The Tale of Princess Kaguya (2013)

The Tale of Princess Kaguya (PG)

"Bam-BOO-Ya"

In an ancient Japanese folk tale, a simple childless Bamboo cutter is going about his business one day when he finds a tiny princess in a bamboo blossom.  He takes her home to his simple wife and adopts her as their child, who is growing at a supernatural rate.  She is soon crawling, then walking, then playing with the wild children, all the while her father wishing for her a royal life.  When boons are given to him from the bamboo themselves, it puts Kaguya-hime on a path towards lady training, high-borne suitors, and celestial parades in Studio Ghibli's best work since Princess Mononoke.

First, the animation is stunning.  Like a story book come to life, moving intricate watercolors on a white board which is reminiscent of Waterson's color work.  The characters themselves are solidly designed and move gorgeously; often using the weight or lack of line ala Hokosai all the while keeping on model until there are brief flashses of sketchy scratches that are wonderfully Plimpton-esque.  Secondly, the writing is light and unmodern.  Gone are the trappings of most of Ghibli's over-worn devices (this applies to the art too!), and while the script may be a bit long and could use some editing for brevity, it reads and looks like a storybook fairy tale that you simply don't want to end anyway.  Non-fantastical for the most part, the film makes beauty and wonder from humanity and life, not fairy tale creatures or violence.

A decade-later reply to Ghibli's fantastic Mononoke, Director Isao Takahata (Grave of the Fireflies) proves there is life (and unrepentant beauty) possible after Miyazaki's retirement.

8 Black Teeth out of 10 (GREAT)