This is yet another Miyazaki import through Disney's Studio Ghibli. This one was a little more irritating to me, but I am far from the target age group. Since Disney has a ton of money to throw around, they have the best voice talent, so I watched it in English this first go-round. Sosuke (Frankie Jonas, yes, related to those Jonases) is a five-year-old boy who lives on top of a hill with his mother (Tina Fey). His father (Matt Damon) is a sailor on a fishing(?)-- salvage(?)-- on a boat. One day, while playing in a tide pool, Sosuke finds a weird-ass human-faced "goldfish" stuck in a jar and names it Ponyo (Noah Cyrus, yes, it's a girl. Actually, it's Miley Cyrus' sister. Told you Disney had money to burn). Anyway, Ponyo licks some of Sosuke's blood and eats some ham before her father, a sorcerer (and Liam Neeson), commands the waves to take her home. Convinced that she loves Sosuke, Ponyo breaks into her father's study and manages to unleash some very powerful magic, which she uses to become human. The sorcerer freaks when he finds out and has to consult with Ponyo's mother, the sea goddess (Cate Blanchett), about how to fix everything. Here's what got me: they're basing whether or not the world will be destroyed by the sea on whether Sosuke will be able to love and accept Ponyo. HE'S FIVE! Oh, and if he doesn't love her, she turns into sea-foam. Which, I guess wouldn't be so bad considering that the entire world would be sucked back into the sea.
Anyway, it's a weird little movie based on Hans Christian Anderson's The Little Mermaid. The animation is, as always, superb. If you've liked other Miyazaki films, or if you have kids under 7, it's worth a rental.
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