Ponyo

Director: Hayao Miazaki

Year: 2008

Ponyo is a surreal dream that magically transports willing viewers to a place of joy, fear and love. Beautifully hand-crafted animation is breathtakingly on display from master Director Hayao Miyazaki. The value of animation has been brought down in some circles because of the advent of technology, lowering the bar of access. Just because it can be done, however, doesn’t mean it can be done well as Miyazaki reminds us. The craft of story and imagination still have power, particularly when one as gifted as is at the helm and is playing in the realm of deep mythology.

Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid” is the source material here. Wonderful as Disney’s 1989 adaptation is, Miyazki takes the story in an entirely different direction. Sosuke (Frankie Jonas) is a five-year-old boy living in a seaside home with his mother, Lisa (Tina Fey) and father, Koichi (Matt Damon). Lisa works at a retirement home with a cast of ornery ladies including the voice talents of Cloris Leachman, Lily Tomlin and Betty White. Koichi is a ship captain who is away from home more than Lisa would like.

Broom-Hilda (Noah Lindsey Cyrus) is a precocious princess goldfish. Her father, Fujimoto (Liam Neeson), is a human who has become a sea God by mating with the sea Goddess, Granmamare (Cate Blanchett). Broom-Hilda escapes her home and rides a jellyfish to the surface where she observes the humans. She is swept up by a sea-troller dredging trash off the ocean floor.   

 

While exploring the beach (as every five-year-old should do) Sosuke sees what appears to be a fish caught in a glass jar. He pulls her out of the ocean and smashes the jar, cutting his finger in the process. As he picks her up, she licks the blood off his finger, healing him and allowing her to begin the process of becoming a human. The journey is just beginning.

Ponyo is a timeless, spectacular work in its sweetness, visual artistry and storytelling. Kudos to Pixar’s John Lasseter for

Resonance Rating: 5.0 out of 5.0