Here we go the last cinema trip of 2023, & it is going to a Japanese animee… Im crazy. Im also up so early but theres a chance it might win globes so i kind of have to dont i. So lets do this. at least i know its going to look beautiful.

Im impressed, there are 5 families & 2 groups of millennials woohoo. Considering its not been that well advertised im very impressed with this for a 10am turn out well done. & especially as it is all subtilted too. I have since found out this is out on friday (the day after i saw it) that there is now a dubbed version with Florence & Batista ahhhhh

Trailers, Migration, Inside Out 2 & mean girls. That was it which was nice not to have hundreds at 10am.

& then the film started… & its one of the most beautifully animated films ive seen in year, probably since spirited away.

The change & style of colour & how it changed. The way the wind always blows in these type of films always makes me feel like im watching something really important & that it adds to the whole mythology of it all. I know often the background doesnt move but the care & dedication to that one background, id reuse it or pan in on it multiple times. Ive crafted something truly magical.

I have a friend who watches these types of film & i asked him what they thought & he was confused & didnt understand all of the story. & i suddenly felt a lot better with how i felt about it all, because i felt the same way. It wasnt the subtitles that were confusing. It was the whole, hang on hes not got resentment here & why are we now doing this & how does this effect that. I got lost once & then i thought we were nearing the end of act 3 & then we had to do something else. Also stuff that was brought up early on that was made to look so important just wasnt & it was like why have you stopped that. That story line needs to be more in the spotlight but no.

Also i get the heron (that was weird animation) but i wouldnt say he was either a good guide or a good hindrance. It was just there from time to time, it would have been better being named after the lady who helped him who (twist twist spoilers).

The resentment wasnt deemed a big thing to me there was no break down there at all. So the make up was like no we dont need that he knew he was good. Urgh. I mean it was full of good life lesson in the film, about trust & believing in yourself, not lying & accepting grief. But it was a weird way of getting to some of them.

IT got a bit to weird at one point & i was like we dont need this especially with the birds & then the hospital. I was sitting there going okay im lost now.

As much as the subtitles had my attention & made me concentrate more, the film was too all over the place & out there for me to truly appreciate it. Maybe a dubbed version would have been better for me.

So one of my friends Dexia draws. & one of the main characters that appeared in act two looks exactly how she draws herself. & that character was very forthright & supporting & up for chaos… i think it was her. When i told her this & then sent her a photo, it almost reduced her to tears. So whenever i see that character i will always think of my friend & her amazing art.

It was a beautiful film with lots of thought provoking meanings in it but to get through all the weirdness for all of that, im not sure it was that astounding. Animated superbly, but the actually story a bit to out there for me.


& thats it cinema club 2023 is closed… So who would like some awards.