Director: Hiromasa Yonebayashi, Main Cast (voices):Bridgit Mendler, Amy Poehler, Will Arnett, David Henrie;
Notwithstanding the fact that he is not directing, this is still a Miyazaki’s story: a boy and a girl meet and help each other, forming a deep bond in the meantime. This time, however, she is Tinker Bell’s size and she is a “borrower”, little people that take from the house of human beings where they live only what they need. Well, this is the first thing that left me a little nonplussed: borrowers are supposed to stay hidden and get from the humans the bare necessities…they are not very good at it and it looks like they splash out on their house, it reminds me of a hobbit’s hole. The other problem is the supporting characters (Arrietty’s parents, the housekeeper, the aunt) are too much Miyazaki’s stereotypes, nothing really new or endearing. The last issue I have with this film is the voice-over at the end, apparently it is only in the US version, too much Blade Runner theatrical release for my taste…I tend to prefer the director’s cut. So, as a fan of Miyazaki, I am somewhat disappointed, I had high expectations. The silver lining is the brief participation of a Jimsy-like borrower, really loved that. —5.5/10
Ramblings of a cinephile 