2013 cartoon
Rating: 16/20
Plot: A bamboo cutter finds a miniature little girl in a bamboo stalk, and he and his wife decide to raise her as a princess. She grows rapidly. Unfortunately, in order to be a princess, she has to leave her friends and live in the city. While there, she continues to mature and eventually attracts a bunch of men who are aroused by the sound of the koto.
Well, they don't make princess movies like this anymore! Actually, they probably never did. The storytelling, at times, is tedious. Viewers are required to be a little patient as this all unfolds. The animation is breathtaking, however. It's delicately hand-drawn, and each frame looks like it could be a watercolor hanging in a museum. Although there are some Buddhist themes and a Japanese pace and a length that would probably bore even the most die-hard fan of princess cartoons, it's all so beautiful that it doesn't matter. It's delightfully Japanese. This is Isao Takahata, a guy who shares my birthday. He directed the bleak Grave of the Fireflies, a movie that makes me cry whenever I think about it. This is much lighter, but it's still probably going to make a lot of people cry. Not me though. I'm a man now.
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