Arrietty

I love Hiyao Miyazaki's films.  I haven't seen all of them but the ones I have, I have always come away impressed.  My favorite is Princess Mononoke, but there is nothing wrong with Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle, and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Winds (I like the manga for this last one better but that's no slight for what the movie accomplished.)

So when I saw that his name was attached to The Secret World of Arrietty I had to go see this in theaters.  The artwork is way up to Studio Ghibli's standards of excellence and I expected no less; I am convinced that their work is the best offered today.  The voice actors chosen for the American dub was brilliant; people with the talent to bring both personality and make you fall in love just when you listen to them are incredible to me.  But it's the story itself that sold it as always for me.

You have to understand, too, that The Borrowers by Mary Norton holds a special place in my heart.  They were the first chapter books I read by myself in the third grade, as per my grandma's recommendation.  And now that I think on it, The Borrowers were my first introduction to fantasy as a living, breathing genre.  I was awed by the stories of the little people trying to make it in this big world.  And Arrietty Clock is the first girl I ever fell in love with, no lie (my future wife will just have to put up with that knowledge.)

Like all the movies I've just named, the pacing is slow.  This will put off a few people but they should realize that Studio Ghibli's films are not built to be a NASCAR race where the draw is speed and action and "what happens next?"  These films are more like nature walks.  The pleasure is not really the journey and destination but taking in the sights and the natural beauty being offered.

Some parts of the movie are changed from the first book.  I think they're improvements.  I like that The Boy has a name in this feature.  The ending has more closure than in the first book and if possible, is more bittersweet than the written version.

The core tale is the same, what drew me into the first novel: the relationship between Arrietty and The Boy.  Despite the few times they actually speak, I totally buy their friendship and their final goodbye earned the tears I almost shed (I don't cry in movies much; that I was on the verge here speaks volumes.)

I think you should support this movie with your money.  I have no regrets doing so.

***

In my own writing, I ended up bouncing ideas off of my mom the other night.  She has read most of the stuff I've written (not all of it but enough) and over the next hour, I was finally able to solidify the backstory of all my major villains.  This was the aspect that was killing the story before and made me have to redraft.  I had a vague idea about their motives but why that made them do the horrible, terrible, nasty things they did was not making sense.  Now that I'm into Chapter 5 of my second draft, with that in mind the rest should come smoothly.  If it doesn't, I'm finishing the darn thing anyways.  Just to say I did.