Early on in the independent anime film Ghost Cat Anzu, the ghost cat is arrested for riding a motorbike without a license. He protested that because he was a ghost cat, he didn't know he needed a license. His big round face has a variety of expressions, from feigned innocence to annoyance. Finally, he let the police put his large, muscular body into the back of their small police car, but he let out a groaning “Meoooooow” familiar to anyone faced with an annoying cat. The scene really reinforces what the movie does best: It mixes the magical and the mundane, with lots of wonderfully animated characters.
Ghost Cat Anzu doesn't always hit the mark, especially in terms of emotional pacing. But veteran anime and live-action director Nobuhiro Yamashita (Linda Linda Linda) and first-time feature film director Yōko Kuno still deliver a solid and excellent film because the characters are incredibly fun to watch on screen. image.
[Ed. lưu ý: Bài đăng này có chứa một số nội dung tiết lộ thông tin thiết lập cho Ghost Cat Anzu.]
Image: GKIDS
Based on the manga of the same name by Takashi Imashiro, Ghost Cat Anzu begins when 11-year-old Karin has to skip school with her monk grandfather at the temple, while her widower father has to hide from some loan sharks. Angry usury. Karin is understandably upset, and even more so when her grandfather entrusts her to his strange, gently anthropomorphic ghost cat. Anzu is a 37-year-old cat adopted by Karin's grandfather decades ago; apparently instead of dying at the end of a cat's lifespan, he turns into an anthropomorphic werecat-man. Anzu is carefree, a bit irresponsible with money, and doesn't like watching an 11-year-old girl get angry.
But the two eventually bonded, even after a series of mishaps caused by Anzu withholding money earned from Karin's job so he could spend her money on his own vices. After Karin's father fails to show up on the anniversary of her mother's death, Karin travels to Tokyo with Anzu—and learns that he has a connection to spirits and gods, urging him to take her to the land of the dead so that she can can meet my mother..
Image: GKIDS
Ghost Cat Anzu works best when the mix of the mundane and the mythical is balanced. For example, Anzu inviting a bunch of forest spirits to her temple for a party is a fun set-up that gives Karin a chance to relate her feelings to the ragtag group. But ultimately the journey to the land of the dead drags and muddles the film's message.
However, Ghost Cat Anzu is still loved thanks to the ingenuity and expressiveness of its characters. Mythical creatures, such as Anzu and the forest spirits he befriends, are especially evocative. Their designs range from human-like to frankly animalistic, with plenty of wiggle room for mushroom creatures and demon-like goblins in between. But even the more simply presented human characters, such as the two boys who fall in love with Karin, have moments of great expression. Their eyes are just simple black dots but are full of exaggerated facial expressions.
Karin is the most traditional looking anime character with big eyes and a small nose. But the animators weren't afraid to make her look funny. Her face distorted in an amplified way as she rolled her eyes, cast looks of disgust and contempt, turned up her nose smugly, laughed devilishly, and cried loudly and uglyly. Really just watching her—or any character—react to any situation is fascinating.
Image: GKIDS
The animation really anchors the film, which otherwise feels a bit uneven, especially regarding Anzu and Karin's relationship. It's hard to buy into their eventual friendship when so much of the story focuses on their clashing personalities and the complications that arise from their incompatibility. Karin's plot also feels disjointed, undermined by family drama that is only hinted at and a supernatural plot that becomes too heavy without much build-up. The final decision about her pivotal character barely comes up and given everything we've been told about her family situation, it's jarring.
However, it's hard to take your eyes off the way these characters move, act, and express their emotions. Their world is cozy and tinged with warmth, but the animators don't hesitate to make the characters look strange. Those physical characteristics make their emotionally vulnerable moments more difficult, even if those tender scenes don't feel earned. But watching a giant cat have a beef with a precocious fifth grader, then still wholeheartedly helping her, is fun, especially since their character designs are so funny and cool.
Ghost Cat Anzu will hit theaters on November 15.
