Quick animation reviews
Up!
First off, it IS adorable. Second, I did cry about everything Ellie-related. It was a cute, good movie. But am I the only one who thought it was also one of the most surreal things ever? Also, my suspension of disbelief was quite broken and strange at some points. Like, I was totally okay with a house flying for miles/kilometers, from United States to the Great Savanna, by attaching about one million balloons to it. I can be okay with giant, colorful, roadrunner-esque birds on a tepui habitat, why the hell not. But old dudes living on a blimp with a pack of human-like sentient dogs doing everything for him was... WAIT WHAT? Why is this so hard to swallow for you, self?!
On the other hand? FUCK YES, THIS THING HAPPENS IN VENEZUELA. MY MOTHERLAND ON A PIXAR MOVIE, WHAT IS THIS. I, somehow, didn't know that. Okay sure, it's in Canaima and "Paradise Falls" is 200% totally the Auyantepui, but still. VENEZUELA. And not implied, it's directly in-the-text!
Party pooper time: I don't think it's legal to build (or park) shit on a tepui, though. National park, guys. I don't see movies with anything on the Grand Canyon, for instance.
Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror
This is odd, as it's a 3D animated movie... made in Japan by Production I.G.
Also it was so misleading. By the poster and the first 5 minutes of film, I was pretty much expecting something between Spirited Away/The Cat Returns with kitsune. And let me tell you, there wasn't a single kitsune, and under those masks the paranormal magic beings are weird, kinda boring pig-like creatures instead, with no hint of Japanese mythology whatsoever. BUMMER, I WANTED FOX THIEVES.
The animation is beautiful, the backgrounds are stunning and full of color, it's heartwarming... And yet, it still doesn't click. Haruka is a ripoff/mix of Haru and Makoto Konno so I should like her, but I was indifferent. Teo (the sidekick), and Cotton (a sheep plushie) are quite cute but for me it wasn't enough. I feel like they tried too hard to make a Ghibli movie, and the character motivations seem pastede on yay at times. The world was interesting but underexplored, which is a pity.
This doesn't mean it's a bad movie. It's pretty and adorable! I just expected better, I guess.
Kappa no Coo to Natsuyasumi
There are tons of stories of paranormal creatures being saved by humans and becoming friends with them, so in this aspect it's your average. Yet this movie brings an interesting and modern twist to it: what if the media discovers it? What if a family is harassed by reporters 24/7 because of rumors of them housing a kappa? I think this is the coolest part of the movie, albeit equally frustrating for the characters and the audience. The friendship with Coo and the family is adorable, too. So, there's a balance between the ugliness and beauty of human nature.
I liked it. However, bring your tissues because the dog's backstory and a certain event later is HORRIBLE, DEPRESSING, AND YOU WILL BAW FOREVER. For a children's movie, it was so mean. I dig the ending, bittersweet as it was, although I think the dog needed more love in general.
How to Raise your Kappa
This one is a TV series, actually, but since we're talking about kappa in anime...
The best way to explain this show is this: TTLY SURREAL PARODY OF CHI'S SWEET HOME, except obviously with kappa. Even the same 5-minute format, guys.
In "Kappa no Coo" kappa are actual people, but in here they're reduced to exotic animals who happen to be a bit smarter than dogs and cats. In the end, you feel like you're looking at a mix of turtle, duck, and monkey (soooo cute) instead of fearsome monsters. The narrator is the main character, this dude who just bought a baby kappa and is struggling to train him. To make shit weirder, humans have literally no faces! This way you don't get distracted from the cute, but still, it looks lazy.
Kappa no Kaitara is quite amusing, but my main complain (besides the kappa sounds being annoying after a while) is that the narrator and his kappa, Kaatan, were kinda plain. Maybe it's on purpose. But I would've liked to step outside of the POV for one or two episodes. Some supporting characters were much interesting, like the girl who works in the pet store, or Kakkun and his errands, or the best character and my definite favorite: "Hercules" the big scary kappa with a heart of gold :D I swear, he's awesome.
First off, it IS adorable. Second, I did cry about everything Ellie-related. It was a cute, good movie. But am I the only one who thought it was also one of the most surreal things ever? Also, my suspension of disbelief was quite broken and strange at some points. Like, I was totally okay with a house flying for miles/kilometers, from United States to the Great Savanna, by attaching about one million balloons to it. I can be okay with giant, colorful, roadrunner-esque birds on a tepui habitat, why the hell not. But old dudes living on a blimp with a pack of human-like sentient dogs doing everything for him was... WAIT WHAT? Why is this so hard to swallow for you, self?!
On the other hand? FUCK YES, THIS THING HAPPENS IN VENEZUELA. MY MOTHERLAND ON A PIXAR MOVIE, WHAT IS THIS. I, somehow, didn't know that. Okay sure, it's in Canaima and "Paradise Falls" is 200% totally the Auyantepui, but still. VENEZUELA. And not implied, it's directly in-the-text!
Party pooper time: I don't think it's legal to build (or park) shit on a tepui, though. National park, guys. I don't see movies with anything on the Grand Canyon, for instance.
Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror
This is odd, as it's a 3D animated movie... made in Japan by Production I.G.
Also it was so misleading. By the poster and the first 5 minutes of film, I was pretty much expecting something between Spirited Away/The Cat Returns with kitsune. And let me tell you, there wasn't a single kitsune, and under those masks the paranormal magic beings are weird, kinda boring pig-like creatures instead, with no hint of Japanese mythology whatsoever. BUMMER, I WANTED FOX THIEVES.
The animation is beautiful, the backgrounds are stunning and full of color, it's heartwarming... And yet, it still doesn't click. Haruka is a ripoff/mix of Haru and Makoto Konno so I should like her, but I was indifferent. Teo (the sidekick), and Cotton (a sheep plushie) are quite cute but for me it wasn't enough. I feel like they tried too hard to make a Ghibli movie, and the character motivations seem pastede on yay at times. The world was interesting but underexplored, which is a pity.
This doesn't mean it's a bad movie. It's pretty and adorable! I just expected better, I guess.
Kappa no Coo to Natsuyasumi
There are tons of stories of paranormal creatures being saved by humans and becoming friends with them, so in this aspect it's your average. Yet this movie brings an interesting and modern twist to it: what if the media discovers it? What if a family is harassed by reporters 24/7 because of rumors of them housing a kappa? I think this is the coolest part of the movie, albeit equally frustrating for the characters and the audience. The friendship with Coo and the family is adorable, too. So, there's a balance between the ugliness and beauty of human nature.
I liked it. However, bring your tissues because the dog's backstory and a certain event later is HORRIBLE, DEPRESSING, AND YOU WILL BAW FOREVER. For a children's movie, it was so mean. I dig the ending, bittersweet as it was, although I think the dog needed more love in general.
How to Raise your Kappa
This one is a TV series, actually, but since we're talking about kappa in anime...
The best way to explain this show is this: TTLY SURREAL PARODY OF CHI'S SWEET HOME, except obviously with kappa. Even the same 5-minute format, guys.
In "Kappa no Coo" kappa are actual people, but in here they're reduced to exotic animals who happen to be a bit smarter than dogs and cats. In the end, you feel like you're looking at a mix of turtle, duck, and monkey (soooo cute) instead of fearsome monsters. The narrator is the main character, this dude who just bought a baby kappa and is struggling to train him. To make shit weirder, humans have literally no faces! This way you don't get distracted from the cute, but still, it looks lazy.
Kappa no Kaitara is quite amusing, but my main complain (besides the kappa sounds being annoying after a while) is that the narrator and his kappa, Kaatan, were kinda plain. Maybe it's on purpose. But I would've liked to step outside of the POV for one or two episodes. Some supporting characters were much interesting, like the girl who works in the pet store, or Kakkun and his errands, or the best character and my definite favorite: "Hercules" the big scary kappa with a heart of gold :D I swear, he's awesome.