The Visuals: Amazing. The visuals here are the best I have ever seen in an anime. If your can get the blu-ray and you will treat your eyes to one of the most stunning animations ever made. Miyazaki Hayao's works are the only thing can come close to how beautiful the animation is. From the cityscapes to the country side, everything exudes Japanese artistic aesthetic. The backgrounds are stunningly photo-realistic. I would not be surprised if they were rotoscoped into the shot. The animations are smooth and have no jittering. Although I am pretty sure this was not hand drawn, it looks absolute gorgeous and is worth watching for the visuals alone.
The Sound: Wow. Another stunningly good example of how sound should, well, sound. I watched it on a 5.1 system and the directionality of the soundscape was rich and vibrant. Calls and yells were coming from left, right, and behind. It reminded me why I own a 5.1 system in the beginning. It just enhances the experience to a richer level. I also enjoyed the score and the voice acting. Which was on pair with Studio Ghibli's work (my personal benchmark for anime films). The closing song was heartbreakingly sad and filled with palpable emotions.
The Story: On the whole, a basic story of a mother who loses her husband and it forced into a unique situation in raising two wolf children. I guess writing that, it does not sound very basic at all. The characters are all fleshed out very well. The mother, Hana, is a sympathetic character, who wears a badge of determinism like no other. She takes care of her babies and does what she has to, to make sure they are happy and enjoy their lives. The children, Ame, the boy, and Yuki, the girl, are interesting and undergo character development in a meaningful and realistic way. Being wolf-children bring fresh complications to an otherwise typical character arc. The tertiary characters are also fun to observe, in the way they begin by being very static and stereotypical and eventually become dynamic and likeable. Overall, the story, while it draws from many familiar sources, is unique enough to make the viewer appreciate the characters and the message of the film.
If I am to sum this film up, I would say it was a terrific piece of anime that every one should watch. While it does not contain a lot of action, it delivers in other ways that I think most anime lovers would appreciate. The characters are strong and dynamic. The settings are beautiful and breathtakingly artistic. The sound is crisp and sharp. OOKAMI KODOMO NO AME TO YUKI is not to be missed as it stands as a modern day classic that rival anything Studio Ghibli has made in the last five years.
