed and it actually was pretty damn good especially with the amount of the Japanese strict word usage all over the place. And hardly anything was changed either. So if you usually don't care, going dub is solid. The funniest thing that happened while during the ending. Me: There's only a minute left but why are their spider lilies in this scene with grandpa? *grandpa dies 20 seconds later* A H H H H H H H H H H H H H H 5/10. |
StripesJan 21, 2023 3:26 AM
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| I really liked this movie. Shinko was the best character for me. Her little sister was adorable as well. I loved the movie showed what life was in the same area a thousand years ago. I did not understand the princess and how she was linked with Kiiko. The movie needed at least 40 minutes to flesh that out. I loved how the movie showed Kiiko making friends with all the other kids and that she mixed well with all their antics. |
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