Thoughts on "Ponyo"

On Sunday, Tim, Liz, my husband, and I went to see Ponyo. We all enjoyed the film and it definitely gets my recommendation. I probably won't do a full-flown review until I have a DVD copy I can watch and rewatch at my leisure. In the meantime, here are some of my impressions of the film:

- As I suspected it would be, Ponyo is less like Spirited Away or Princess Mononoke and more along the lines of My Neighbor Totoro. This may seem like an odd thing to say about of film with its fair share of magic and a storyline which include the moon threatening to pull the tides high enough to drown the world, but the scale of the film remains small and the central focus is always the two young children at the heart of the story.

- Though it may not be the constant parade of new wonders that Spirited Away is, Ponyo is still a very beautiful film with a lot to love in the visual department. The kind of attention to detail that fans of Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli have come to expect from Miyazaki films are on full display here. The scene where Ponyo is running along on the backs of her sisters, who have been transformed into creatures that seem to be half hish and half water, is unlike anything I have ever seen before and a truly wonderful interpretation of a storm at sea.

- Reportedly playing at roughly 800 theaters in the US and Canada, Ponyo boasts the widest North American release of any Miyazaki film to date. My guess is that this is partly because Ponyo is a very family-friendly film and Disney is hoping that this fact will help it to attract a wider audience. Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be any theaters near us with subtitled prints of the film, though they were available for past Miyazaki films in theatrical release. I wonder if this is an unfortunate side effect of the movie being marketed more to the general public. Perhaps Disney was concerned about kids ad parents accidentally ending up at a showing of the subtitled print.

- While I have believed for years that the reports of 2D theatrical animation's death have been greatly exaggerated, it is nice to see a film as agressively hand-drawn as Ponyo at a time when computer animated movies seem so dominant. Sometimes I like being able to see evidence of the artist's hand on the screen, like the visible colored pencil lines on the backgrounds in Ponyo. I never felt like it made the environments in the film feel unrealistic; it was more just a different look at the world. As Miyazaki's films so often do, Ponyo showed me wonderfully inviting places and describes them in such visual detail that I feel like I'm there.

- After the movie, Tim was talking about how the film "earned its cuteness." Ponyo is certainly a very cute film, but the cuteness comes out of the characters' invidual personalities and how they react to the situations they're in rather than generic visual and audio cues focus tested to ensure that the largest possible percentage of the audience goes "Awwww!" I'm currently writing a piece on a movie that does not earn its cuteness and the differnce is striking.

- It's pretty clear from the story that Sosuke's family is going through a rough patch. He and his mother Lisa (which does appear to be her original name and not an Anglicanized version of it used only in the dub) divide their time between their cliffside home and the senior center where Lisa works, which is next door to Sosuke's school. Sosuke's father works on a ship which keeps him away from his family for long periods of time. In the course of the film, he calls to say that he won't be coming home when he said he would, which leaves Lisa understandbly upset with him. What I enjoy is that his family issues do not bcome the defining problem in Sosuke's life. Despite being only five, he pretty much rolls with the punches and is even up to the task of comforting his mom when necessary.

- The movie's theme song is exceedinly catchy and the tune will probably end up stuck in your head. The translation of the lyrics into English - like most of the film - seems fairly faithful. However, unless you have your heart set on seeing all of the credits, you may want to exit the theater before the "Radio Disney remix" starts up.

- In general, I'm pleasantly surprised by how mainstream Japanese culture has become in the US over a relatively short period of time. Just a few years back, if an anime was being dubbed and was aimed at children, "Sosuke" would be changed to "Steve," rice balls would be indetified as doughnuts, kanji or any other Japanese writing would be replaced with English, and so on and so forth. Now importers of anime can reasonably expect audeinces of all ages to accept of Japanese names, Japanses writing, Japanese food, and Japanese culture in general without immadiately becoming confuse. Some writing still requires translation and certain cultural norms may require explanation, but there isn't the same need to localize absolutely everything anymore.

"Ponyo" In Theaters Now!

Just a quick reminder that Hayao Miyazaki's Ponyo (Japanese title Gake no Ue no Ponyo meaning "Ponyo on a Cliff by the Sea") comes out in theaters around the US today. It is not a huge release, but chances are if you live near a major metropolitan area or a theater with an interest in showing anime, Ponyo is playing near you. Disney has actually been marketing the film pretty well and I've even seen trailers on TV. Unfortunately, none of the ones I've found on YouTube will embed, so we'll have to make do with some links.

The first US trailer and the second one.

One of the Japanese trailers, including the theme song guaranteed to get stuck in your head.

And even some ads for some of the Ponyo merchandise available in Japan.

Being a big Miyazaki fan, I'm pretty excited for this movie. A couple of friends and I are working out the details of our plans to see it this weekend. I'll share my thoughts with you once I've had a chance to see it. In the meantime, check it out for yourself and let me know what you think.

Image copyright Disney and Studio Ghibli

Why I Love Animation: Kiki's Delivery Service - Part Three

Last time, Kiki made the terrible discovery that her waning self-confidence was causing her to lose her powers. Not only does this leave her unable to do her job, it puts the success of her year of training in jeopardy. The remainder of the film covers how Kiki regains her powers and her ability to believe in herself.

The broom that Kiki breaks is her mother’s broom, the one that Kiki didn’t even want to take initially. Kiki only agreed to use the older broom instead of the one she had made for herself when a friend of the family pointed out that she could make herself another new broom once she got settled. But Kiki never did make herself a new broom. Maybe once she didn’t have to argue the point with her mother, she realized that the big, old broom was safer and more dependable. Or maybe she just liked having a reminder of her home and family. Either way, Kiki doesn’t start making her own broom until her old one breaks and she has not other choice.

The next morning, Kiki breaks the bad news to Osono. As they’re talking, Osono’s husband runs out of the bakery and delivers his only line in the whole film: “Hey, look!” He points up into the sky where the “Freedom Adventurer” is flying overhead. Tombo is in the dirigible’s window, waving enthusiastically at Kiki down below. This only serves to highlight Kiki’s predicament. Tombo and the blimp are both up in the air while she is grounded. When he calls her later to ask if she saw him waving, she tells him not to call her anymore. She tells Osono that if she doesn’t regain her powers, she will have failed at her training. But it’s more than just that. Kiki sees flying as the thing that makes her special and fears that if she can’t fly, neither Tombo nor anyone else will like her anymore.

Though she doesn’t realize it yet, Kiki has already gained several loyal friends who care about her very much, regardless of whether she can fly. Ursula the artist has come to town to do some shopping and stops by to visit Kiki. When Ursula learns about Kiki’s recent trouble, she invites Kiki to come and spend the night at her cabin. Kiki halfheartedly agrees, but starts to feel better as they get out into the country. Nature is one of Miyazaki’s major themes and while it isn’t as prominently featured here as it is in My Neighbor Totoro or Nausciaä of the Valley of the Wind, it does play a role, whether hindering Kiki in the form of wind and rain or rejuvenating her spirits through rural landscapes and ocean views. The natural world is a powerful force for both good and ill in Kiki’s life.



Once they arrive at the cabin, Kiki gets a look at Ursula’s latest work. Ursula has painted a night scene of crows, a bull, and a winged horse flying over her cabin. Kiki is amazed at Ursula’s skill. Ursula points out a girl’s face up near the horse’s head and tells Kiki that she has been waiting for her to come and model so that she can get the face right. At first, Kiki can’t see why Ursula would want to paint her, but knowing that she could help to inspire Ursula to create such a beautiful painting has got to provide a little confidence boost. Maybe, just maybe, Kiki will start to realize that other people see the good things about her that have nothing to do with her being a witch.



While she sketches Kiki and later when they’re getting ready for bed, Ursula talks with Kiki. Though Ursula wasn’t born an artist the way Kiki was born a witch, she had decided that she wanted to spend her life painting by the time she was Kiki’s age. She tells Kiki about a time when she lost confidence in her own talent. She realized that all of her paintings were copies of ones she had seen before. But rather than giving up in despair, Ursula redoubled her efforts to find her own style and her own personal meaning for her art. Ursula believes that witchcraft is a very similar thing, based as much in self-confidence as in any innate ability. Kiki sees her point. “We fly with our spirits,” she tells her friend. Ursula tells Kiki that this inner spirit is not unique to witches. It is the same power that drives Ursula to bake and Osono and her husband to bake. The conversation helps to demystify the loss of her powers for Kiki. Her issues are no longer something strange and unique to her, but a common problem that many people have battled and overcome.

When Kiki calls the bakery then following day, Osono tells her that the elderly lady Kiki befriended wants her to make another delivery, even though Osono has told her that Kiki is taking a break from deliveries. Since Kiki will be passing by the lady’s house on her way home, she agrees to stop by

Kiki arrives at the lady’s house just as the lady and Bertha are watching the coverage of the launch of the “Freedom Adventurer” on TV. After a successful test flight a few days earlier, the blimp is ready to continue its voyage. The lady reveals what it is that she wants Kiki to deliver: a beautiful little chocolate cake with Kiki’s name and an image of Kiki and Jiji in flight in frosting. The lady plays cute, asking the astonished young witch to deliver the cake to “a girl named Kiki” who was very kind to the lady and asks Kiki to "find out when the girl’s birthday is" so the lady can bake her another cake for the occasion.



Kiki is moved almost to tears. The delivery of the pie that cost Kiki the party she had been looking forward to was not in vain. Kiki made a tremendous impact on this kind lady, not by being a witch who can fly, but by being a helpful and considerate person. It is proof that Kiki can make friends here and be liked for who she is.

There is a sudden commotion from the TV broadcast. A strong wind is causing serious problems at the dirigible launch. The “Freedom Adventurer” has broken free of its moorings and is being blown into the frightened crowd. Being man-made does not mean that the blimp is any less at nature’s mercy than Kiki is when she flies and in fact, it is far less able to effectively battle the elements than Kiki. Bertha can hardly contain her excitement over the catastrophe, but her glee fades at once when Kiki spots a familiar face in the crowd. The blimp starts to float away with one last cable still attached to it and a young boy clinging to the cable: Tombo.



Towards the end of the newscast, the reporter on the scene cries out “Oh the humanity!” This line is not in the English dub or the original. It is, of course, a reference to the 1927 Hindenberg disaster.

Terrified for her friend, Kiki races towards the center of town where the runaway dirigible is headed. Planning is still not her strong suit; there is no indication that she has any idea what she is going to do. All she knows at this point is that Tombo is in trouble and she needs to get to him. On her way, she comes across a street sweeper carrying a broom and asks him to let her borrow it. Barely waiting for his response, Kiki grabs the broom, brings it to the middle of the street that has been cleared for emergency vehicles, and climbs on. She takes several deep breaths and leans forward, shaking with a concentration so fierce that it causes the bristles of the broom to stand on end. The mystical breeze that accompanied Kiki’s very first flight of them film blows away the dust and assorted rubbish in the street and sends it swirling up around her. “Fly,” Kiki commands. The broom obeys.



It is to Miyazaki’s credit that the drama of the movie does not end here. Kiki’s troubles do not end the second she regains her ability to fly. As the film takes pains to point out, Kiki suffers through all of the problems of an ordinary adolescent girl and being a witch does not make her adolescence any easier. All of Kiki’s battles, including this one, will be hard fought and hard won. Magic in Kiki is not an easy cure-all. It is an ability like any other which requires practice and hard work to accomplish what you want to or, in this case, need to do.

So before Kiki can fly heroically to the rescue, she must contend with her already shaky flying skills and a broom that she has never flown before. She collides with the buildings on either side of the street three times – the same as the number of trees she hit when she left home, gets blown backwards, plummets off a roof towards the street below, and gets dragged through an open air restaurant. She tells the broom to either literally “straighten up and fly right” or face a future as firewood. Perhaps Kiki’s mom was right about the benefits of a dependable broom.



In the center of town, the helpless dirigible crashes into the city clock tower, with Tombo still hanging perilously from the one remaining cable. The tail end is leaking helium and finally comes crashing down on a building across the street, leaving the blimp precariously balanced between the building and the clock tower. As a reporter with a camera crew and an enormous crowd watches from below, Kiki manages to wrangle her unruly broom and fly up to Tombo. But she hasn’t saved the day just yet. She reaches out her hand to Tombo, but the broom drifts away or drops suddenly every time she gets close to him. The crowd below starts chanting “Don’t give up! Don’t give up!” Though it is a scene of tension and danger, it is also the closest Kiki has come to the moment she began her journey, with supportive friends and family surrounding her and chanting her name, since arriving in her new town. Tombo is exhausted from clutching the cable all this time. He can’t hold on any longer and his grip gives way. There is an agonizing moment of complete silence as the horrified crowd watches him fall.

The next shot has Kiki completely off her broom, only holding onto it with one hand. The other is clasped firmly around Tombo’s wrist. Even as the rescue reaches its end, Miyazaki makes it completely clear that this was a huge effort for Kiki, thought well worth it. Tombo is safe and the crowd goes wild with relief. Every available bit of paper is tossed from the windows of nearby buildings as confetti while Kiki slowly lowers her friend to safety. All around town, Kiki’s friends watch as her triumph is broadcast live. The street sweeper enjoys his broom’s fifteen minutes of fame. Bertha skips as she pushes the elderly lady around in her swivel chair. Osono wipes away a happy tear, but she doesn’t have long to enjoy the moment. Her contractions are starting and her husband rushes off to call the doctor.

At the scene of her heroic rescue, Kiki is looking a little overwhelmed by the reporters and microphones surrounding her. Kiki’s goals throughout the film have been independence, self-confidence, and finding her place in the world. Winning the adoration of the entire town through one heroic gesture wasn’t really on her agenda. So while Tombo talks excitedly with the reporters in the background, Kiki remains silent and looks more dazed than anything. Then, she spots a little black cat running through the crowd towards her. Jiji hops up onto her shoulder and meows. Kiki smiles and nuzzles her cheek against his side.



Up to this point, the differences between the subtitles and the dub have been fairly minor. The dub has some additional lines of dialogue not present in the subtitles or the original film. The elderly lady’s maid has two slightly different names. There are pieces of dialogue that are translated differently in the subtitles and the dub, but they seldom completely alter the nature of the scene. But there is a moment at the very end of the film where the dub diverges significantly from both the subtitles and the original film.

In the dub, as Jiji runs through the crowd towards Kiki, he calls out “Kiki, can you hear me?” He jumps onto her shoulder and belts out a somewhat operatic “Me-ow!” making it clear that he and Kiki can understand each other again.

What’s going on here? According to the FAQ on GhibliWiki, the children’s book Majo no Takkyuubin (“Witch’s Delivery Service”) on which Kiki is based, provides the explanation. Witches and their black cats are raised together from a very young age, creating a special bond that allows them to speak to and understand one another. Their ability to communicate is based less on magic than on that close bond between them, which is why Kiki’s mother doesn’t talk to Jiji, despite being a witch herself. As witch and cat grow older, they naturally start to grow apart and eventually lose the ability to talk to one another.

I know I’m going to get in trouble for saying this, but I kind of prefer the dub ending. And if you will all put down your pitchforks for just a moment, I’ll explain why.

Thematically, the original ending works extremely well. Since Jiji is only able to talk tot Kiki and no one else, he is almost like her imaginary friend. But since he is also a real cat, maybe it would be better to think of him as the one family member who comes along with Kiki on her journey. When she first left home, Kiki needed Jiji as someone she could talk to about her problems and even to act as the “adult” in her life. But as she has matured and started to find her place in the wider world, her relationship with him changes. Even Jiji’s life has expanded beyond Kiki. He has a relationship with Lily and the short vignettes that play out as the credits roll show that they have started of family: three fluffy white kittens and one sleek black one. Jiji is still very much a part of Kiki’s life; he and “Jiji Junior” accompany her on her deliveries and errands. But they both have more in their lives now but just each other. I would probably be fine with it, were it not for one important issue.

The problem is, I can only react to what is actually in the film and there is no mention of any alternate reason why Kiki and Jiji stop being able to understand one another. More importantly, when Kiki realizes that she can no longer understand Jiji, the very next thing she does is to grab her broom and check if she can still fly. This very clearly tells me that Kiki believes that her inability to talk to Jiji means that she is losing her powers, which she is. Since no one in the film ever tells Kiki that this is an incorrect notion, I can only assume that Kiki cannot understand Jiji because she is losing her powers. No matter what the source material, films based on existing stories need to be able to stand on their own. I shouldn’t have to read the book to know what’s really going on. (I can’t anyway, since it isn’t available in English.) I saw the dub of the film first, so I wasn’t aware of the discrepancy until sometime later. If I had seen the subtitled version first, I’m almost certain that I would be left wondering why Kiki still can’t understand Jiji and I doubt I would be the only one with that question. So much as I don’t want to, I have to admit that the film does have a pretty notable flaw. I love it. It’s among my top ten favorite movies. But it’s not perfect.



One fact is completely clear, though. In the last shot before the film's epilogue, Kiki sits next to Jiji and his son on her roof with her arm around Jiji as the three of them look out at the night sky. Whether they can still speak to each other or not, they will always be friends.

As the end credits play, we see how life continues for Kiki and her friends in their seaside town. The aviation club’s plane is finally completed and Tombo gets to live out his dream of flying alongside Kiki. For Kiki, it means a return to flying for the sheer joy of it, something that she had lost as she became more and more fixated on succeeding at her job and her training. Osono and her husband enjoy a picnic while caring for their new baby. Though Kiki is still not a fully independent adult, she no longer needs Osono to serve as her surrogate mother so desperately. Kiki has become kind of a local celebrity and is surprised to see a little girl walk by dressed exactly like her and toting a tiny broom, emulating the very things that made Kiki feel so out of place. Even the traffic cop who stopped Kiki on her first day in town no waves to her as he walks by the bakery. More importantly, she has made friends with one of Tombo’s buddies and happily chats with her while minding the store.



Once again, a different song plays over the credits depending on whether you watch the subtitles or the dub. The Japanese soundtrack has a song entitled “If Enveloped In Tenderness,” another pre-existing song by the same vocalist, Yumi Arai. The English song is called “I’m Gonna Fly” and focuses on themes of achieving success and finding your way in the world.

The last credit plays as Kiki’s father rushes inside with a letter from Kiki. (The only visual difference between the dub and the original film that I’ve noticed is that Kiki’s letter is in English for the dub.) Kiki reports that she and Jiji are well and her business is continuing to thrive. The challenges in Kiki’s life are not completely behind her. She admits to her parents that she still has moments of sadness and that she is “starting to gain some confidence,” showing that she is still not completely sure of herself. But she ends by telling her parents how much she loves her new town. Kiki will still find obstacles in her path as she continues her journey to adulthood, but she has gained a new confidence in her abilities and herself that will help her to weather any storm.

I've been trying to figure out a way to sum up Kiki's Delivery Service in one last paragraph. Over the course of the analysis, I've talked about the reasons why this is a good film and why the narrative works so well. But in addition to those reason, Kiki's Delivery Service is important to me because it's been there when I've needed it. I know it sounds like an odd thing to say about a movie, but there have been times when I've felt like I didn't fit in, like the talents that made me special were fading away, or just plain felt bad. Strange as it may seem, it's during the times when the movie speaks to me most and honestly leaves me with a better outlook than before i watched it. The term "feel-good movie" gets tossed around a lot these days, to the point where it's little more than a meaningless platitude. For me, Kiki's Delivery Service redeems that term by being a movie I can rely on to help me feel good again.

All images from this article are copyright Eiko Kandono, Nibariki, Tokuma Shoten, and Buena Vista Home Entertainment Inc.

Why I Love Animation: Kiki's Delivery Service - Part Two

Kiki has found a place to live in her new town and figured out how she will use her witch's powers to support herself. Now she has accepted her first job: delivering a toy cat to a young boy for his birthday. It's her first chance to prove herself as a reliable resident witch, so she is eager to do a good job.

It doesn’t take long for Kiki to run into trouble. She once again finds herself at nature’s mercy when a strong wind blows her off course and into a tree where some very territorial crows have made their nests. Kiki and Jiji escape unscathed, but soon discover that they toy cat fell out of the birdcage during the scuffle. The crows are still far too upset for Kiki to fly down and search for the missing toy. But Kiki promised that the toy would be delivered by tonight. It is her first job and doesn’t want to disappoint her customer. So Kiki comes up with a plan that will by her some time to search the forest on foot without being late with her delivery.



Jiji will pose as the toy cat until Kiki can find the toy and come back to rescue Jiji. It’s no surprise that Jiji does not like this plan. But his loyalty to Kiki wins out and he remains statue still as Kiki makes her delivery, even when the birthday boy starts carrying him around by his tail.



Kiki searches the forest for the toy and finally discovers it in the window of a small cabin. Though no one seems to be home at first, the easel, brushes, and tubes of paint Kiki discovers inside make it clear that this is the home of an artist. The artist in question is up on the roof sketching some of the crows that attacked Kiki before. Her name isn’t mentioned in the subtitles, but she’s called Ursula in the dub. Ursula ignores Kiki’s urgency at first, lost in her work. But once Kiki explains her predicament (offscreen), she is willing to help. I’m not entirely sure why Ursula mentions that she has grown fond of the toy cat, since she can’t have found it more than a few hours ago. When she hands it over, Kiki discovers that they toy’s neck has torn. Ursula agrees to repair the toy in exchange for Kiki helping out with some housework. As both of them get to work, they chat about Kiki’s year away from home, though Kiki remains worried about getting back to Jiji.

Back at the house, the birthday boy has lost interest in his new “toy,” but Jiji’s troubles are not over. Jeff, the family’s large, elderly dog, is aware that Jiji is not what he appears to be. As Jeff begins to take an interest in him, Jiji breaks out in a sweat, not the conventional anime single sweat bead, but numerous droplets all over his body.



Though he isn’t strictly comic relief, Jiji is the most cartoonish character in the film. While most of the other animals are rendered realistically, Jiji has a large round head, big eyes, and a range of expressions and reactions that beyond those of a real cat. He is Kiki’s friend and confidant first, cat second. Jeff, in contrast, looks like a real dog at all times. His face is devoid of expression. Because he is an old dog, his movements are slow and deliberate and his body language consists of wagging his tail once.

Fortunately for Jiji, Jeff does nothing worse than lick him and curl up around him protectively. While the family laughs over dinner about how much Jeff seems to love the “toy” cat, Jeff sniffs at the air, possibly realizing that Kiki is outside. He scratches at the door and takes Jiji out with him, reuniting him with Kiki. Jiji explains how Jeff helped him out and Kiki hands Jeff the toy to bring back inside in place of Jiji. Jeff returns to the house and shuts the door behind him, leaving Kiki and Jiji free to go home.

While they’re flying, Kiki mentions that Ursula wants her to model for a drawing. Though he is hungry and tired, Jiji can’t resist making a joke at Kiki’s expense after what she has put him through and asks if she will be posing in the nude, one of the reasons why I think his voice in the dub is clearly that of an adult male. Kiki is mortified and Jiji grins with satisfaction.



Though Kiki doesn’t know it yet, she has more new friends watching out for her than just Osono. Osono’s husband, who is never named in either the subtitles or the dub, has already been introduced as a strong, skilled baker who hardly ever says a word. Both Kiki and Jiji seem a little shy around him. Regardless, he is pacing in the shop window, waiting for Kiki to return. Hanging in the window is a beautiful new sign that appears to be sculpted out of dough, advertising Kiki’s new delivery service. Once he sees Kiki approaching, Osono’s husband runs off to the back room, suggesting that perhaps he is shyer around Kiki than she is with him. Kiki and Jiji land in front of the bakery and are delighted by the new sign. Kiki rushes inside and though there is no dialogue, it is clear that she is asking Osono about the sign. Osono’s husband returns to the front room and is flustered as Kiki thanks him with an enthusiastic hug, much to Osono’s amusement.

Sometime later, Kiki is minding the bakery. She complains to Jiji that she hasn’t been getting any customers lately, but her dry spell ends when she gets a call to come and pick up a delivery that afternoon. As she finishes taking down the details, Tombo walks in. Kiki is as cold to him as ever, but Tombo still isn’t put off. He hands her an invitation – addressed to “Miss Witch” – to a party being held at his aviation club that night. But he turns the tables, telling her he’ll be by to pick her up at six and leaving before she can refuse.

Kiki runs to Osono for advice. But surprisingly, her concern isn’t how she can get out of going to the party, but what she will wear. Osono assures her that her black dress makes her look beautiful and mysterious. Though Osono is Kiki’s surrogate mother, she is also impartial enough to be able to tell Kiki she looks lovely in her regular black dress and have Kiki believe it. It is Jiji who ends up asking why Kiki wants to go to Tombo’s party when she seems to hate him. But Kiki dodges the question by saying she can’t talk while flying with the heavy package in tow. It is not clear whether Kiki is just looking forward to the chance to have some fun and take a break from her work or if Tombo’s persistence is finally paying off.



Kiki drags the heavy package up several flights of stairs to it destination, then flies off to pick up her next delivery. The lady of the house’s maid, Bertha, answers the door. (The dub interprets the Japanese pronunciation of her name as “Barsa.”) Bertha is fascinated at having a real live witch in the house and even gives Kiki’s broom a try when she thinks no one’s looking. Bertha brings Kiki to the elderly lady of the house. (Neither the subtitles or the dub ever call her anything more specific than “Madam.”) The lady apologizes to Kiki; the delivery she wanted to Kiki to take to her granddaughter’s birthday party isn’t ready. Her electric oven won’t heat up, so she hasn’t been able to bake her special herring and pumpkin pie. (It may not sound appetizing, but like all the food in the film, it looks delicious.) Nonetheless, the lady insists on paying Kiki in full. But Kiki’s honest nature won’t let her accept payment for nothing. She offers help get the lady’s old wood burning over running so they can bake the pie. Jiji warns her that she will be late for the aviation club party, but Kiki is certain she will have enough time. She is familiar with the old fashioned over from her country upbringing and soon has the fire going and the pie baking. While they wait on the pie, Kiki helps out around the house and enjoys some tea with the lady. Realizing that it is getting late, the lady asks when Kiki’s party starts. Kiki tell her it begins at six, but that she has plenty of time to drop off the pie and get home before then. But Kiki has overestimated how much time she has, as the lady points out that the old clock in her house always runs ten minutes slow. The lady and Bertha rush to get the pie from the oven and send Kiki on her way.

Once again, the elements prove an obstacle for Kiki. A sudden rainstorm pours down on her as she flies. Jiji begs her to land and get out of the rain, but Kiki presses on. It’s not just that she’s worried about being late for her party; the pie will get cold if they stop to wait out the rain and Kiki isn’t going to let that happen after all the hard work she and the lady put into getting it ready. She arrives at her destination just as the clock is striking six, thoroughly soaked. The lady’s granddaughter opens the door and is dismayed to find Kiki there. The bratty girl complains that the delivery is soaking wet, despite Kiki’s best efforts to keep it dry and warm. When she discovered what her gift is, she is disappointed and totally unappreciative. “I hate Grandma’s stupid pies,” she scowls as she signs the receipt and shuts the door in Kiki’s face. Jiji can’t believe that the sweet old lady they met before could possibly be related to this rude, spoiled girl. Stunned, Kiki flies home in silence.




Meanwhile, a very well dressed Tombo has been waiting for Kiki at the bakery since before six. He finally decides that she isn’t coming and heads off to his party alone. Kiki returns just as he is leaving and Jiji points him out, telling her that she could still make it to the party. But she ignores him. She tells Osono later that it’s because she can’t go in her wet clothes. But a soaking dress isn’t really what Kiki is so upset about. Kiki worked hard and risked the party that she had been looking forward to so that she could deliver a birthday present, only to have all of her sacrifices go unappreciated by the recipient of the gift. Not only that, the lady who was so kind to Kiki and who used her talents to make the pie for her granddaughter had her gift cruelly rejected. The idea that she gave up her chance to go to Tombo’s party for nothing is just too much for Kiki to bear. She skips supper and crawls into bed, completely miserable.

The following morning, Osono goes to check on Kiki, only to find Jiji frantically scratching at the locked window to the attic room. Flying through the storm the night before has left Kiki with a bad cold. Between her misery and just being a teenager, Kiki has very little perspective on her situation and actually asks Osono if the illness is fatal, a question that Osono easily laughs off. While she tends to Kiki , Osono tells her that Tombo stopped by again and asked to come and visit once he heard she was sick. Kiki is horrified by the idea. Osono had guessed that she would be and politely declined the offer. As Osono leaves to let Kiki get some rest, Kiki starts to say something to her, perhaps to tell her the real story of last night’s ordeal, but decides against it.

The next day finds Kiki feeling much better. Osono hires Kiki to make a delivery to someone with the last name “Koppori” and insists on paying for it, even though Kiki protests that it’s an easy walk from the bakery. Osono does cryptically stipulate that Kiki must make the delivery in person.




Now that Kiki is feeling better, Jiji is free to roam around and runs into Lily, the fluffy white cat who snubbed him on his first day in town. She has evidently decided that Jiji is not so bad and Jiji is intrigued. By then time Kiki is ready to leave on her delivery, Jiji and Lily are getting to know one another. Kiki tells Jiji she can handle this delivery alone and leaves him to spend time with his new friend.

Kiki’s search for the Koppori residence takes her down by the ocean. It is a beautiful day and just being close to the shore puts Kiki in a good mood. While she admires the scenery, Tombo pops up at the top of a nearby wall. When Kiki nervously explains that she is looking for the Koppori home, Tombo reveals that “Koppori” is his family name. He heads down to meet Kiki as she realizes that Osono set her up.

For once, Kiki is in a position where she cannot simply reject Tombo. She has a delivery to make and she does feel bad – or at least embarrassed – about standing him up the night of the party. This causes Kiki to let her guard down, which gives her a chance to discover that Tombo is actually a nice guy. He isn’t at all angry that Kiki never showed up for the party. Instead, he invites her to his house where he proudly shows off his pride and joy: a bicycle with a propeller mounted on the front which will act as the engine of the man-powered plane that Tombo and his friends have been working on. He offers to take Kiki for a ride down to the beach where the “Freedom Adventurer” dirigible made a forced landing after being caught in the same storm that Kiki was. Kiki nervously admits that she has never been on a bicycle before, understandable since she can fly. Tombo thinks this being her first ride will be “even better.” He talks her through bracing the bike with her foot while he pedals to get the propeller started and leaning into the turns once they’re underway. He is always positive and encouraging and Kiki starts to realize that her first impressions of Tombo may have been wrong.

The bike ride comes to a bumpy end as the bike lifts into the air, sails over one car, nearly collides with another, loses its propeller, and crashes along the grassy hillside leading to the beach, throwing both Kiki and Tombo off. Kiki goes to make sure Tombo is all right, then starts laughing uproariously at his dirt-streaked face. Tombo maintains his good humor and merely asks “Does my face really look that funny?” Still laughing, Kiki apologizes and admits that she’s laughing partly out of relief that both of them are unhurt. Tombo agrees that the whole ordeal ended up being pretty scary and laughs along with Kiki.



Having survived their adventure, Kiki and Tombo sit down by the beach, watching the sea and the grounded blimp. Tombo finally gets his chance to talk to Kiki about flying and Kiki starts to discover that Tombo sees her not as a curiosity, but as an interesting person with an ability he sincerely wishes he possessed. Kiki opens up to him further, revealing that flying has been feeling like less of a joy and more of a job to her lately. It was fun when she could just go wherever she wanted at her own pace. Nut now flying is work, with places to be and deadlines to meet. It forces Kiki to meet certain goals and she is starting to lose confidence in herself. In spite of this, she tells Tombo she feels a lot better sitting by the ocean and that she is glad she came. Tombo quickly offers to take Kiki to the beach whenever she wants to go and she actually tells him that he is “a very nice person,” though she adds that she used to think he was “some sort of clown.” Tombo tells Kiki that his mother says the same thing about him and breaks into an imitation of his mother yelling at him to quit daydreaming and get back to his studies. Unlike Tombo’s comparing Kiki to his grandmother when they first met, this comment is more of a joke about his mother and an admission that Kiki is not the first person to see Tombo as a clown. The two of them laugh and it seems that they have become friends at last.

Just then, some of Tombo’s friends drive up in their same beat-up old car. Among them are two of the girls who Kiki passed by on her way to go shopping and the elderly woman’s bratty granddaughter. They call out to Tombo and tell him that they have some great news: they have been offered a tour of the dirigible and Tombo is invited. Almost as soon as Tombo’s friends show up, Kiki’s good mood evaporates. She has just worked up to interacting with Tombo one-on-one, but Kiki isn’t ready to just hang out with his friends. It isn’t that they are rude to her. Even the lady’s granddaughter merely tells her friends that she recognizes Kiki as the girl with the delivery service and the other girls are impressed to learn that Kiki is working at such a young age. But Kiki still feels like an outsider and can’t shake the idea that everyone is staring at her for all the wrong reasons. She declines Tombo’s offer to join them for the tour and walks home. Back at her room, she collapses on the bed and tells Jiji that she thinks something is wrong with her. Even she doesn’t completely understand why she feels so uncomfortable around people her age. This particular problem seems to have less to do with Kiki being a witch and more to do with Kiki being thirteen.

Strangely, Jiji only meows at Kiki to get her attention and runs off to be with Lily after Kiki finishes telling him her troubles. It seems inconsiderate of him and when he arrives late for dinner that evening Kiki snaps that he can’t show up late for every meal just to spend time with his new girlfriend. Jiji only meows in response and does so again when Kiki asks him why he is “talking like a cat.” Jiji grabs a piece of sausage and heads out the window. Personally, I kind of wonder if Jiji’s earlier departure was not about him rudely ignoring Kiki to spend more time with Lily, but a realization on Jiji’s part that his conversations with Kiki are becoming frighteningly one-sided. Whether Jiji knows what is going on or not, it is at this point that Kiki starts to realize that she cannot understand what he is saying. A terrible thought suddenly occurs to her. She grabs her broom and climbs on. The broom rises a few feet off the floor, only to crash back down a moment later. Kiki tries again with the same results. Becoming frantic, she goes outside to a grassy slope and tries with a running start, but only succeeds in falling and breaking her broom in half. There is no denying the truth: Kiki is losing her powers.




To be concluded....

All images from this article are copyright Eiko Kandono, Nibariki, Tokuma Shoten, and Buena Vista Home Entertainment Inc.

Why I Love Animation: Kiki's Delivery Service - Part One

Kiki’s Delivery Service is the movie that made me fall in love with the films of Hayao Miyazaki. I had seen My Neighbor Totoro before and appreciated its beauty and creativity, but for whatever reason, it just didn’t click with me. It wasn’t until I sat down with a VHS copy of Kiki, a birthday present from my friend Jon, that I realized that Miyazaki’s movies were something I wanted to keep an eye on. By the time Princess Mononoke came out in U.S. theaters, I was completely hooked.

Like all the best fantasies, Miyazaki’s movies show audiences wonders unlike anything they have seen before, but ground their stories in the universal human experience. On its surface, Kiki is the story of a thirteen-year-old witch who journeys to a new town to train for a year. But at its core, Kiki is about a girl leaving home for the first time and learning to rely on herself.

The DVD of Kiki has both subtitles and an English dub, both of which I have watched. There is also a fan translation of the Japanese script online that may be a little more accurate than the subtitled version, which is based on the script from an earlier English dub of the film, not a direct translation. All three tell the same basic story, though the dub deviates from the other two versions at points and seems to have a weird aversion to silence, judging by the way the characters will frequently talk when their mouths are not visible, regardless of whether there is any corresponding dialogue in the original film. Feel free to watch it any way you please. For the purposes of this article, I am mainly following the subtitles.

Kiki is a thirteen-year-old country girl who also happens to be a witch. Thirteen can be an exciting and challenging age for any girl, but it’s even more exciting and challenging for a young witch. Tradition dictates that once a witch turns thirteen, she must move away from home to live and train on her own for a year. When Kiki hears the radio report that there will be lovely weather and a full moon that night, she decides that it’s time for her to go.



Kiki’s mother is concerned, as most mothers are when their children take their first steps towards independence. And since Kiki is not so much taking a first step as a first leap, she has all the more reason to worry. Kiki is still a novice witch. She hasn’t learned how to mix magical potions like her mother. The only thing she knows how to do is fly and even that can be a struggle for her. Kiki just doesn’t seem as ready to be on her own as her mother was at thirteen. “Nobody leaves home that young anymore,” her mother frets. Kiki’s father worries as well. Kiki’s decision to leave is so spur of the moment that their camping trip planned for the coming weekend is suddenly cancelled. Though he realizes that she is no longer just a child, Kiki’s father still sees her as his little girl, a view she reinforces by asking him to lift her up into the air the way he did when she was small. “How come you never told me you were growing up so fast?” he asks, holding Kiki in his arms as she hugs him back. Even Jiji, Kiki’s black cat and constant companion, thinks she should put off her departure for a month or two.



Jiji’s voice in the dub is the source of some controversy among fans of the film. His original Japanese voice is provided by Rei Sakuma, who also did the original voice of Shampoo in the Ranma ½ TV series and movies. It’s small, high pitched, and not unlike a little boy’s voice. In the Enligsh dub, Jiji is voiced by the late, great Phil Hartman, who sounded anything but childlike. Some fans feel like Hartman’s voice strays too far from the original. Personally, I think the different voices focus on different aspects of the character. Jiji is a very small cat and his Japanese voice reflects his size. But as we’ll see later on, Jiji is also an adult cat. The voice director for the English dub may have felt that some of Jiji’s lines would sound odd when paired with a voice that could imply that he was just a kitten. So his English voice is focused less on his size and more on his age.

Of course, being on her own does not mean that Kiki is free to do whatever she wants. When her friends come to see her off, Kiki tries to tell them that this is no pleasure trip and she will be working very hard, though she bursts into giggles when one of them asks whether the new town she settles in will have discos. She has to wear the traditional black witch’s robes, even though she would prefer something more modern and stylish. Right before she leaves, she argues with her mother over which broom she will be flying on: the cute little one she made herself or her mother’s old, dependable one. Swap out “broom” for “car” and this could be any parent and teenage child.

Kiki ends up leaving on her perfect moonlit night, surrounded by her friends and family cheering her on as she lifts off…and promptly crashes into first one tree, then another, and finally a third before she steadies herself and is on her way. She is leaving behind a world she has grown completely comfortable with, an everyone-knows-everyone sort of place where Kiki knows all the neighbors and all the shortcuts. Even Kiki doesn’t know quite what lies ahead of her. Her spontaneous decision to leave that night hasn’t given her much time to think about where she is going or what she do will once she gets there. Her only plan is to head south towards the ocean and she has given almost no thought to what magical ability she will use to earn a living.

When Kiki collides with the tree branches, it causes little bells hung on each of them to ring. This was put in the film at the request of Eiko Kadono, the author of the book on which Kiki is based. In the original story, Kiki’s mother hung the bells in the nearby trees to warn Kiki when would she let her mind wander while flying and start to lose altitude. Ms. Kadono asked that the film include a scene where the bells ring as Kiki leaves her hometown. The reasoning behind the bells is never mentioned in the movie, but between seeing Kiki ring them by crashing into the trees and a man in the crowd saying how he’ll miss hearing their ringing, viewers can make a reasonable guess at what their purpose is.

Flight is a recurring theme in Miyazaki’s films and he seldom misses an opportunity to celebrate the beauty and wonder it holds. Kiki is not always graceful in flight. The way she gets blown sideways by an errant wind and kicks out one leg for balance show that she doesn’t have total control of her broom. But it’s also clear that flying is something she loves doing, as she takes her hands off the broom and holds her arms out to the sides like a daring kid on a bicycle or smiles as she watches a plane pass by.

Once they are underway, Kiki has Jiji turn on her father’s radio, which she convinced him to give to her before she left. This begins the first of the film’s two songs, “Message in Rouge.” Since the song was not written for the film, the lyrics don’t have much to do with the film’s story. It has a sort of doo-wop feel to it, which fits in with the movie’s setting: a fictional 1950s Europe untouched by the horrors of World War II. Two completely different songs were recorded for the dub, so if you’ve decided to watch the movie that way, you’ll hear a song called “Soaring,” which is a little less 50s inspired, but more pertinent to Kiki’s situation. There are also some scenes in the dub that insert background music where the original soundtrack has none, another example of the dub being unable to let silence stand.

Flying does have its drawbacks as well and one of the recurring concepts in the movie is how much Kiki is at the mercy of the weather. Despite the forecast predicting a beautiful, clear night, a sudden rainstorm leaves Kiki and Jiji drenched and forces the to take shelter in a train car until the next morning.

Kiki reaches the ocean and spots a coastal town that seems like a good prospect for her new home. At first glance, it seems to have everything: ocean views, a majestic clock tower, and no other witches in residence. But if culture shock is bad for the typical country kid arriving in the big city for the first time, it’s even worse for a young witch. The city is packed with people and vehicles, including a bus that Kiki nearly collides with, almost causing a major traffic accident. When she tries to introduce herself as the new resident witch, people either seem disinterested or baffled by her. Even Jiji eventually gets snubbed when a fluffy white cat haughtily turns up her nose at him. A traffic cop nearly writes Kiki up for the accident she almost caused, but someone starts yelling “Thief!” and he has to run off to investigate. Already in trouble with the authorities on her first day in town, Kiki sneaks away, humiliated.



As she makes her escape, a boy on a bicycle rides up alongside her. He proudly announces that he was the one who yelled “Thief” to divert the policeman’s attention away from Kiki. His name is Tombo and he can barely contain his excitement at meeting a real live witch. But Kiki is in no mood to make friends. Embarrassed by her disastrous debut and at being regarded like a curiosity, she tells Tombo off. She didn’t ask for his help, she snaps, and it was rude of him not to introduce himself. Tombo is undeterred by Kiki’s standoffishness, but he digs himself into an even deeper hole, telling Kiki she sounds old-fashioned “like my grandma.” Understandably, Kiki is not won over and takes the first opportunity to turn down an alley and fly away. Tombo remains fascinated with Kiki, a huge grin on his face as he watches her take off.

Night is approaching and Kiki and Jiji don’t even have a place to stay. Jiji is convinced that they should move on and find another town where the people are friendlier. But Kiki’s luck takes a turn for the better when she encounters Osono, a big-hearted and very pregnant woman who runs the local bakery with her husband. When Kiki meets her, Osono is trying to tell a lady pushing a baby carriage that she has left her baby’s pacifier in the bakery, but the woman is well out of earshot. Osono is about to go after her when Kiki steps in and offers to return the pacifier herself and spare Osono the long walk. Osono happily agrees and watches in amazement as Kiki hops onto her broom and easily glides down to the street below to deliver the pacifier.



When Kiki returns to the bakery with a note for Osono from the lady with the baby, Osono insists on thanking Kiki for her help with some hot chocolate. It’s no surprise that Osono has realized that Kiki is a witch, but she also already knows about witches in training. As soon as she hears that Kiki has nowhere to stay, Osono offers her the spare room in her attic, which Kiki gratefully accepts. The room is separated from the bakery and other parts of the house by an exterior stairway, so Kiki can remain relatively independent. When Kiki decides to support herself with a flying delivery service, Osono gives her the use of the bakery telephone and free rent and breakfast, provided that Kiki helps her out in the bakery. Osono quickly becomes Kiki’s surrogate mother, providing Kiki with just the right balance between the independence she craves and the support and care she still needs.

On her first night in her new place, Kiki turns on her father’s radio. But the only broadcasts it picks up are English language, not Japanese. (There is no such distinction made in the dub; the radio just plays English broadcasts through the whole film.) It’s no longer the familiar reminder of home that Kiki had intended it to be. The television in her neighbor’s apartment, however, is still speaking Japanese and is tuned to a news report about the voyage of the “Freedom Adventurer” blimp. (The blimp is mentioned earlier in the dub, where it’s called “The Spirit of Freedom” as part of the forecast Kiki listens to before she decides to leave home.)

After helping out at the bakery and scrubbing the flour-covered floors of her new apartment clean, Kiki goes out to buy some food and home supplies. She is still not accustomed to city traffic and carelessly dashes out into the street without looking, nearly getting hit by passing cars. Jiji scolds her for her lack of caution. Kiki doesn’t seem worried, but it’s a different story when she encounters three girls her age walking in the other direction, chatting amongst themselves. “I’ve never been more embarrassed in my whole life,” one of them says, referring to some prior event. But it is Kiki who really feels embarrassed. Being around kids her own age makes Kiki feel extremely self conscious, especially when she compares their pretty, stylish clothing with her own simple robes. It doesn’t get any better when Tombo and some of his buddies drive up in a rundown old car. Tombo tries once again to get Kiki to talk to him, but makes this mistake of pointing out to his friends that Kiki never wears anything but her black dress. This only leaves Kiki feeling more embarrassed and she once again gives Tombo the cold shoulder.



Shopping for supplies for their new home, Kiki frets over the prices. Though he is normally the responsible one of the two, Jiji can’t resist pointing out a mug with black cats on it, which Kiki ends up buying. By the end of the shopping trip, their money is nearly gone and Kiki tells Jiji that they will be living on pancakes – evidently the ramen noodles of this time and place – for a while. Magic is never an easy solution for Kiki's problems. She still must contend with the everyday struggles, such as making enough money to live on.



As soon as Kiki gets home, Osono tells her that she has a customer, a regular at the bakery. She needs a toy delivered to her nephew for his birthday: a stuffed black cat that looks remarkably like Jiji in a birdcage. Though Kiki did have the foresight to purchase a map of the area, she still doesn’t plan ahead well and hasn’t given any thought to pricing. The woman hands her an amount that Kiki thinks is more than fair and she’s off on her first delivery.

To be continued....

All images from this article are copyright Eiko Kandono, Nibariki, Tokuma Shoten, and Buena Vista Home Entertainment Inc.