When Marnie Was There (2014) Movie Review
PG
|
103 min
Director: Hiromasa Yonebayashi
Writer: Keiko Niwa
Plot: A young girl is sent to the country for health reasons, where she meets an unlikely friend in the form of Marnie, a young girl with flowing blonde hair. As the friendship unravels it is possible that Marnie has closer ties to the protagonist than we might expect.
When Marnie Was There is possibly Studio Ghibli's last film ever released. I have enjoyed every single film I've seen from them and It's sad to know that they might not ever make another film again. If this is their last film ever released they definitely have gone away in a good manner. I say that because this is one of the best films ever produced by them and quite possibly be my personal favorite Studio Ghibli film.
The film starts off as we follow a young girl named Anna who travels to a country side near a lake to stay with family. She goes there because of a sickness that isn't gone into that much, and we begin to know a little about her. The movie really starts when she begins to see a girl in a house that is across the lake that has been abandoned for some time. She even sees lights turning on and the house being more active than it should be. She becomes attracted to the house more and more trying to explore it and see what its like.
She soon meets Marnie who is a girl who lives in the house but only shows up at certain times near the lake. This begins a great friendship between the two as Anna learns more and more about Marnie and her life. This is where the film turns from just an ordinary Ghibli film to something really special and mature.
The animation is gorgeous throughout the entire film its hard to pick a great moment where it stands out from the rest. Hand drawn animation always looks great but here its something of the best I've seen from the backgrounds to the colors and even the details in the characters themselves, something that tends to be Anime's weakest point.
I think this is their most mature story yet, not to say that it is a bad
thing at all, but it add a lot of weight to the film making it
something that isn't light without any meaning. Especially in a kids film, where now and days seems to be very simple and rely on comedy and moments of emotion.
This is one of my favorite films of the year and one of my favorite animated films I've ever seen. I highly recommended this to anyone who wants a good kids film that has mature weight to it and is a fan of Studio Ghibli and their films. I hope this Studio continues to make great films in the future but if this is their last one, they went out on a high note.
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