Kaijuu no Kodomo

Breathtaking and seamless animation. I'm glad they translated Igarashi Daisuke's art to the big screen pretty well. The art and the soundtrack is absolutely beautiful and I'm also a sucker for animes with the ocean/summer days/ fantasy aesthetic themes (reminded me of the anime Nagi no Asukara). Seeing it on the big screen gave me that same chest expanding feeling whenever I see amazing animation alongside moving soundtracks.

Honestly, the storyline lost me a little bit but I'm not gonna say I wasn't entertained and absorbed. I would still highly recommend for the imagery. Can't wait until it is released in English to rewatch it!

Kaijuu no Kodomo is the personification of a teenager smoking weed for the first time and spilling into incoherent babble about life and the universe. "Duuuuuuuuuuuuuude the seas and the stars are one... We're all, like, totally connected." Without any hint of self-awareness, prattling on about romantic-sounding yet entirely vacuous germs of ideas about "listening to the song on the winds," "we're all made of the same matter... whoaaaaaa..." and other such flowery, inconsequential drivel. The characters and plot are superficially there to laboriously drone on about shallow musings on life and the universe. What little there is in terms of ... narrative in the first half entirely falls away for a second half of self-indulgent spectacle, pretty to look at but utterly devoid of any substance, yet completely oblivious to how pompous it is.

I really can't stress how cartoonishly self-aggrandizing this is. Don't bother watching it if you at all intend to pay attention. There are nice visual sequences in here but it's only surface-deep. This would be completely boring and unremarkable if it weren't for how outrageously pretentious it is.

Studio 4°C is very much a formidable studio in term of animation. Their movies often have a creative art style with realistic character designs and a light cold tone of color choices. Therefore, it's always a treat watching their works. But sadly, I can't say that the stories they offered are just as inspiring. And unfortunately, Kaijuu no Kodomo or Children of the Sea, as beautiful as it may look, is not an exception.

Normally, this will be the part where I'm spoiling the story a little bit to help guiding the viewer into the anime. But this time, the story is just too incomprehensible ... or quite frankly, a mess. And I really think that it's better for you to find out yourselves.

For the length of a movie, the cast is reasonably rounded and works quite well. We got introduced to the 3 main lead and some minor side characters that doesn't leave much of an impression. But what I want to talk about is their dialogues, they always sound so vague and as invalid as possible. I figured that maybe the director wanted to remain the mystery to the end but even then, there's really no answer, no explanations of any kind and that really hangs me over the middle.

As mentioned above, Kaijuu no Kodomo has one of the best animation I've ever seen. As comparable as Ufotable, Kyoani or Ghibli's works. Everything looks so fluid and beautifully detailed. Especially the characters' eyes and the scenery of the sea, they looks so lively but still remain the uniqueness of animated story. The music is also very reminiscent and bring a lots contribution in the overall tender and mysterious tone of the anime.

Imo, no matter how great the animation can be, if its story fails to make the same impact, it's just such a shame because pieces of animation that's as beautiful as Children of the Sea is so rare to find nowadays. So if you're all for the story like me, Kaijuu no Kodomo is just not worth it.

RIGHT OFF THE BAT!!! THIS REVIEW IS NOT SPOILER FREE!!!!!!!



Not gonna lie I originally posted this review/report in a twitter thread but it's so detailed it deserves to be a review here. Due to this though, it's not in the standard review form.

Report: Children of the Sea (film)

Aaaaaaa I loved the film so so much (non manga reader)

... Overall it was a very solid movie (cont. SPOILERS)

Disclaimer: this is all opinion!!! You can disagree!!! You can agree!!!

Storyline

The story was easy enough to follow but I could tell they'd removed a number of other plotlines in order to fit the main story into a short 110 minutes. The biggest example being the hinted abuse, exploitation and mistreated of Umi and Sora by the oceanographers. This missing plotline then tied in with the science of the boys' deteriorating physical condition, Joe's actions and disappearance towards the end of the film, and Anglade's relation to the happenings of the film, leaving many questions unresolved. The history of the "festival" is also left unsaid, adding more questions. Despite this, the movie still flows well and all of the things mentioned above come from my own observatory inclinations. Much is left out, but not enough to spoil the film for a non manga reader (me). The main story doesn't give quite enough information to become invested in the characters, namely the 3 leads. Sora and Umi (esp Sora) are gone almost as soon as they appear with how the film was paced. (Personal statement but Sora is a little shit and I love him for it).

Animation
Animation was above average but obviously not UBW level. The art (which is adapted well from page to screen) was the real breadwinner for this film. I will note, though, that the use of CG was done very nicely. CG is looking like the next big step in anime and this film is definitely a shuffle forward. That being said it could be thanks to the art and its compatibility to the medium.

Art
It must be said that the artwork and style of the film is absolutely breathtaking. The last 30 minutes of the film showcase some of the most gorgeous, detailed art I've ever seen in the medium, and I'd dare say that Children of the Sea challenged Itou Junji's oceanic masterpiece Gyo more than a few times, namely the deep sea shark that is showcased.

Music (OST by Joe Hisaishi)
Hisaishi composed for greats like Spirited Away, Laputa, other Ghibli classics and This Corner Of The World (drama). Unfortunately, his composition for Children of the Sea failed to capture me like it had countless times before. This was probably due to lack of "That One Track", that one work in the OST that manages to stick with you even after you've left the theatre. The reason for this track not existing within the Children fo the Sea soundtrack is due to Kenshi Yonezu's Umi no Yuurei. Despite this, the soundtrack still serves its purpose, and quite well at that. Subtle changes in tone between land and ocean made all the difference, and really added weight to the characters' movements depending on the setting at the time and scenes where the two tones met were truly majestic.

Theme song
The theme song of Children of the Sea is Umi no Yuurei (ghost of the sea) by Kenshi Yonezu, a song I've been raving about since its release before the film. You can tell Yonezu put a lot of love into the song, and its relation to Children of the Sea is undeniable with the lyrics seeming to be the words of Ruka for Umi and Sora whom she'll never "see" again, yet is forever tied to.It's so hard for me to not go crazy analysing Umi no Yuurei as there's so much I could talk about, but in the end I feel the best way to understand my overflowing emotions towards this song even before watching the film is to listen to it yourself. The one comment I will make it that Thank God Children of the Sea was able to live up to Yonezu's song, I was quite worried after DAOKO and Yonezu sung the theme for Fireworks (not full title), which ended up as a flop of a film, but I'm glad he wrote for such a good film.

Final score
If I had to give Children of the Sea a score out of 10, I, personally, would give it a 9/10 as it hit all my good spots but generally give it a 7.5/10 as it's heavily philosophical and symbolic, which I know peeves quite a few people.

Children of the Sea is a rather strange film. You won't find a gripping plot or compelling characters in it; in fact, they are actually rather simple and barely worth a mention. You will never find yourself gripping the edge of your seat in anxiety or screaming in elation. Because this isn't really a film - it's a mission statement told through an audiovisual medium.

The director, Ayumu Watanabe, and the author Daisuke Igarashi, have managed to express the vastness of our universe and the infinite potential it holds. They show us how they see the world: how we humans are but cells in an infinite ... cosmic being, our roles as stewards of that universe rather than researchers who seek to split it apart down to the last atom; how to live is to communicate and how communication is how we are seen; the sanctity of creation; the beauty and wondrousness of the ocean and by extension outer space. And it culminates in one of the greatest, trippiest pieces of animation I have ever seen.

This film will require a certain state of mind to full appreciate. It is heavy on the themes and symbolism and artistry, and light on everything else that makes a story compelling. But it also conveys an idea so insanely well that I truly believe it to be one of the greatest anime of all time.

This is going to be a very long review of Kaijuu no Kodomo because it is very awesome, hands down, one of the best anime movies that I have seen in my entire life. Even for the people who do not really watch anime, I'm still going to recommend watching this movie. Because for me, this is a masterpiece, with overall 10/10. The review might contain a personal interpretation of this movie, so I would like to apologize or you may correct me if I don't correctly interpret this movie, especially the message contains within it.

[THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILER!]

STORY 10/10: Firstly, there are a lot ... of beautiful messages that this movie has delivered and it is being packaged in such a beautiful and poetic manner. For me, there is no scene that has gone to waste, every movement, action, and conversation is the way of the author to build-up the story. I realize when there is an actual connection with the first scene and the very last scene; the conversation between Ruko, Umi, Sora, and Anglade, which discusses the universe, and conversation with other scenes that lead up to something: the connection between human and the universe; that we are bigger than we think because we are connected to the universe. The story of this movie reminds me of Neil deGrasse Tyson's interview, which he stated: "... It’s not that we are better than the universe, we are part of the universe. We are in the universe and the universe is in us.” It is superb. Indeed, one might argue there are some plot holes, but I believe the author considers to not include several scenes because it will–somehow–distract the point of the story.

ART/ANIMATION 10/10: There is no doubt the animation and the art because it really helps the movie to convey the message of this movie. Every movement and action are well-portrayed in this movie. Can you even imagine a scene where the mc putting a can in a plastic bag and grabbing a pile of sand is animated in a very detailed manner and flawless? Even to the extent of reflection of water, movement of the school of fishes, the combination of colors, and other things that you can visibly see. I literally cannot see any weakness in anything related to the art and the animation, because it is so flawless and close to perfection. Truly one of a kind.

CHARACTERS 10/10: Third, the characters, I personally believe the characters have their own important role to deliver the messages within the movie. Even without knowing that Umi and Sora were actually "abused" it needs not to show that they are abused, but there some scenes that have indicated that they have been "abused" by some people in the movie, in my perspective; for instance, then why they are so far away with the crowd and why they do not really mingle along with the people? Even if, one might say that there are some characters that supposed to have more role, but I think the author has the great control of the character development and try to make everything in control and not disrupting the characters to deliver the story from the very first start. Understanding this movie is not like reading academic books, it is like reading philosophical books like Nietzche that are very abstract or like reading a poem that is very thought-provoking and multi-interpretative. It is actually very difficult to deliver the story when there are a lot of various characters with different directions of developments for us to pay attention to, but the author pulled this off by picking which characters' role that need to be emphasized in the movie so the message is well-delivered. That is why the characters in this movie are the best because their roles have successfully delivered the message as aforementioned.

SOUND 10/10: No doubt with the sound, it is perfection. The sounds definitely help the movie to show which scenes that are intense and which one is not. I don't have much to say and clarify the sound because it is all perfect as a package.

ENJOYMENT 10/10: I watched this in 2020 and I think this is the best anime that I have watched in the past years. I really love thought-provoking animes/movies such as "Waking life (Non-anime)" and "Serial Experiments Lain". So I think it is very interesting to watch Kaijuu no Kodomo and definitely will come back to watch it again!

OVERALL 10/10: Definitely an anime that I will watch it again and again because it really satisfies your eyes, ear, and heart. It needs not to bring you tears but this is still the true definition of perfection in my honest opinion. I totally recommend everyone to watch this movie, and thus, you may share your own opinion and interpretation of this movie!

This is a tough one to review. First off it's clear that the animation and artstyle is both beautiful and thoughtfully executed. However, the difficulty in reviewing Kailua no Kodomo mainly comes from its story. Here's a more precise explanation:

Animation (8): A beautiful mix of 3D elements that don't feel too out of place and a well thought out charadesign makes this movie one of the prettiest ones to hit theatres the year of its release.

Story (4): This is where it's really hard to have a concise opinion, at first I felt like maybe I didn't understand the thought process behind a lot of the ... final 1/4 of the movie, with all of the classic maternal representation and space-related metaphors we get nowadays from Shinkai movies. But just like Shinkai's Kimi no nawa, this feels like a shoe-horned pseudo-deep storyline made the story seem deeper than it truly is, with convoluted forced metaphors that could dupe some into thinking Kailua no Kodomo is a deep philosophical statement. Similarly, after rewatching it another time, it became evident that a lot of the character introductions were non-sensical -- what happened to that handball girl ? Was it all just to show that the main character does not allow injustice to prevail ? How about Sora forcing the universe into Ruka ? How can this be justified ? This entire thing feels like pandering to the general public's lack of sensitivity when it comes to "artsy anime movies".

Characters (4): No character's roles are ever explained, Anglade is such an ambiguous character whose role I wish was more explicited, similarly Dede and Jim just spit out some pseudo-deep crap about the universe in a supposedly mysterious tone. The rest of the supporting cast are forgettable at best which is a shame and the main characters aren't developped enough for anyone to identify themselves to them.

Overall: Form over substance, pseudo-philosophy yet beautiful animation makes this the probable source for the next Instagram edits for beautiful anime, other than that if you're interested in a convincing story you can probably skip this one.

I dove into "Kaijuu no Kodomo" with an open mind and came out truly mesmerized. I've read several reviews where people expressed disappointment with the storyline, but for me, it was captivating. The themes explored in the movie, like the parallels with birth and the poetic notion of us being part of the vast universe, were both romantic and inspiring.

Regarding the characters, I did feel a tinge of longing for more depth in the side characters. However, this might be an intentional reflection of the transient nature of childhood and adolescence – friends coming and going, parents grappling with their children's emotional landscapes. It's a ... thought-provoking perspective.

Watching this movie was like experiencing the sea itself. At times, I felt a peaceful calmness, and at others, I was caught in a whirlwind of chaos and thunderstorms. This film isn't just a visual experience; it's an emotional journey.

I would wholeheartedly recommend "Kaijuu no Kodomo," but with a gentle note that it's best suited for those who are open to its unique storytelling and profound ideas. If you're willing to embrace its narrative style, this movie is a beautiful, thought-provoking voyage.

Children of the Sea's high commitment to pretty nonsense, both visually and thematically, results in an unsatisfying viewing experience.

Children of the Sea might be worth watching for the sheer verve of its occasionally
resplendent visuals. The raw, complex lineart gives the depictions a real sense of texture, and the shear density of the aquatic wildlife in the frame is impressive. Much of that wildlife is rendered using CG, but it is generally integrated pretty well enough so that way that the high fidelity of the CG art contrasts with the more impressionistic traditional art reads as an artistic flourish. However, integration of CG is much ... less successful during the myriad of cuts with extremely dynamic cameras moving through highly detailed 3d environments.

The storytelling is pleasingly sedate, if extremely unfocused. I liked the relationship between the three lead children - the burgeoning friendship between the female lead and the younger brother and the significantly more antagonistic relationship between the female lead and the older brother.

However, this story is frequently sidelined as characters that are barely introduced murmur about a "festival" (the aesthetic vagueness of their exposition does not make it any less clunky). They then wax lyrical about how the expansiveness of the universe relates to the interior of mankind or something, which is preposterous and burns time that could be better spent developing the characters and conflict. The fixation on pretty sounding nonsense also comes at the expense of following through on the existing plot elements (Why were the children rescued off screen? What happened to the pointless science team subplot?) which frustrates the film's own efforts to establish a sense of grounded magical realism.

This culminates in a deeply surreal climax. The presumed life or death stakes for the characters caught in the middle of the "festival" are way too abstract and vague for the storytelling to land with any visceral impact - even in the face of all of the intense and captivating visuals.

Music pieces are great individually, but sometimes seems poorly timed with the pacing of the shot to shot editing.

I love Children of the Sea.

I love its saturated palette. Joe Hisaishi’s atmospheric music. Acid-trip cinematography. Sublime art. A surreal plot that will bend your mind to the ends of the universe, but then back again to return perfectly to its origin, where everything settles beautifully.

This will be a full interpretation of every plot-relevant event. Please use this review as a guide for your own thoughts, rather than a concrete explanation.

Initially, Ruka is a young girl stranded on an island with the entire Pacific sprawling before her, stranded by her frustrations of growing up and communicating with others.

She struggles with communicating her feelings ... and understanding her own wants. She balls up in anticipation for a long, uneventful summer vacation.

Soon after, in her father’s aquarium, Ruka meets Umi, a carefree spirit dancing in his own world. He tells her that “things that shine will always be found,” and Ruka is swept up by her fascination and the beauty of the will-o’-wisps, meteors falling from the sky. She clutches to Umi’s hand as he leads her onward, noticing his incredible warmth.

Umi is a metaphorical representation of Ruka’s connection to others, her own tie to humanity. A physical expression of her desire.

Umi takes her to meet Sora, his brother. We find out that he is sick, and will soon die. The three of them board the aquarium’s boat on a reckless journey out into the open sea, fueled by Ruka’s aversion to seeing her alcoholic mother, apologizing to the handball team, and frustration with herself.

Sora is a metaphorical representation of Ruka’s appetition, her curiosity for the unknown.
When Umi takes Ruka’s hands, she feels warmth and fulfilment. When Sora takes Ruka’s hands, he is pulling her into the unforgiving ocean water.

The sea is omnipresent throughout the movie. The sea, space and the universe are representations of Ruka’s thalassophobic helplessness in a vast and unknowable world.

After a storm, Sora gets lost and Ruka rides with Umi on a truck to a secluded area where she meets Anglade. Anglade is a marine biologist who isolates himself from society to understand the world around him.

Anglade asserts that the sea and the space are one and the same, that we are made out of the same substance, and we are connected to people across worlds. There is an inexplicable vastness in the universe; 90% of it is made of dark matter that we can never observe. Yet, Anglade seems to suggest that we should be content in merely experiencing the wonder of creation. Nothing more.

In a beautiful coalescence of colour, Ruka, Umi and Sora wade through the seawater. Blue plankton light up the world and warmly envelop the trio.

Ruka wakes up in the middle of the night to a feverish Umi. She is surprised by Sora in the darkness, who leads her to the shore.

Sora, before he disappears in a streak of light, kisses Ruka and forces her to swallow a meteor.
The meteor is representative of Ruka’s appetition for the unknown.

For an unknown number of years, Anglade and Jim have attempted to collect data to understand when the “festival” will happen, which will mark the end of the boys’ lifespans. After failing to “save” Sora, Jim deletes his research data and announces that his goals have changed: rather than to prolong the lifespans of Umi and Sora, he now strives to protect them from the interference of arrogant people. Self righteous adults have no place in imposing biases on a child’s self reckoning.

Ruka, drunken and confused with the meteor inside her, rides out to sea with grandma Dede and Umi, where the former gives a speech about how we can never fully perceive things around us. We can only catch fragments of memories in the wind, as if we were sails. Through these fragments, we come to understand ourselves and the world we live in.

Ruka dives into the water, driven by her appetition and curiosity. She is swallowed by colossal beings, constantly reminding us of our insignificance in the presence of the sea, and space. She meets Sora again inside a chamber, who tells her that her job is complete. She begins to ascend through space and the universe and the camera pans out to show galaxies, DNA, primitive life forms, and seemingly the fabric of the universe itself.

Ruka, now a being made of stars, meets a fully material Umi, who drives himself through a shield of flames surrounding her, and grabs the meteor fragment burning in her chest.

Ruka fights Umi for this fragment, as if to say “Umi, this drive is dangerous, you cannot have it.” Umi and Ruka somersault over each other for the possession of this meteor. In this process, Ruka comes to the realization that she must return to humanity, and this meteor will not allow her to do so. When Umi turns into an infant, in an act of her own volition, Ruka gives this meteor piece to Umi. This action represents her maturity; a willful choice to return to reality, now that her appetition has been sated, her job complete. It is her desire for human connection that brings her to chase Umi’s warmth. The two fall into the sea, and Umi begins to disappear.

Ruka fights to hold onto fragments of Umi as his body loses materiality. She screams out “Umi, please stay with me,” grasping for his perfect personification of the warmth of love and connection. As the final piece of Umi bursts into a tiny fragment of the universe far away, Ruka, with tears in her eyes, is met with familiar voices: her parents. What is shining will always be found.

She is pulled out of the sea by her desperately worried folks.

In a conversation with Dede, Ruka tearily asks why she was chosen for this, and remarks that she wishes to see the boys again. Dede, empathetically tells her that she has experienced a beautiful boy by the sea as well. Dede explains that the journey to maturity is a path that all humans trek at some point in their life. “The most important things cannot be conveyed with words.” Ruka, having received solidarity from Dede, and a newfound trust in herself, runs forward into her life with a newfound spring in her step.

Some time in the future, Ruka sloshes through crystalline waves on a golden beach. Under the gaze of the clouds, she is content to kiss the beauty of the everyday. Perhaps longing for days past, she looks toward the horizon where the blues are blurred and recalls an unforgettable time with those who changed her life.

this is my first review so sorry if there's a mistake.

POSSIBLY LITTLE SPOILER

Art-10
In my opinion this movie has an art of indulging eyes throughout the scene presented with a details view on the beach and ocean as well as subtle movements in animatio so, no complaints in this art style.

Music-10
as well as the music that accompanies the story during a sea diving scene or when a character experiences something magical in this story, a background sound that really matches all scenes. I give a 10/10 score on music.

... Voice acting-8 (I hate the father, lol)
while for voice acting there are no problems. All actors match the characters being played. except for one, the main character's father who will later be explained below.

Character-7 (Is because side characters)
all three protagonists have different personalities who are friends. The main character is said to have mischievous behavior that often acts at will and also she hates her mother, for some reason is not told why she hates her mother in the movie, even so throughout the story, we will see the development of this girl who will change throughout the story. While the other two protagonists are cheerful children who accompany the main character. This movie taught me about what friendship is and why it is valuable. That's what makes me like these three characters, because they help each other and get through the fun and sadness together. Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you about the main character's father who was very bland, he didn't have the characteristics in this story as well his voice acting, for example when his daughter wanted to go to the beach during a storm he was the only one who didn't panic while the mother who does not look useful is only showed her feelings, unfortunately, this father has an empty role until the end of the movie, applause for the mother.

while for supporting characters such as the teenager and weird grandmother, their origins are not conveyed and why they are involved in the story so for supporting characters is very worse. While some other institutions in the story that might look like a bad guys are also not told what they are planning.

Story-2
the story in this movie is very ordinary and even confusing, in the beginning to the middle I enjoyed the story, until the end of the story will be a common thing for most anime in general. I can not tell because of spoilers. Honestly, maybe the story in this film is too hasty so it does not explain the details of what happened.

Conclusion
maybe the art and ost in this movie is great but the story is meh.

This anime is suitable for you who are :
People who only care about unique art style, hachi's fans, People who are bored during pandemic and have free time.

This anime is NOT suitable for you who are :
People who care about the storyline, those who hate lazy storylines.

What an absolute spectacle. This is the sort of film that gently draws you in by the hand, stroking you with gentle breezes, lapping at your bare toes as the distant calls of whales echo by your ears.

And then proceeds to faceplant you into the sand and screech like a dying seagull as you hallucinate from a lack of oxygen.

For the first hour of the film I was completely hooked! Ruka, Umi and Sora are familiar but enjoyable archetypes, and no time is wasted in building a bond between the trio and getting into the mystery. The side characters have next to no ... focus, but they work into the setting well enough to not take away from the story. And, of course, with every frame being pure eye candy, you easily lose yourself to the world and watch the plot flow with the waves...until the plot begins to lose you.

Am I an idiot? Did I miss all the obvious hints and signs because I was too caught up in the gorgeous scenery and facial expressions? Totally possible. Most likely. Did I genuinely attempt to follow every hint and sign? For sure. And yet there I sit, taking in the second hour of the film, jaw dropped because the sights and sounds are all I can follow, and even that loses any sense of direction in the final half an hour. It does sort of tie bits and pieces together at the end, but certainly not enough for me to ponder what I just saw.

I can see the direction the story was going, and what it was asking the viewers to explore. There are elements of fantastical and philosophical proportions that do offer decent speculations - but certainly not enough to hold a story together. If that was the point - if the story should be taking a backseat to the visuals, then that's fine! I'm all for a pure spectacle, but I want to know I'm only getting a spectacle. Don't build up a story just to toss me into a lecture on the existence of man and memories. I'm just not smart enough, y'all -_-

Looking for a sensory overload? "Children of the Sea" will mesmerize you with its top tier visuals and great voice acting. If there is any, ANY way, turn the voices down, turn off subtitles, and just take it the sights and sounds. Otherwise, stick with the Ghibli films for a satisfying blend of storytelling and beautiful animation, because the most you'll get from these children is a headache.

A pretty one, though XD

"At all times, we are connected by a place deep inside us. The most important promise isn't made with words".

I really enjoyed this movie, both visually and story-wise, so in short, do I recommend Children of the Sea aka Kaijuu no Kodomo? YES.
It was a new adventure in a new style, I think. It was one of the best 3D movies I've ever seen on the animation level. The animation was on point though in some scenes you can notice the CGI easily. Where in most of the movie I thought it was a Hand-drawing style. And it turned out to be that the producers ... used mixed Hand-drawing and CGI styles in this movie, which is the style most known in Disney movies.

I can see the effort they made in making this movie present a wonderful work with very detailed cinematography.
Great work drawing characters and designing them and showing the facial expressions. Face zooms are the thing I enjoyed most.
Drawing plants was perfect and realistic, animals though were drawn in a less realistic way.

In the beginning, I thought it was a teen romance film but it was much more than that. The movie is weirder than you think.
I highly recommend being open-minded about what you'll see in the second half of the movie, the movie took a really strange deep turn after chapter 11. It became more mythologic, more like spirited away. It's not something that is outrageous or unwatchable, On the contrary, it was beautiful and breathtaking, and the animation was smooth and seamless the whole movie but comparing the first part of the movie with the second part, it was a big turn-around.

Note: there is a post-credit scene.

[SPOILERS] !!!!!!!
I had one problem with this movie, just one; the movie gave me an open ending and left me with so many unanswered questions. For example:
- Who are Umi and Sora? What's their Origin? Are they actual brothers? Are they even humans?
- We didn't get an explanation of why Umi and Sora are in danger of extinction and why they were dying.
- Why was Ruka the chosen one to succeed Sora in holding the meteorite? Why did Sora have to sacrifice himself?
- And what is this meteorite thing that has the size of a small rock but the power of a universe?

Ratings:

Plot: 7/10. Nice storyline but didn't understand the ending, and the synopsis doesn't really describe the movie perfectly.

Characters: 8/10. Characters were well-written, not just the main 3 kids but also minor characters like Anglade, Jim, and Dede.

Music: 7/10. Good music and sound scoring but what I liked most was the lullaby sung by Ruka at the end.
"Go to sleep little one, little fish born in the sea, it's bedtime for you too, drink your milk and grow, and plant your feet firmly, one day, you'll reach the heavens and hunt for stars, stars that are captured will drop into the ocean".

Animation and Art-style: 9.5/10. The best thing in this movie, Hands down. You will be visually amazed watching this work for sure.

Enjoyment: 9/10. I can calmly say that it's a very good movie, and I Assure you that you will be flabbergasted while watching it.

Overall: 8/10. Very Good.

From the everyday, to the simple, to the surreal and eccentric, visually and audibly - Kaijuu no Kodomo was absolutely artistically stunning. The artistic visuals and beautifully composed music was the best part of the film. These two elements blended seamlessly to create such a vibrant and well-designed world, with use of colour and music really visualising different tones and environments perfectly.

Ultimately though, Kaijuu no Kodomo was slightly disappointing. Leading up to this film's release in my country, I was pretty excited and anticipating a similar enjoyment to the first time I ever watched films like Wolf Children or Your Name. With their stunning ... artistic styles and soundtracks, I was expecting Kaijuu no Kodomo to join these two fantastic films in glory. Unfortunately it did not.

What this film lacks in comparison is in its story-telling. With an almost hyper-focus on the stunning artistic visual and sound design of this film, what gets left behind is the capacity to tell a story effectively. The pacing was uneven, and the events were never really explained or developed in ways that could actively engage me in the story of the film itself. I found myself greatly anticipating the animation and visual aspects more, rather than the events that unfolded. It felt messy and it ended messy.

The characters were all played effectively, with no particular issues or key moments that arose. The voice actors all performed well for what they were given.

Overall, it was a beautiful piece of artwork but just a mediocre film.

This movie was... interesting. This is a short review of the movie I watched, and here are the ratings:

STORY: 5/10
The story was decent the first hour, but after that, a lot of weird things started happening, and I still can not figure out what they were trying to tell. If you were to ask me about what the plot was then for the first hour I would say: "Whale is having a party and is inviting people, including some special kids." while for the other hour of the movie, I can honestly only say: "Ruka is all over the place while yelling "Umi-kun!" every 5 ... minutes or so.

ART: 11/10
The art and animation style of this movie is so different from your normal animes. Everything looks stunning and everything constantly sparkles and moves. I have honestly never seen animation this good before, and I don't think I'll ever do it again either.
The climax of the animation is definetly the last 30 minutes of the movie, and allthough I never knew what or why the hell everything is happening, it at least looked incredible. Out of this world, insane.

SOUND: 10/10
Sound was also some of the best I've heard, and it definetly sprinkled on some quality together with the animation. I honestly don't know what more to say about, exept incredible!

ENJOYMENT: 7/10
Allthough I didn't understand what the hell was going on half of the time, I do have to say that the animation alone makes this worthy of watching, try to ignore the second half of the story and just enjoy it for its outstanding sound and animation, if you're more of a story prefering person, then I'd not reccomend it, but in the end it's up to you.

OVERALL: 7/10

I really tried to like this because it's been awhile since I've seen a good anime movie, but wow this movie is really boring.

I read an entire article about the impact fast fashion has on the planet with the movie on in the background and didn't even realize until after.

There's nothing hooking you in at all it's just so boring, not only is it boring, the original looking art to imitate the mangas art style can be wildly unsettling sometimes and even hard to look at sometimes so it was off putting sometimes.

the music is.....like not there? when it is its boring and sleep ... inducing.

ASMR during the rain scene though? 10/10

Children of the Sea presents a story that is very metaphorical and is something that should be appreciated for its visual presentation. The quality of this anime film is rather inconsistent. I loved some scenes and was generally amazed by the effort put into the most important scenes, but other scenes just felt rushed and lazily done. The story is really metaphorical, so if you are the kind of person to turn your brain off while watching films, don't watch this film. You will be bored. However, if you are the type to analyse a film while watching it and after watching it while digesting ... the plot of the film you just watched, then this might be the film for you.

Some things are animated rather sloppily, but for the most part, the animation is pretty decent. There is a scene that goes on for quite some time that is quite hypnotic. That was the peak of the animation quality and I loved it. It's rather hard to explain the animation without going into spoilers so just sit back and let the film take you on a journey.

The soundtrack, sound effects, and voice acting are all spectacular in this film. These really complemented the animation and overall story. It's unfortunate that character development was rather poor. The film spends almost all of its time focussing on the three main characters. It pretty much doesn't develop the relationship Ruka has with her parents. Any shift with the relationships with Ruka and her parents and the relationship between her mother and father, which happens in this film, feels rather jarring since there is a lack of backstory and character development to show how they got to that point and why their relationship is unstable and changing. I wasn't invested in the supporting characters. They weren't given enough depth to have anything to care about.

I did enjoy this film and appreciated the metaphorical aspect of it. Just beware of the poor character development. Don't expect a masterpiece or anything significantly good when watching this film.

Watched at Hoyts Entertainment Quarter 15 as part of the Sydney Film Festival.

I've gotta be real: there were a lot of scenes in this that were screaming "this movie looks beautiful" at me without backing it up at all. And, looking around a bit, it seems to have a reputation for its visuals. I don't get that at all. The movie was really ugly for me, from the character designs to the poorly composited set pieces. Its CG work looked particularly embarrassing.

To be fair, it was done no favors by my bad internet connection. The poor stream made it look muddy. But if it had better taste, that wouldn't have mattered.

And the story? A jumbled mess. A ... joke.

I gave up on it and I won't be looking back.

The Children of the Sea is a film I would recommend a friend to watch by themselves at 2-3am with little to no explanation.

The film is very alluring and captivating even with visuals alone. Some of the best animated sea life there is. From ribbon eels to false killer sharks the scenery is illuminating and stunning.

Very good at keeping your attention by going from a melancholy sunny scene to something darker and more fast paced.

Some of scenes were genuinely so intense (not content wise but by use of sounds and visuals) that I was taken aback or caught off guard.

If you are not ... a fan of films that are more emotional in nature rather than literal than this may not be your flavor of tea. There is a lot of fantastical elements that can be hard to attach to in terms of a plot. At times it often feels more like a visual and auditory experience than it does a concrete story. So that looseness and lack of rigidity in terms of story can be a fault if that is what you are wishing to derive from a film.

The characters themselves serve as devices to explore the world in which the film is set in and everhthing works together to propel the film forward in that way. The change of pace from a typical summer childhood adolescence animation was personally a treat for me, so if you like odd tasting candy maybe try it out yourself.

🐋 🪼 🐟

So...
This movie was a ride to say the least. I walked into this expecting what I read in the synopsis, but the synopsis did NOT prepare me for what I actually viewed.

Story- 4
It was going just fine in the beginning; there were fish, oceans, kids talking about a ghost of the sea, just as the synopsis said. But then, that all changed. I tried to understand what was actually happening and catch the meaning, but from that whale consumption scene to end of the movie, all I picked up was...METEOR, THE MEANING OF LIFE, BIRTH... THE UNIVERSE!!! I couldn't follow along then.

Art- 9
The ... animation was beautiful. The ocean scenes, the fish, the rain illusions especially. The camera movements through me off a little at certain scenes, but overall, it was amazing.

Sound- 9
I didn't focus on the music too much in this one, but it was very soothing. I enjoyed what I listened to throughout the entire movie.

Character- 4
No development to speak of, I couldn't really read anyone, and there isn't anything else to discuss.

Enjoyment - 6
I did enjoy this for the most part. I wasn't bored and it DEFINITELY kept me intrigued...but it did swim squares around me.

Overall- 6
This movie was something. I liked what I was given and this is something I think would be a good watch for movie night, mainly to see the faces of those who don't know what's coming. But honestly... I felt like I was on drugs while watching this.