Check out our Wolf Children review, directed by Mamoru Hosoda who’s name is attached to The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and Summer Wars. More after the break.
“What the hell did you do to me Mamoru Hosoda? I don’t cry! I just don’t.”
Wolf Children tells the story of nineteen year old student ‘Hana’ who falls in love with a fellow, well supposed, student ‘Ookami’. The two quickly begin dating, but as time goes on Ookami reveals that he is in fact a Wolf Man. Unfazed by this news the two go on to have two children, Ame and Yuki, and that’s when the true story begins. No chance at all I’m spoiling that for anyone.
Mamoru Hosoda seemingly has a unique talent, as does everyone he works with on his projects, the films he presents are beautiful and present themselves as true folktales. He adds magic to our world in Wolf Children, and it seems like a natural part of the world.
Watching the storyline unfold, at 1.00am in the morning I might add, was magical. I found myself caring about all the characters, especially worrying about how the human mother would cope with two wolf children. I’ll be honest, I was welling up at quite a few points. What the hell did you do to me Mamoru Hosoda? I don’t cry! I just don’t.
In terms of animation the film also achieves a high level, making the simplest things look breathtaking, and really magnifies the charm of the storyline. I found the attention to detail incredible, seriously, like just how the characters move. Watching the wolves running in the snow was truly a magical moment of cinema. It’s what Peter Jackson probably wanted to achieve with King Kong, but done right.
Another highlight of the film was the voice acting. I opted to watch the, 5.1 wahoo, Japanese soundtrack. My line of thought is ‘to watch shows how they are intended to be watched’, but I have no doubt the English dub was taken seriously. What impressed me most about the voice acting was how organic it felt, which can be said about the entire film, which is a lesson many English dubs could learn. I always feel that the Japanese track is treated with more intensity, likely, because anime is such a big part of the nations culture.
Overall thoughts:
Wolf Children is an emotional journey that is enjoyable for all ages, and I suggest even those not used to anime giving it a chance. Strong contender for my film of the year. Not anime film of the year, but film of the year.
Pre-order the DVD or Blu-ray below:
