K-ON! fans will enjoy it, and it might just have enough mass-market appeal to be interesting as a family movie for people who have never seen the series. However, this film will get the most enjoyment from fans of the series, no doubt. The movie opens, appropriately enough, with the lovable Yui, Ritsu, Mugi and Mio practicing, except this time the sound is far more aggressive than much of anything they have generally performed until now. The most junior member Azusa comes into the club room and suddenly the band is getting into a fight about the direction of their music and general concerns about graduating and moving on to university. Perhaps this is setting up conflict as the band must go to London to find their roots?

According to Japanator, in the only two days since it has been released it has made over four million dollars at the box office. Reason being because The Disappearance of Suzumiya Haruhi was an excellent movie by KyoAni, but it was also nearly inaccessible to anyone but followers of the original series. The storytelling style of K-On, on the other hand, offers it an incredible opportunity to broaden the ranks of its fans. They paced it out pretty nicely, and it was generally well written. It definitely incorporates the elements that made the original such a huge success. I wasn’t taking notes while watching (too busy enjoying the thing myself), so there are probably some missing tidbits, but everything in a reasonable cause-effect relationship should be here.

Only a genius could write a story that leaves such character attachment. After a few of the films’ scenes you will find yourself strangely attached to the light music club, and all its members. The brilliance of the character development, each one with their own little quirks and traits, is the strong point of this movie. The animation style is, as stated in the summary of this review, beautiful. I’m one of those people who will look at a show and, regardless of the depth of story, potentially discard it simply based on appearances. This holds true for animated, live action, and CG alike. Sound is a big thing for me as well. This isn’t limited to just music. I find that a lot of animated films leave me wanting for depth, but it’s notoriously hard to place. Sometimes all you need to make a dialogue feel a little more natural is to have some ambient background noise; whether it’s the rustling of clothing or a busy city street. Again, “K-On!” hits that mark for me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAehTb3HPJ0

Some critics and self-proclaimed ‘anime-purists’ may cite the series as being to slowly paced, predictable, and having little plot or purpose, but I think that’s what gives the series its charm. It follows five girls through their career in high school as they make friends and memories they will take with them for the rest of their lives. There’s something special to be said about a film that can grab your attention and hold it for so many hours, banking only on the viewer’s attachment to five fictional girls’ very realistic personalities and adventures. This anime comes surprisingly recommended.

Ash and his friends Iris and Cilan arrive in Eindoak Town, built around a castle called the Sword of the Vale. The three Trainers have come to compete in the town’s annual battle competition, and Ash manages to win with some unexpected help from the Mythical Pokémon Victini! It turns out Victini has a special bond with this place. Long ago, the castle watched over the Kingdom of the Vale, and the partnership between Victini and the king protected its people who lived there. But that kingdom has since vanished into memory, leaving behind powerful relics and ancient Pokémon. Damon plans to trap Victini and harness its power, and as that plan gets under way, the entire town of Eindoak faces disaster. This movie is good for kids and those who grew up with Pokemon who trade Pokemon and are familiar with the characters and story.

This movie offers a more streamlined screenplay than the last few Pokémon movies and a pared-down group of main characters. There’s about a half-hour of buildup and exposition before the narrative shifts into gear with a steady stream of suspense and excitement once all the characters wind up on a floating castle that rises up into the atmosphere, leaving havoc in its wake, and deliberately recalling Hayao Miyazaki’s 1986 classic, Laputa. On February 15, 2011, it was announced that a second film featuring Reshiram would be released simultaneously in theaters with the Zekrom film. The plots of both films are similar up until Reshiram and Zekrom enter the story of each film.

While Reshiram and Zekrom provide spectacular action setpieces in the film, it’s the endearing little Victini, which looks like a beige squirrel with over-sized pointed ears, who earns our sympathy and keeps us engaged with the story. The imagery is quite spectacular, ranging from the breathtaking sight of the town of Eindoak situated atop towering mountain peaks, to the scenes of the massive castle floating up in the sky high above the Earth. The castle itself is beautifully designed and laid out, particularly the massive chamber where Damon uses the pillars to power the castle’s moves. Also, as a bonus everyone who sees this movie and are also players of Pokémon Black and White can download Vicitini to their games through the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmuYQ2C8Ovw

A helicopter piloted by the town’s mayor is the one rescue vehicle summoned to duty, although a robot Pokémon owned by Juanita helps out as well. On the Earth, the purple flames of the Dragon Force spread out of control through the region’s forests, forcing hundreds of adorable wild Pokémon to flee in panic. The whole thing is quite compelling throughout. As Pokémon movies go, this one is very well made and is the first Pokemon film to get a theatrical release in sometime. I don’t understand the rationale for making two movies from the same material that tell exactly the same story with only slight changes in the cast of Pokémon and then releasing them together. But nonetheless, this one serves as a great opener for the other movie, which will get a review soon.

In the near future, the main character, Yuji Kaido, has been diagnosed, as other ordinary people, in having an incurable disease. Because there was no cure available at that time they put him with the others alike into hibernation, supposed for a time span of two years. Unfortunately for them, in the mean time Earth got invaded by alien bucks, called “Blue” and most humans got killed. For this reason, humans retreated to a space station called Second Earth. A few decades later, Yuji was awakened by a soldier among other commrades, who was sent down on earth to find the “sleepers” (and there is a reason for it), in other words the ones that had been put into hibernation. The soldier was no other than Marlene Angel, who is the other main character of the show. In the mists of war, a love story will start to evolve around these two main protagonists who will have to go through various dangers and do everything to survive and to safe the world.

This compilation movie, Blue Gender: The Warrior is composed of both old and new footage—with many clips being completely re-animated—and a very different ending. Roughly the last third of the original series’ story arc was removed for the movie, thus requiring an alternate ending. The story mostly focuses on Yuji and Marlene, and pretty much rightfully so, since those are the two main characters. However, the draw back to that is that we don’t see many wonderful characters that were in the series. Some roles for characters are even switched around a bit. Fans of Blue Gender who want to get everything about it will probably get this movie to complete their collections. I myself like Blue Gender, and getting this movie in my opinion was well worth it. However, if you see the movie first, it may seem different, and especially more so if you’ve seen the series first. For instance, some of the characters I grew attached to, such as cute little Yung and Marlene’s original retrieval team, die without much character development. Their deaths in the series gave more impact after knowing more about them. The whole explanation of the B-virus and the reason behind the blue has no part in this film either.

Some parts of it are just a bit odd, and hard to understand, like the ending. But the ending of the series is also quite hard to understand, if you think about it. My favorite part of this movie is the romantic factor, but I also enjoy the very graphic nature of the scenes. For fans of the TV series I would suggest this film only for the completists amongst you. But for everyone who missed out on this release the first time round, for whatever reason, then this film is an enjoyable evening.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcmGKNyx8rQ

The story has many twists and although it refers to a future time, the messeges that this show “sends out” are all the ones that we are facing in the present. For instance — environment, human behavior towards others, military/political power games etc. In the show we see a possible outcome of our actions. The story is very different from the series, and it’s ending is a bit of a shocker. Don’t worry, it’s not a bad ending like you’d see on most Outer Limits episodes, but it’ll leave you feeling weird. But on the plus side, you get most of the story in one setting, alot of action, and a fairly decent romance between Yuji and Marlene. Unlike the series, this movie has no fan service at all, which makes it more friendly to viewers in one way. But the violence and dark aspect of the movie go up as a result. All in all, if you have time on your hands, I would watch the series as it had more time to flush out the small details. Otherwise, this is your best bet.

FUNimation Entertainment has acquired the second film based on the popular franchise, Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos. Having seen it in Baltimore with earlier this year, I thought now would be a good time to unveil the review since it will be getting a wide release soon. As an avid FMA fan, I truly enjoyed this experience. Watching it with other FMA fans was quite the movie watching experience as people all cheered, clapped, and laughed at the appropriate times. Fans of the series should note that unlike Noah and Alphons from Conquerer of Shamballa who were essential to the story, but still maintained their presence from the sidelines at most times, Julia and Melvin held a larger part in this movie, sometimes even placing Ed as supporting roles at times.

The story is plenty compelling enough — Edward, the Fullmetal Alchemist, and brother Alphonse, investigating the escape of a dangerous criminal with the ability to harness the power of ice as a weapon, get tangled in a web that eventually involves separated siblings and an outcast nation trying to rise from its shabby valley surroundings to stand as equals once more with the two nations surrounding it. In the lost holy land of Milos, the Elrics search for the truth behind an unknown form of alchemy. What secrets are hidden in Milos? Riddles must be solved and dangers faced before the truth can be found! A very epic tone ets in right away. The art direction is the best the series has ever looked and the environments are engrossing. It’s not really an art direction, but Fullmetal has always lingered in Steampunk territory.

The movie also gave us a brief glimpse of the series’ regular cast as well. While the brothers are the focus of the movie, Roy Mustang and Riza Hawkeye play minor roles. The only one way the brothers can restore their bodies is to find the fabled Philosopher’s Stone. A fugitive alchemist with mysterious abilities leads them to a distant valley of slums. Then, they get dragged into the whole political-terrorism whish whash between Creta and the people of Milos who want to take their country back. There are also twists here, both expected and unexpected. Additionally, the original movie characters are actually very enjoyable and not over the top. The storytelling is fluid, the concepts are easy to grasp and although there are details which relate to the main storyline, they are details that don’t require that much knowledge to follow the movie itself. In other words, it is an easy film to get into, even if you haven’t seen much of the source material.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMY6fq_VI4I

All in all, Sacred Star of Milos is the best entry in the Fullmetal Alchemist franchise thus far. This positive buzz is essential, as in less than a decade, Fullmetal Alchemist has become one of the best-selling anime properties in the United States, even challenging the venerable Dragon Ball Z. Over 1.2 million copies of the manga have been published in North America since the launch in May 2005. The amount of hype and expectations fall right in line with the positive reaction I had with this film. Although Ed and Al will develop as characters in the movie, their learning does not conclude with the movie but continues in the main storyline of Brotherhood. So when the film is done you can always go back to the series and learn even more. A fun way to wrap up the film and if steampunk is your cup of tea, you msot likely won’t do better then giving this film a shot.

The movie begins shortly after the events of Curious Village with Layton and his apprentice, Luke, finishing up a case featuring characters familiar to many fans. As the clichés of the murder mystery genre dictate, Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva is set predominantly on a grand cruise ship called the Crown Petone. Professor Layton, true English gentleman and the world’s greatest amateur super sleuth, embarks on his most daring adventure yet when he receives a letter from his old student, the famous opera diva Janice Quatlane. She is to perform at the legendary Crown Petone Opera House and invites him to attend as her special guest. Meanwhile, a spate of disappearances hits London. Two young school girls are the latest victims, and the Professor suspects it’s related to the mysterious occurrences at the theatre. The Professor and his loyal assistant Luke travel to the Opera House to solve their toughest puzzle yet, the mystery of Eternal Life.

Coming in at 90 minutes, Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva has the rare distinction of being an animated film that is just a little too long. Director Hashimoto flies right through to the main mystery rather than attempting to introduce and flesh out the two main heroes of Layton and Luke, expecting the audience to derive much of their knowledge from the video game source materials. The movie contains mild fantasy violence, such as killer sharks, angry wolves, martial arts, giant robots, explosions, and sword fights, but even though death is discussed, no one is actually injured or dies. Eternal Diva contains the first English appearances of Emmy, Chief Inspector Grosky and Jean Descolé, all of whom are brilliantly voiced. Grosky provides most of the comic relief too, including one of the most memorable quotes; “Nice try, sharks!”

In order to keep the film’s budget in check, its makers have made abundant use of computer-generated imagery. In some places it works, but mostly it is too dissimilar in style to the rest of the art. Animation is done by the same people who made the cut scenes in the Professor Layton series, and voice actors for the J version of the game returns to voice their respective characters for the movie. The film is more like a feature-length cut scene than a film adaption and while game fans will get more out of the film than those that haven’t played any of the series it doesn’t mean if you don’t know the series it’s not worth seeing. It’s so ridiculous and over the top it’s worth seeing just for that. However, Nintendo DS fans will definitely find more to enjoy here than casual viewers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oqy2YISlJnE

Overall, this movie was pretty decent. I loved the music, too. I was also touched by the ending. The credits were great, as always. What I love about the Professor Layton series are that the endings that always feature even the smallest characters in the show. Christopher Robin Miller shines as Professor Layton as always, giving him a great combination of gentlemanly suaveness and an adventuring spirit. I would highly recommend Professor Layton and The Eternal Diva for any fan of the series, any fan of anime and anyone with ninety minutes to spare and wanting something entertaining to watch. It’s better than a lot of films and a lot better than most game/film adaptations. It won’t be to everyone’s taste but it’s ridiculous enough to make it entertaining and memorable. With Level-5′s simplistic character design would not only attract the attention of children but for adults of all ages, a fun full feature length for anyone.

.Hack//Quantum is a brand new OVA addition to the long-running .Hack franchise, but we were really behind covering this anime so we decided to start here. Before I start on the film, let me give a brief introduction of the .Hack series. The series occurs many years in the future where computers run on an operating system called the ALTIMIT OS. The World is actually based on an incomplete poem called the Epitaph of the Twilight, whose link to the game is too long to be explained here. The game’s appeal is booster further by its realistic graphics and the use of the Face-Mounted Display(FMD) which give players the illusion of really being their avatar. Set in the near future of Japan, three teenage girls are best friends both in the real world, as well as a multi-player online role-playing game known as “The World”, which is similar to World of Warcraft.

The script is handled adeptly by Tatsuya Hamazaki, who is actually a long-time player in the franchise, so those who are fans of the series will be happy to know this OVA is fantastic and you should feel right at home. As with most of the .Hack animes, most of the story takes place inside of the MMORPG “THE WORLD”. As such the animation is top notch. I really loved how they inserted some CG into the mix too. Watching it even made me feel like playing WoW again as the sequences took me back to my MMO days in college. We’re not talking high art or deep plots, but it’s fun, it’s fast-paced and interesting, leaving in an unexplained cliff-hanger.

Sakuya, Tobias and Mary are, together, a 3-person party experiencing The World as it suits them. Sometimes, they undertake dangerous quests. Sometimes, they wander aimlessly. At other times, they pass time chatting. Your job is to just enjoy the ride. For spectacle, charm, and character, Quantum is brimming with life, and just to let inform those that do not know, Aura is the personification of the AI that is in charge of taking care of The World so that means her appearance in the next episode has some significance. Overall I feel that .hack//Quantum is a fitting continuation and a film that could be a good gateway to those looking to explore this world more thoroughly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYIOaSA7gJ0

So let me make this really clear: this is easily the best thing to come out of .Hack, full stop. Perhaps this will ring truer when I say that the studio Bee Train and director Koichi Mashimo are not at all involved. Overall: Great addition to the .Hack series, I highly suggest that you watch this if you are a fan of the .Hack franchise. This series seems to be a tribute to the past .hack series as evidenced by the main characters avatars and other characters throughout the episode. The departure from Bee Train was a breath of fresh air, and I was definitely impressed by the quality of animation and storytelling in Quantum. I also got the same feeling as Jeroz with regards to the BRS connection, but I felt that the slice-of-life friendship connection (aka K-On) connection between BRS and Quantum was stronger. That also indicated to me though that Quantum wouldn’t be something on the level of .hack//Sign, just because of how heavily this element was played up in the beginning. All in all, I recommend this anime.

Makoto Shinkai is an interesting fellow. We even had the a chance to interview him a few months back but was told he would be very secretive about this project. You see, Children Who Chase Lost Voices from Deep Below is in fact, his first full featured film. The storyline primarily focuses on the main character Asuna Watase, who is what you could consider a bit of a loner, and way more mature for her age then I probably am now (I’m 26). It is a coming of age story involving young love and a mysterious music, coming from a crystal radio left as a memento by an absent father, that leads a young heroine deep into a hidden world. Heralded as a successor to Hayao Miyazaki for his previous works, such as 5 Centimeters Per Second, Shinkai claims that Children Who Chase Lost Voices From Deep Below is to study on “how people are connected” and the relationship between individuals. I know what everyone is thinking…is it better then 5 Centimeters per Second? Short answer. No. However, this is still better then the majority of anime on the market today.

But as you can expect visual side of this movie is masterpiece. Landscapes made by Shinkai are something like French impressionistic paintings but they are much more detailed, with better colors and lighting. The world of Argatha is not a magical world filled with towering cities powered by magic, but instead more of a rural country with many towns. This in turn leads to my biggest complaint about the film as it is a pity that Shinkai abandons his talent on talking about modern city life but tries to give a tribute to Miyazaki Hayao by duplicating many elements in Ghibli’s anime movies. In the end it just left me confused and I didn’t know how to process the beautiful atmosphere unravaling before me.

Shinkai has always been capable of creating captivating stories about communication and now he can add the mystique of death to his resume. Yes, this film deals with the loss of someone close to you and if you can relate, prepare to shed a tear or two. Children Who Chase Lost Voices From Deep Below is inspired by the Japanese myth of Izanami and Izanagi, an Eastern equivalent of Orpheus and Eurydice, in which Izanagi journeys to Yomi, the underworld, to try and bring his lover back from the dead. If that doesn’t ring a bell, think back to Robin Williams’ What Dreams May Come, which had a similar theme as well. I love the message the movie brought to me. However, the story does have flaws. The pace of some parts is too slow while of some parts is too fast. It can be explained by looking at the length of the movie, which is of the longest in Shinkai’s works.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQ9uTTtiAlw

In the end, I’m not sure if it’s in the animation or the storytelling or what it was, but it felt like I was watching Studio Ghibli more than I was a Makoto Shinkai film. But my expectations are always very high, so there is no doubt they were too high. Still this film comes easily recommended and hopefully will see the light of day in the West. Visually arresting without being flashy, Makoto Shinkai has created a film that is a considerable achievement; a beautiful, horrifying and thrilling film that should delight both anime fans and newbies alike.

The bloody overthrow of the Tokugawa Shogunate has been followed by the Meiji restoration, but all is not well. Samurai led by Takimi Shigure regret the passing of the old days and plan to start a counter-revolution. Himura Kenshin, one of the samurai who fought to overthrow the Shogunate, finds himself forced by destiny to oppose Shigure. In the past, a mistake by Shigure left his closest friend, Takatsuki Gentatsu without sufficient resources for a raid. Unknown to Shigure, Kenshin is the samurai who killed Gentatsu. Both men were deeply affected by this, at the restoration of the Meiji, Shigure was sworn to vengeance. And Kenshin had his sword blade reversed, determined never to kill with his sword again. I’m not easily impressed by a movie. Even worse with an animated one. But this one got me drooling. I picked this one up by recommendation, and I’ll recommend it to anyone from now on.

For those who are not Kenshin fans, this movie might be confusing. It is chock full of history and characters that are prevalent throughout the series but are not exactly things you would hear or be able to relate to in every day life. It is violent, gruesome, bloody, but does not feel gratuitous, due to the mood and setting the animators have created. While it does have a few chuckles here and there, the main theme is fairly dark; it deals a lot with Kenshin’s past as Hitokiri Battousai. When “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” opened, everybody talked about how the fights revealed character. Rurouni Kenshin does the same thing much better, as the fights are short and brutal, and swords actually cut the flesh, but there’s so much being told each time.

One thing I will admit to admiring about this movie was how it moved me emotionally at some points. I felt tension when young Yahiko got trapped by the rebels. I felt a bit of sorrow in the end for Takimi and Toki. I could understand Takimi’s rage at Kenshin. This was one of the strong points of the movie, and the music did a decent job of adding to the emotion. Through these artistic devices we see the tale unfold of an assassin who is torn between continuing his life of bloodshed or taking his chance to escape into a more quiet life away from the killings. For those who are used to the voices in the English dub of the TV series, the voices in the English dub of the movie are not the same. The DVD offers the movie in Japanese with English subtitles or in English, which gives the viewer a choice. The art is slightly different from that of the TV series, though clearly based on it. It is more gory than the TV series however.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awTXk6K2fL8

Now for some bad stuff. The killing of Tentatsu is repeated many times throughout the film. While it is a reminder of the problems of Kenshin and Takimi, you don’t have to have it 5 times, literally. And Sanosuke has a bit of an australian accent which doesn’t sound right. If you haven’t read the manga or have watched at least a few episodes of the anime, the political aspects of the storyline will most likely pass you by. With that aside, this is a solid anime and I believe this is the kind of film that is so excellent it transcends its genre. This is good for teenagers accustomed to violence but still sensitive to a nice storyline.

A group of school kids camping out for a week find a wounded dog and rescue it. It turns out that the dog is actually an alien studying earth plants. As a reward he takes the kids to the far side of the moon. Every kids dream, right? It’s a gorgeous film, one that you hope would get licensed and released stateside on Blu-ray so you can admire all of its bright candy-colored creatures. We get a bunch of dogs, a giant cat thing that reminds me of Totoro, a striped tomato, a fish bowl, and a female Terriermon. You would think this is a studio Ghibli flick just based off imagination alone. Even the children are written and animated the way children should be – curious, energetic, and individualistic.

Every shot offers something new. If this had a better story – better thought out and a bit more maturity, like a Pixar film or a Miyazaki film – this really could have been a classic for the ages. But nope, this isn’t Pixar, and the team behind this just doesn’t have the complete magic touch I had hoped a film of this caliber would have. At its very heart, you must remember that it really is a children’s movie that is aimed at a younger audience, so don’t expect any wild plot twists or overly-complex themes. And yes, the length also kinda works against the movie. It’s a heavy 136 minutes long, so there is no excuse why the characters couldn’t have been expanded upon. Even the human characters lean a bit on the stereotypical side: you’ve got the leader, the nerd, the shy girl who aspires to be a singer, and so on. This film really flew under the radar as it sold fewer than 7000 copies in Japan, and whilst I don’t think anyone can really defend it’s length, it’s still a better movie than it deserves to be based on exposure.

This film has some of the most incredible vistas and production design I’ve ever seen in any film, animated or live action. Unfortunately, the plot has all the problems people have said, and the overall tone is very much that of a kids movie. Certain scenes that arise throughout the series lose some of their power, since the time that went to preparing for that event went to another issue that had to be covered, and usually for the sake of developing the setting. But yet, I ignored these signs, living in my childhood view of movie theaters. The movie started, and the laughs soon flowed as the action packed beginning made way for a comical interaction.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0klGhyf3zQI

To summarize, the animation and art direction was absolutely beautiful and high quality. However, it is a kids movie so please be prepared for that before viewing. It takes a messy turn for the worse towards the last half of the film, but I was so entranced by the brilliant visuals and action that I stopped trying to make sense of anything. However, the main problem that I had with the cast was that it felt too big. Trim down the runtime and the cast and you would have had a really tight, compelling film. Still, it is worth your time!

Really, there are only two words that can accurately describe this film: ridiculously cute. From the creator of classic Japanese children’s television show Anpanman, Hal’s Flute is a heartwarming tale about the relationship between parents (be they human or otherwise) and their children.

Abandoned in the forest as a baby, a young boy is adopted and raised by a tanuki (Japanese raccoon dog) named Hal. For those unfamiliar with Japanese folklore, tanuki are often depicted as cheerful, if a bit gullible, mischief-makers capable of shape shifting into any object with the help of a leaf. Hal and her human son, Pal live happily in the forest until one day, Pal’s inherent musical ability catches the eye of famous musician Chocopan. Pal eventually becomes Chocopan’s apprentice and goes off to pursue his dreams, leaving a sad, but very proud Hal at home. And you can pretty much guess what happens from there—this is primarily a children’s film after all.

Fans of anime—or any kind animation in general—will appreciate the colorful palette and quality of animation seen in Hal’s Flute. Those familiar with Anpanman will also recognize the art style, especially in regards to the design of the various forest animals. Aside from that, however, it’s probably a good idea to keep in mind the film’s original audience. Unlike Pixar or Studio Ghibli films, Hal’s Flute is 100% aimed at a younger audience with little appeal for most adults without children or younger siblings. Given that, it would be silly to try and judge Hal’s Flute on the normal criteria one would usually use to review a film. Yeah, as an adult, Studio Ghibli films are admittedly much more entertaining and engaging. Are there better animated films? Sure. Most definitely. But if I were a young child, happy endings, dancing animals and Hal’s Flute would be right up my alley—obligatory musical number and all.

Simply put, Hal’s Flute is a short, entertaining film. There’s not much to say other than that. Though if you’re prone to the sniffles and tearing up during kid’s films, it might be handy to have a few tissues discreetly nearby. Also, the language is simple enough that it makes for great practice for anyone keen on learning Japanese or brushing up their listening skills. And if you do have younger siblings or kids (who can read subtitles), why not give Hal’s Flute a shot and get them hooked on Asian films early?