Ponyo

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Hello Cinephiles,

Today we’re talking about the 2008 film Ponyo.

Story

A fascinating take on the little mermaid story. It’s interesting how love is treated as deep affection instead of romance.

Score: 1

Characters

The characters are adorable and I love how the movements of the 5 year olds are so realistic.

Score: 1

Dialogue

It’s hard to judge the dialogue since there’s technically two sets. The translated text which was the subtitles and the actual spoken dialogue. We watched this on streaming so we couldn’t choose the proper subtitles.

Both versions were interesting, but I think the spoken dialogue was simplified for western audiences.

Score: 0.5

Visuals and Music

The film was stunning and utterly beautiful.

The music was awesome.

Score: 1

Fun

I have this weird instinct with Miyazaki movies that make me stress out the whole first watching. Other than Princess Mononoke, there’s no reason for that worry.

Beyond that it was really fun.

Score: 1

Overall

A beautiful and fun retelling of The Little Mermaid story. It’s filled with all the charm, humour, and amazing art that’s expected of a Miyazaki film.

Final Score: 4.5 Stars out of 5