Aug 14, 2018
This movie is very experimental in a lot of ways, and I appreciate that. Is it a masterpiece? No. Is it the best work by Hosoda? No. But it is a very cute movie, surprisingly deep, with phenomenal artwork and cinematography.
Music: 10/10
The soundtrack is rreminiscient of Ookami Kodomo Ame to Yuki, and each song is gorgeous.
Plot: 8/10
I think the title and trailers were misleading, because they focused on Kun's younger sister, Mirai, visiting him from the future. This does happen, but it's a small part of the plot. The true title should be "Annoying Child Repeatedly Stumbles into his Courtyard and is Greeted
...
by Fantastical Events that Help Him Become a Better, More Responsible Child." It's a bit long, but it's more accurate.
We follow a four-year-old boy called Kun-chan, and he likes two things: trains and screaming at the top of his lungs. I'm serious, this kid is a NIGHTMARE. I can't think of another movie where the protagonist is this young (excluding Rugrats), mostly because nobody wants to follow a screaming pile of tantrums. And that is exactly what he is. By the middle of the movie, I legitimately hated this child.
Further, everyone around him is extremely nice. Even the BABY is better than he is. The BABY. The father stays at home, taking care of the children, while the mother returns to work and puts food on the table. This is a refreshing 21st century portrayal of a family, especially in Japan where they still kind of have a 1950's mindset of women in the workforce. We spend a good amount of time following the father as he struggles and learns how to do housework and properly hold a baby. Thus, Kun-chan does not get the attention he once got before and proceeds to throw vicious tantrums.
What this means is that the protagonist is the antagonist. The only real problems are caused by Kun-chan. As stated in the new title, when his tantrums climax, he stumbles into the house's courtyard and finds himself in a fantastical world, confronting one of his family members in an altered state. This includes his dog and, yes, his little sister as a middle-schooler from the future. These events have a dreamlike approach to logic and conversation, which falls in line with the idea that these are Kun-chan's fantasies. Why is the dog a human? Because Kun-chan sees it as such. Why is nobody worried about a 2-year-old walking around by himself? Because Kun-chan is the center of the fantasy, and thus his existence, in whatever state, is normal. Each event helps him in some way, and his tantrums die down afterward until the next thing happens. I can't really say that this is a coming-of-age story because the kid stays a kid, but he manages to connect with his family in a new way. Kun-chan is the deepest, most developed 4-year-old I've ever seen.
All in all, the stakes are low and nobody dies (spoilers?), so this movie doesn't conjure the feels that most Hosoda movies do. This is not a drama so much as a dramedy, with about an even split on both drama and comedy. Still, this is a very cute and refreshing story that deserves appreciation.
Art: 10/10
This is where the movie truly shines. I saw the "camera" used in a way I've never seen before. Animation allows for really cool things like that. The weirdly diagonal house allows for really cool linear transitions to different events within the house. Again, this is the same director as Ookami Kodomo Ame to Yuki, where he told the story of two siblings growing up in school by shifting the camera back and forth in a completely inventive way. The animations are clean, smooth, and lifelike. CGI is used in a non-obtusive way that allows sweeping shots behind a motorcycle. The backdrops are gorgeous, and they make use of them. The sky-shots at the end made the "camera" movement so realistic that I was legitimately terrified of falling, inside the theater...
Tl;dr: 9
Go watch. Enjoy the story. Pay attention to the animations and transitions. Be happy. I"m out.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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