The Imaginary

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Jeremy M A very beautifully visualized movie, and a fantastic adaptation of the book that it was based on. It's gorgeous in every way, and takes you places that you may not have thought possible. It's rich material and fine storytelling for multiple generations. There is enough reinforcement of how this world works that my 6 year old was able to understand what was at stake throughout, and it was done efficiently that I didn't feel like I was being walked through everything--there's enough exposure before explanation that you're given the chance to figure things out yourself, which is probably when it hits most emotionally. I really enjoyed the music. It wasn't just something backing the dialogue and animation, but a much more active participant, revisiting themes and driving through the final scenes. I was able to catch this in a theater, and was also impressed by the multichannel mix. I'll miss that at home. Highly recommend, and I wish it had a larger theatrical release as it is the most emotionally powerful animated film this year. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/14/24 Full Review Armon B It's definitely pretty to look at, but it feels like it was created by an alien. Lots of scenes that would generate an emotional reaction in the right context, but the context is wrong. Odd characters, strange voice casting, patronizing at points, following nonsensical rules. Why do the imaginary creatures steal food if the library gives them what they need to survive? Why did the imaginary friend turn into a girl for 10 minutes? Why didn't the villain just overpower the child when he was alone in the hospital room, as opposed to getting into a ridiculous imaginary battle? If the movie already told me the girl's dad was dead, why did it suddenly expect me to feel really sad about it in the middle of the movie? I already knew he was dead. You already told me he was dead, if I wasn't sad the first time I'm not going to be sad the second time. I love animation, and I believe animation can be made for adults as well as children, but studio Ghibli and Pixar are famous because their content is relatable in addition to pretty. Their movies have an underlying logic that makes sense whether you're an adult or a child. They never just show things to you and expect you to feel something. They earn their reaction. This movie does not earn the reactions it's trying to get. If you liked it, that's great, it's just not for me. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 07/25/24 Full Review Eric S My 7 year old didn't like it and said he was bored. Seems to be a slower paced older English cartoon like Paddington Bear but does not have the humor or pace of a Pixar movie. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 07/22/24 Full Review Dave C At times, it is both hard to follow and flimsy in terms of the amount it tries to carry relating to dreams, imagination, psychology, and relationships, within the realms of reality and imagination. Thankfully, the delightful animation style and artistry, paired with the overall whimsical nature of story being told are all solid reasons to overlook the flaws and get lost in its fanciful, layered dreamscape. This is hopefully a good indication that Studio Ponoc is reaching its stride Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 07/21/24 Full Review Steven C Beautiful animation. Good story. Good soundtrack. Very entertaining. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/20/24 Full Review Bruce D 9/10 for me Catnip for Studio Ghibli fans. Studio Ghibli 2.0. The best hand-drawn animation I can recall anywhere since Spirited Away. Like many fantasy movies, this one gets tied up in making many new logical rules, then breaking them, leading to viewer confusion. Fortunately the gorgeous hand-drawn animation is delicious, the character models and discrete use of computer imaging of cars moving and so on is endlessly delightful no matter how the plot gets tangled in its own confusion. If you want to see this theme handled the best it has ever been handled, look at Disney's Return to Oz (1985). It's the movie most coherent and psychologiclaly accurate depiction of a child healing thru use of her own imagination. #2 movie on this theme is perhaps The Neverending Story. Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 07/19/24 Full Review Read all reviews

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