Ponyo (2008)
Directed by Hiyao Miyazaki
Written by Hiyao Miyazaki
Starring Liam Neeson, Cate Blanchett, Noah Cyrus, Frankie Jonas
Release Date July 19th, 2008
Published July 20th, 2008
I am running low on adjectives to describe Hiyao Miyazaki. The creator of some of the finest animation I have ever seen has given us so many delights over the years that I am almost at a loss to describe them. His Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle are rivaled only by the works of Pixar in terms of the finest works of animated film art created in the last decade. Now, Miyazaki is back with yet another lyrical, moving animated masterpiece. Ponyo is a children's movie with more imagination and wonder than any ten non-Pixar animated movies released in the last decade.
Ponyo is the story of a little girl who begins her life as a fish. Ponyo is the offspring of a strange scientist (Voice of Liam Neeson) who somehow keeps the ocean in balance with humanity, though he is tiring of the task. Ponyo's mother meanwhile, is the Gran Mamare (Voice of Cate Blanchett, as ethereal as ever) who I believe is mother nature herself but you can watch and decide for yourself on that point. Regardless, the story follow's Ponyo's longing to discover the world beyond the water.
She gets the chance when she sneaks out and takes a ride on a jellyfish all the way to the surface of the ocean. There, she happens on the shore where Sosuke is playing. It's love at first sight. Sosuke scoops Ponyo up in a bucket and thinking she is just a goldfish, Sosuke excitedly hopes that he can make her a pet. However, when she heals a cut on his finger, he realizes there is something really magical about his new friend. Soon, Ponyo is talking and professing her love for her new friend Sosuke.
Unfortunately, Ponyo's move to the surface has consequences. As she moves to become more human, the ocean becomes unbalanced as Ponyo's father searches for her in hopes of keeping her a little fish forever. If Sosuke can prove he truly loves Ponyo she may be able to become human but he will have to find a way to show it before the seas rise and destroy and destroy the world. Sosuke will also have to navigate around Ponyo's father and try to convince him of true love.
There is a distinct and prominent environmentalist streak running through Ponyo but it takes a back seat to the wondrous imagery of the great Hayao Miyazaki. Watch for the scene where Ponyo returns to the surface for the first time as a little girl and runs atop the roiling waves, the visual is an absolute delight. The glee with which Ponyo waves her arms and smiles with every part of lovely face is so awesome, a complete delight to behold.
Ponyo is filled with childlike wonder and makes exceptional use of the child voice talents of young Noah Cyrus as Ponyo and Frankie Jonas as Sosuke. Cyrus of the famous older sister Miley, and Frankie, youngest of the famous Jonas family, capture in their young voices the unpracticed delight only a child can deliver. The young voices are crucial to Ponyo as these young characters must deliver wonder and excitement as only a child can.
One can no longer be surprised by the brilliance of Miyazaki. And yet, I was somehow still blown away by Ponyo. Minus the occasional fright images that are as much a Miyazaki trademark as his childlike wonder, the director delivers a work of pure, joyous imagination. Ponyo is Miyazaki's take on the Hans Christian Anderson tale, The Little Mermaid and when you begin to recognize the story it adds even more gleeful exhilaration.
The metaphor at play in Ponyo of a father wanting his child to remain a child forever is wonderfully poignant, especially under the care of Miyazaki. The great master animator has a love for the stories of children growing both emotionally and physically, aging toward new and wonderful experiences while maintaining the naïve innocence of childhood. I mentioned some horror imagery and it is there but it has meaning and purpose. As much as childhood and growing up is filled with wonder, it's also fraught with fears and anxieties that will either be overcome or become part of the future of each child. None of what I just wrote is in the text of Ponyo but the implication is powerful and it's what makes him such a master storyteller, layers upon layers of meaning that Miyazaki seemingly invites you to find in his work.
Ponyo is one of the best movies of the year.
