Mary and the Witch’s Flower

It’s not very often that a release genuinely surprises me, but this one was a damned ninja!  I’d never heard of this film whatsoever, but, lo and behold, whilst perusing showtimes for other films (gotta coordinate those double features with Prussian efficiency, yo!), this seemingly randomly popped into my field of vision.  “The hell is this?” thought I aloud.  I still have no idea where it came from, but, hey, I’ve had plenty worse surprises in my life…

Mary and the Witch’s Flower is the animated film from Studio Ponoc, which was started with former Studio Ghibli animators, and it shows:  That distinct Miyazaki style is there, both visually and with the presence of unabashed whimsy.  It tells the story of young Mary Smith, a girl who gets caught up in the affairs of conniving witches when she stumbles upon a magical flower in the woods.  It is kinda that simple.

Thing is, the film, like many of Ghibli’s releases, takes this relatively simple premise and builds upon it with great ease, transitioning to expanding plot point to expanding plot point insanely fluidly, as though we already knew everything about the universe and it’s just being re-referenced for us as it becomes germane.  I dig this style of storytelling, honestly, and it works for these fantastical films that don’t really stand up to harsh scrutiny about their details (so, yeah, shithouse “critics” like CinemaSins can have a field day, but they’re just missing the damn point, as per usual).  It’s all about the journey and the emotions that it elicits within the viewer.

Like similar Ghibli offerings, Mary floats about with some great artwork, particularly the backgrounds, which go from stylish watercolors in the distance to some nice picture-book detailing closer up.  There is a slight decrease in the usual already-low framerate (Japanese animation runs at a lower framereate than Western offerings), making the movement somewhat less fluid than something Ghibli or other Japanese studios would put out, but it’s not much of a drop, thus keeping it from being much of a detraction or distraction.

The primary issue I have involves the script.  Now, we were lucky enough to see the subtitled Japanese version (aside from the nostalgia factor surrounding older Godzilla films, I have a distinct aversion to dubs), so the potential awkwardnesses inherent with dubs was missing, but issues can still arise with the subs.  Here, I’m not sure if they were translation gaps or something, but several lines just sort of explained what was happening on screen and how the characters felt about it.  Much like my problems with Tulip Fever‘s script just out-and-out telling the audience how things are in the surroundings, here the characters tell the audience how they’re thinking an feeling, as though they’re caught in a time warp that’s put them on the Globe’s stage centuries ago, necessitating soliloquizing.  It’s horrible scripting, honestly, and it pops up at several instances.

Still, the fluid narrative smooths things over for me, and the overall whimsical and creative nature of the film kept me engaged throughout.  It’s well-paced, alternating between slower, quieter, more personal scenes and broad, more action-oriented scenes, providing a comfortable sinusoidal thread that allows us to catch our breaths when needed before thrusting us once again into the magical breach.

For a first outing, this is a damn fine offering from Ponoc.  it’s not quite as good as Ghibli at the moment, but it more than holds its own in such a comparison.  I look forward to seeing more from this studio, especially if this offering is any indication of inherent talent and ability.  It’s been an awfully long time since an out-of-nowhere surprise has pleased me so much.  We need more of this, think I.