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.
