I mentioned last week that we got to attend an advance screening of The Secret World of Arrietty, but we had to hold of on our reviews of the movie. Well – I can finally talk about it, and I am here to report that it was a really, really good movie. The movie was originally released by Studio Ghibli in Japan, the studio behind Ponyo and Spirited Away. If you’ve seen those movies, you know how beautiful and thoughtful their films are. The Secret World of Arrietty had a similar feel. The gorgeous animation gave an amazing humanity to the movie. It was a quite film – a nice departure from the over-stimulation of most children’s movies. But it was also very engaging – the characters and plot had India engrossed throughout the whole movie. Kids will love the movie for the fantasy and heroism, but it is equally appealing to adults, with a very existential plot that had me in tears more than once. “Human beings are rich in material things, but our hearts have fallen into poverty”< the director says of the movie. This thread is woven throughout the film. Parents will appreciate the movie’s strong heroine . . . she is independent and brave, and she has a close and respectful relationship with her parents. Here is India’s take on the movie. We both give it two thumbs up! The Secret World of Arrietty opens in theaters on February 17th.
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