PONYO Movie Review
August 22, 2009 by Sandie
Filed under Movie Reviews
I have enjoyed a lot of Hayao Miyazaki's previous films, especially My Neighbor Totoro and Spirited Away (if you haven't seen those yet, go rent them). I heard of Ponyo and was immediately interested in seeing what Miyazaki had came up with next.
Ponyo tells the story of a goldfish, Ponyo, who after meeting a little boy, Sosuke, decides that she wants to become human, against her father's wishes. The story is very close to "The Little Mermaid," except in this case, the two protagonists are children.
Unfortunately, the movie didn't live up to my expectations. Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad movie, I think it's just targeted towards children too much for me to fully appreciate it. The conflict was also resolved too easily, that I just didn't understand why there was so much fuss around it.
That said, there were a few things that I really enjoyed. For one, the goldfish were really adorable. But the really best thing from the movie, which I don't think they used enough to promote the film was Ponyo's father, Fujimoto (voiced by Liam Neeson). Now that character was memorable for me, because he was so eccentric, but funny to watch. I actually wish there had been more scenes with him, and more exploration of his character.
Overall, I think that children will enjoy Ponyo, so I definitely recommend you take them to see. As for me, I am glad I saw it too, because although I didn't love it as much as Miyazaki's previous films, I still enjoyed myself.
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Title: Ponyo
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Cast: Noah Cyrus, Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Tina Fey, Liam Neeson
Synopsis: From the Academy Award®-winning director and world-renowned Japanese animation legend Hayao Miyazaki comes PONYO, a story inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale "The Little Mermaid." Already a box-office success in Japan, the story of a young and overeager goldfish named Ponyo (voiced by NOAH CYRUS) and her quest to become human.
Release Date: August 14, 2009
Watch the Ponyo trailer.
PONYO New Movie Trailer
Check out the trailer for PONYO the voices of Noah Cyrus, Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Tina Fey, Liam Neeson, and directed by Hayao Miyazaki.
I think I'm enjoying this new Ponyo trailer even more than the first one.
Ponyo will be released to theaters on August 14 2009. Watch the trailer below.
Ponyo Synopsis: From the Academy Award®-winning director and world-renowned Japanese animation legend Hayao Miyazaki comes PONYO, a story inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale "The Little Mermaid." Already a box-office success in Japan, the story of a young and overeager goldfish named Ponyo (voiced by NOAH CYRUS) and her quest to become human.
PONYO Comic Con 2009 Panel
Director Hayao Miyazaki made an appearance during the Disney Animation panel at Comic Con 2009 to promote his new movie, PONYO.
Here are a few highlights from the panel:
On how he develops his stories
"My process is thinking, thinking and thinking about my stories for a very long time, if you have a better way, please let me know."
On his storyboards
"I think working on a storyboard alone is a custom that we have in Japan in terms of animation, it's not just I that works that way. But since I'm slow it seems that I'm working on the storyboard all the time."
PONYO Movie Trailer
Check out the trailer for PONYO starring the voices of Noah Cyrus, Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Tina Fey, Liam Neeson, and directed by Hayao Miyazaki.
Not too long ago, I posted the French trailer for Ponyo and was already impressed by it. Now we get an English trailer, and it shows once more how beautiful Ponyo looks. Although, it's funny how Disney put their "Disney feel" to the trailer, while the French one felt more like a Hayao Miyazaki movie. Either way, I'm really looking forward to it.
Ponyo will be released to theaters on August 14, 2009. Watch the trailer below.
Ponyo Synopsis: From the Academy Award®-winning director and world-renowned Japanese animation legend Hayao Miyazaki comes PONYO, a story inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale "The Little Mermaid." Already a box-office success in Japan, the story of a young and overeager goldfish named Ponyo (voiced by NOAH CYRUS) and her quest to become human.
PONYO ON THE CLIFF BY THE SEA French Movie Trailer
Check out the trailer for PONYO ON THE CLIFF BY THE SEA starring Noah Cyrus, Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Tina Fey, Liam Neeson, and directed by Hayao Miyazaki.
This looks like another beautiful movie by Hayao Miyazaki. After Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, and Howl's Moving Castle, I think we are in for another wonderful adventure. Although I have to say that so far My Neighbor Totoro is still my favorite.
Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea will be released to limited theaters on August 14, 2009. Watch the trailer below.
Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea Synopsis: From the Academy Award®-winning director and world-renowned Japanese animation legend Hayao Miyazaki comes Ponyo, a story inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale The Little Mermaid. The story of a young and overeager goldfish named Ponyo and her quest to become human.
