This is a fabulous film, probably Hosoda's most personal one.
As a Pediatrician, I appreciated how detailed the movie animates 4-year old milestones, from temper tantrums to climbing up and down stairs with some difficulty to concrete versus abstract thinking. The facial expressions are top notch; very nice, exaggerated just to the point of not overdoing it. And the details on the baby! Hosoda really knocks it out of the park. Eye-tracking, babbling, cooing, to older toddler milestones of eye contact, grasping at toys, oral fixation, it's all there in wonderfully animated glory.
But I digress. Others may find the detail a bit boring, as in its core it's a film about a 4 year old coming to terms with the presence of a new baby sister. The simplicity, however, is what makes the film wonderful. At the end of the film there was an interview with Hosoda and he was asked the question of whether this film was directly aimed at a young audience, and he makes a point that having such a simple down-to-Earth plot allows him to create a story that anyone can appreciate, an epic of sorts. I agree, there is something that someone of all ages can appreciate. I loved the realistic tantrums, the older-brother, younger-sister dynamics. The various vignettes offer a beautiful nostalgic feeling that reminds me of Isao Takahata's Only Yesterday.
The plot, I admit, is threadbare. Once the magic portal gimmick shows itself for the 4th time, there's this feeling of "Is this it?" No grand narrative, no buildup to a villain is present. But I feel that the third act of the film is the strongest. The learning how the ride a bike scene, the scene with the Lonely Train, and the family tree vignettes were all very well done. Hosoda deftly builds up the family narrative to an emotional climax that eventually pays off very well.
The sound and music is very low-key, and the color palette is very subdued as well. The CG is not too overbearing. The movie is quite technically proficient.
Well worth the $16 with the convenience fee added on. I saw it in Mobile AL where on the premier showing there was only 6 people in the theater. Sad.
