And this week's Friday night movie has been... Belle!
Yep, it's another trip down the anime well. And this time we are taking a look at the latest offering from auteur Mamoru Hosoda.
I have been saying glowing things about this guy and his work (Summer Wars, the Girl who leapt Through Time, Wolf Children) and with this latest effort he does not disappoint.
At this point I have seen enough of Hosoda's repertoire to recognise some familiar themes: The search for connection, the use of online personas, the importance of family, and the act of being true to one's self. And all of which are put to work in Belle in an effective manner.
I like the artwork, i like the music and I like the ideas presented about having an online persona and how one utilizes it to interact with the world.
Much has been made how this movie owes a sizable debt to Disney's Beauty and the Beast. i certainly won't deny it but for me it remains an odd aesthetic choice. Because for me, Disney's Beauty and the Beast is all about how one wants to change themselves for the people around them. In belle however, it is all about the pursuit of understanding and empathy. Not a bad idea but it does make the sequences in the Beast's castle somewhat jarring. Indeed it is telling to me that the sequences in the real world leave a greater impression - especially the part focusing on the webcam conversation and the subsequent climax.
Still, i will not fault Hosoda: He has some great ideas, an eye for the visual and he certainly knows how to pull the heartstrings. Has he delivered another winner? I think he has.
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