The Secret World of Arrietty is the latest release from Studio Ghibli, where the great Hayao Miyazaki wrote and directed the likes of Spirited Away, My Neighbor Toroto, Nausicaa, and Princess Mononoke, which was bigger in Japan at the box office than Titanic. For a man who frequently makes noises about retirement, Miyazaki is still pretty active, serving as the producer and co-screenwriter for this new adaptation of the children’s classic The Borrowers. I am guessing he also served as the inspiration for director Hiromasa Yonebayashi, who sprinkles references to other Ghibli films throughout, especially Totoro.
The film is narrated by Shawn, a sick young boy taken to a cottage in the country by his grandmother to rest before undergoing a dangerous operation on his heart. His parents are divorced and his mother, for whatever reason, is too busy to be at his side but also does not like to return to her parents’ cottage, due to disappointment at never seeing the “little people” that her father believed were around. In many ways this is of course like the plot of Totoro. Shawn catches a glimpse of one of the borrowers – so called because they only take tiny amounts of food and other things from the human household, so as not to arouse attention – and he wants to be her friend. Arrietty trusts him but her parents do not; when a borrower is seen the family must move or risk being captured or destroyed by curious and excited humans. When the cottage’s interfering old housekeeper discovers the truth, their fears prove to be well-founded.
While there is some suspense, this is a film that plays out with the languid pleasure of a summer day, a coming of age tale for two friends sharing the same rooms and yard with vastly different perspectives. The hand-drawn cel animation, lush painting, and quiet moments brought tears to my eyes more than once. For some reason Disney felt that they had to do multiple English voice casts (one for the UK and one for the US), but I certainly have no complaints; the US cast includes Amy Poehler and Will Arnett as Arrietty’s parents, Carol Burnett as the housekeeper, and Disney Channel regulars Bridgit Mendler and David Henrie as Arrietty and Shawn.
The Secret of Arrietty is a beautiful film in every way, the best film I have seen so far this year, and a fine successor to some of the most beloved animated films of all time. Catch it on the big screen if you get the chance.
Again, I’m late to a party, but what the hell. I finally got around to reading the first volume of Suzanne Collins’ dystopian series on the train ride home from Kingston yesterday. I had attempted to start it before but it didn’t grab me for whatever reason; this time I got as far as the reaping ceremony and I was hooked. For those who are even less informed than I, The Hunger Games is the story of Katniss Everdeen, a 16-year-old girl who has learned to hunt and trap game for her family’s survival in the rough mining world of District 12. Each district of her post-apocalyptic North America has different job to do in service of the Capitol, where the wealthiest citizens and government live comfortably with a strong military and technology at their command. Every year, the Capitol stages the Hunger Games as a reality show, randomly drawing the names of two teenagers from each district so that they may fight to the death; the winner is given a luxury mansion and must train future contestants from their district. The games were created as a punishment for a failed rebellion which also led to the destruction of a thirteenth district.
Colin Farrell stars as Mitchel, an ex-con who takes a job at the estate of reclusive actress Charlotte (Kiera Knightley) as a way to avoid sliding back into gangster life. Unfortunately, this only arouses the interest of local kingpin Ray Winstone (his character has a name too, I suppose), who wants Mitchel to help him rob the estate. Meanwhile, Charlotte is falling in love with Mitchel because he doesn’t mind breaking the faces of tabloid photographers who bother her.
Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, and Philip Seymour Hoffman star in this adaptation of a play about a Governor in the home stretch of a Democratic nomination campaign; Clooney also directed and co-wrote the screenplay. Gosling plays Steve, the up-and-coming strategist helping his mentor Paul (Hoffman) get the handsome liberal Governor Mike Morris (Clooney) elected. Steve is successfully tempted to spend the night with a campaign intern (Evan Rachel Wood) and unsuccessfully tempted to jump to a rival’s campaign by another strategist (Paul Giamatti), both of which lead to complications that threaten to ruin his own reputation and the Governor’s campaign. 
American Vampire is an award-winning series created by Scott Snyder, with an origin story by Stephen King and artwork throughout by Rafael Albuquerque.
