While it is a modestly entertaining fantasy flick, the amount of potential wasted in Ninokuni is frankly painful. And no, I’m not talking about the games—I’m only vaguely aware of their existence. There’s a particular sequence in the first half that wonderfully emulates that Ghibli-esque magic I’ve been craving for years; the film’s got that familiar art style, marvellous Hisaishi score, and engaging fantasy premise—all that’s left is for the writers to, well… write? Virtually everything is insanely rushed, to the point that I might assume that this is a recap movie for a long-running series. The story is rapidly pushed forwards by lousy exposition and narrative contrivances, making the second half feel like it was written in a mere afternoon. All the pieces are there, but in a desperate attempt to tie them all together in a roughly 100 minute movie, no gaps are left for the story to breathe. It’s a mess—an enjoyable mess, but a mess nonetheless.
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