Now let's start with the story. The story is what you get in every Ghibli movie ever. There's absolutely nothing special about it. If you are a fan of Ghibli movie, then you might feel nostalgic watching this movie because it combines a lot of elements that made you like Ghibli's movie, but it stopped there, they did nothing new with those concepts. If you haven't watched any Ghibli movie before, then I bet this movie will give you a lot of Harry Potter vibes, or if you have watched Little Witch Academia, then this kinda packed a similar setting with it.
The characters are fairy decent too. You have your main character who thought that she wasn't worth anything until she went to this magical land and found out that she has the greatest magic power there because of the help of a random plant she found at the middle of nowhere. Our "love interest", I put the "" because it really isn't confirmed but it was hinted, is just your typical love interest in every kids movie ever. Nothing special. So are the main villains, they are just cardboard cutouts you can find in other movies, doing all the things the did because of their own need.
However, what makes this movie so much more bearable is the art and animation. The art looks gorgeous. Each scene is well drawn and if your expectations aren't too high, the art will easily satisfy you. The animation too is fluid. If you are a huge Ghibli fan, then I bet this part won't disappoint you. This level of art and animation is extremely praise-able for a studio's first project.
The music is heartwarming, well-placed and suit the entire mood of the movie well. I have no complaints on this area. It didn't particularly stood out to me, but when watching the movie, I found no issue with the music.
Overall, Mary to Majo no Hana/Mary and the Witch's Flower is an above average movie, but at the same time is also an excellent movie for a studio's first anime. I will recommend this movie if you like Ghibli movie and want to get the same feeling in some other movie this year or to those who wants a movie like Little Witch Academia.
