The Boy and The Beast (2016) Movie Review
The Boy and The Beast is the latest film from one my favorite anime Directors working today, Mamoru Hosoda. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Summer Wars, and Wolf Children are also some of my favorites animated films so he has a lot to live up to in terms of staying on the level of those films. Does his latest film do that? Well not exactly, in fact, I would say this my least favorite film of his to date. That doesn't mean its a bad film, but that doesn't mean it quite reaches the level of his previous films.
Visually The Boy and The Beast is phenomenal, and easily one of the sharpest and cleanest looking hand drawn animated films I've ever seen. The big stand out for me was the use of the overall tone of the setting in different scenes. The dark browning atmosphere of the city to the bright and color world that Ren arrives to. I have always like Hosoda's art style in his films, especially how he draws characters and here he continues to always impress.
Though the visuals are fantastic, the film does lack quite a bit on the other end of the spectrum, that is the story aspect and all the little branches that surround it. From the originality of the film to the characters being one dimensional and all the consequences of lacking weight to those aspects. I was really surprised at what was missing in this film because every single one of Hosoda's films prior not only had these aspects but delivered on them in every way.
The film starts off as "The Cat Returns" but then turns into "Naruto" about half way through. I can see that this wanted to distinguish it self from "Spirited Away" But I would say that it would of benefited from going in that direction. It all follows with what the big problem with this film. That is that is tries to be too much than it needs to be, taking elements from other stories without really establishing its own. The story feels lacking and unoriginal, because of that you can easily see where the influences come from. Most movies tend to cover this up with very interesting well developed characters that suck you into the story. The Boy and The Beast lacks some of that which affects the film the most out of any aspect.
One dimensional characters are not a bad thing, but when they are clearly set up to change or have interactions that expect you feel like they change isn't there, they come off as hollow and uninteresting. Ren and Kumatestu are both established as not being the most likable characters at the start of the film. But them meeting each other immediately they have dynamic. It isn't the most positive dynamic but at the beginning I was assuming that by the end of the film that would change. Unfortunately that doesn't happen as the story just to a few years later when Ren is older but they dynamic between him and Kumatestu hasn't change much at all.
The second half of the film is where I began to feel that this idea was going in the wrong direction and the set up in the first half was just a missed opportunity. Instead of keeping the film a small and light story just focusing on Ren as a young boy and his growing relationship with Kumatestu as a sort of father figure, but film ditches all that to focus on Ren reconnecting in the human world. Creating a new conflict with himself as whether or not he wants to start a normal life again. If this doesn't sound familiar that re-watch "Wolf Children" to refresh your memory. Again this is what makes me so conflicted with this story as it very clearly wants to be its own thing but doesn't go in the direction it needs to go to even do that.
This doesn't help as the story devolves to a very by the numbers plot where Ren now needs to save the city from a generic monster thing that was created by an antagonist equivalent to Sasuke from "Naruto". A lot of emotion is expected from the audience as the film relies on flash backs to previous scenes in the film specifically between Ren and Kumatestu. Once again the problem with doing this is that you haven't seen much of any change between the dynamic of the two. I am more okay with Kumatestu staying the same one dimensional character, because that was really how he was established in the beginning. That is a selfish loser. But Ren on the other hand, he was established as someone who has lost everything and by meeting Kumatestu it was supposed to something he gained that grew him and shaped the person he becomes. Instead, Ren is just a younger kid in an older body after the flash forward.
I really felt that the force love sub plot was unnecessary and didn't need to be in this film. Again we have seen this done better and in a Hosoda film (Wolf Children). This also carries over with the revenge jealously villain plot that enters out of no where and is resolved with little tension. It is supposed to mimic what Ren could have become but based on the characters actions it would of made more sense that he be taken in that direction. Also making for a much more interesting story, some where to the fact of Ren having to face why his emotions are that way they have been since he was a child.
The Boy and The Beast is a film that I can't help but be very critical of because the previous works of Mamoru Hosoda are some of the best animated films I have ever seen. This is a film that is still an enjoyable experience but unfortunately isn't one that I would return to very often. It a good one time watch but I will always choose some of Hosoda's previous works before I would even think of watching this film again. That being said, I still will continue to look forward to anything this director does next and I am already for his next film.
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