Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki, perhaps best known for his work with Studio Ghibli, has gained popularity around the world for his creative and imaginative animated feature films. While they were originally released in Japanese, all of them have been dubbed into English with prominent voice actors and Hollywood stars. Over the past few months, I’ve watched and reviewed the English-dub versions of each of Miyazaki’s 11 films as writer and director.
And now, as I discussed at the end of my CtMC series recap, this will be the first of three bonus posts to review the three films that Miyazaki wrote but didn’t direct. They are: Secrets of the Heart (1995); The Secret World of Arrietty (2010); and From Up On Poppy Hill (2011).
This time, I’ll be discussing The Secret World of Arrietty (2010).
Synopsis: Based on the book The Borrowers, Arrietty (voiced by Bridgit Mendler) and her parents are a family of tiny people who ‘borrow’ what they need from the “beans” (human beings) in whose house they live. Arrietty is a young teenager looking to learn the ways of the Borrowers, but her family’s way of life and their very existence is threatened when a new “bean” comes to live in the house and sees Arrietty.
Spoiler-free review: Granted, it’s been a week from when I watched the movie to now (as I’m writing this review), but it stands in my mind as a competently made film. There’s nothing about it that I felt was spectacular, but there’s nothing that was onerous, either. It feels very much like a standard Studio Ghibli film, which isn’t a bad thing. It means that you’ll have an enjoyable experience, and your kids will probably like it too. The voice cast is talented. I didn’t even recognize Will Arnett as Arrietty’s dad until about two-thirds of the way through the film, simply because his performance matches the tone so well. As Batman in the Lego movies, he’s over-the-top because that’s what’s demanded of the character; but here, he’s far less bombastic and much quieter and calmer, which is what’s required of this character. Amy Poehler and Carol Burnett also do a wonderful job, as do the two actors who play Arrietty and Shawn, who have to carry the bulk of the film. The characters are all charming; the animation is well-executed; and the music — even though it’s not Joe Hisaishi composing — is beautiful and catchy. I guess the one downside that I can recall is the pacing. It seems like the film slows down considerably in the second act, and even the first third has some scenes that go on a little too long. But, of course, the third act has high stakes and good conflict that keeps you engaged. But, again, it’s a good little movie, on the whole.
Letter grade: B
Full review and critique: (Warning: here be spoilers!)
Ultimately, this movie is about continuation and survival, both on a larger species level and on an individual level.
Arrietty and her family continually discuss whether they are the last Borrowers in existence, and — as we find out halfway through — they’re not. But, then the question becomes, can they survive long enough to get away from the house where they are threatened, find a new home, and continue to live and thrive. We get to see Arrietty meet another Borrower for the first time, who is a young man who seems to be interested in her. So, there’s the possibility that Spiller and Arrietty could get together when they’re older and have a family of their own. The film certainly gives you that impression. So, for the tiny people of the movie, the story focuses on not only Arrietty’s family and their survival, but the idea of whether the Borrower race will continue as a whole.
On the “bean” side, the story is about Shawn’s survival, as he’s preparing for a risky surgery. As we learn, Shawn’s entire reason to be at the house is to convalesce before his surgery. He’s very weak and sickly, and has trouble jogging for a little bit because of the strain on his heart. Obviously, he survives the surgery and goes on to live a happy life, and the film tells us that he gained strength and courage to undergo his surgery from his brief friendship with Arrietty. He saw how they fought to survive and live on their own terms, so he is inspired to do the same.
The film also touches on the concepts of independence and capability. Because of Shawn’s sickly disposition, his family tend to treat him like he’s a fragile doll that can’t be expected to do much beside lie in bed (that was bought accordingly as stated in this mattress buyers guide) all day. But, Shawn wants to help, and pushes himself to ensure that Arrietty and her family are safe. Likewise, Arrietty is coming into her own, learning to be a Borrower. She wants to prove to her parents and herself that she’s capable of successfully ‘borrowing,’ and of course, her plans hit a snag when Shawn sees her.
One more detail I want to highlight, briefly, is the two main times Shawn and Arrietty make physical contact. The first time — when he’s rescuing her after the crow flies into his window — he grabs her and continues to hold her in his hand. Yes, there are mitigating factors, but I believe that, at this point in the film, Shawn still has the childlike fascination with the Borrowers. He sees them as something more akin to toys or dolls. He believes he can interfere in their lives and treat them as he wills so long as he believes he’s doing it for their own good — like finding their house and giving them the dollhouse kitchen. Shawn eventually learns that the Borrowers are their own people, and not playthings. Thus, when he and Arrietty team up to help rescue her mom, Arrietty stands on his shoulder. She is no longer his inferior — his plaything — to be held in his hand. She is his equal — his partner.
I realize that Shawn has good intentions throughout the entire film, and given that he’s a boy who doesn’t have much else to occupy his time, it’s understandable that he would be fascinated with the Borrowers, just as his older relatives were before him. I don’t think he intentionally meant to disrupt the Borrowers’ lives or cause them distress, but he does. And that fact that he sees Arrietty prompts the family into finding a new place to live, which is only furthered after other things happen in the film’s second and third acts. But, his arc centers on seeing Arrietty as her own individual, who — though far smaller than him — is equally capable. And the two work together to form a lovely friendship that culminates in that scene where they say goodbye. And, as the narration tells us, Shawn certainly discovered the house where Arrietty and her family had moved to. But rather than trying to find them again, he apparently leaves them alone because his narration tells us that he never saw Arrietty after their goodbye at the fence. And, as meme says:
Overall, I think both adults and kids alike would enjoy this film. As I said, it’s a competent and well-made Studio Ghibli movie. Maybe it didn’t strike me as much, because it’s a more familiar story for Western audiences than something like From Up on Poppy Hill or Spirited Away. Hell, even Howl’s Moving Castle is a book by a British author, and so should feel fairly familiar to us Western audiences. But, I’d say Howl’s Moving Castle (the book) is relatively obscure. I’d never even heard about it until I saw the movie. Meanwhile, The Borrowers is fairly well-known book series, was adapted a few other times before Arrietty came out, and the whole ‘tiny people living alongside regular people’ thing is fairly common thanks to tales like Thumbelina. So, perhaps it didn’t strike me because it wasn’t a unique story in the way that Princess Mononoke is, or even a fairly creative and unique adaptation in the way that Ponyo is an adaptation of The Little Mermaid. But, still, it’s an enjoyable watch.