LogFAQs > #941519617

6. When Marnie Was There

Charon: 2
Jona: 6
Karo: 7
Red: 11
Inviso: 12
Genny: 16
Johnbobb: 17

Total: 71

Charon: Currently serving as Ghibli's final hoorah, for now (let's hope), Marnie was a fitting sendoff for the storied company. Capturing all the magic and wonder of the films that came before it, this is another touching story of a young protagonist and a supernatural being. Despite it not making my #1, this film was definitely the #1 in terms of tearjerking for me. I guess I have a personal relationship with "grandmother" films, and tons of animated movies just love to use the dead grandma trope. It's played to beautiful effect here, even if some of the way I was sort of wondering if perhaps there were some LGBT overtones to the main character's arc. I still don't disagree with my assessment of that and find it makes her a deeper character and is inline with her portrayal in the film. Either way, I'm glad to have finally watched this film and hope the studio can return to the limelight again soon. The animation world just isn't the same without them.

Jona: Mystery elements? In a Ghibli movie? Sign me up! The relationship shown between Anna and Marnie is cute which makes it heartbreaking once we get to know more about Marnie and her mysterious ways. Its just a really well-done Ghibli film. Dont know what else to say.

Karo: What It Is:
The last Studio Ghibli movie for now, at least until Ghibli directors inevitably come out of retirement and/or rise from the dead.

What I Think:
A disagreeable young girl visiting the countryside befriends a mysterious girl who lives at a supposedly abandoned mansion and a lot of seemingly lesbian innuendo occurs.
While it is not quite up there with Miyazaki's greatest classics, Yonebayashi again shows great aptitude with female characters in crafting this touching story of friendship and family.

Score: 84/100

Red: A girl inadvertently learns about her heritage while thrown off with relatives for the summer. Were never really given much of a defintive reason for her actually interacting with Marnie, but there is a bit of a whimsical feel to their interactions that does come with a bit of satisfying curiosity. Anna coming to terms with her current parents and essentially making friends is rather touching, but the movie does suffer a bit from never quite rectifying her interactions with the past world.

Inviso: The back half of this movie is great. Its emotional and touching, and Marnies story, once we learn the whole thing, is so beautiful, especially as more and more layers are peeled back, and in turn we see Anna grow and develop as a character. The slow build of realizing just how unlucky Marnie is in terms of her relationships is just heartbreaking. Her parents were stereotypical socialites, neglecting her and leaving her with an abusive grandmother. Her husband died at a young age, and her subsequent mental breakdown got her daughter sent to a boarding school. The daughter hated her for this, and died before they could make up. All she had was her granddaughter, but by that point, life had taken its toll, and she started the cycle anew, leaving her granddaughter behind when she died.

The reveal that Marnie (who is pretty much an obvious ghost throughout the movie) is Annas grandmother, and is there to help Anna not feel so lonely and abandoned, adds a nice layer to the film. And Im not ashamed to admitthat ending scene where Anna introduces her foster mothercalled Auntie up to that point in the movieas my mom broke me. That just felt like a well-earned emotional climax, and it was subtle. The movie didnt hit me over the head with a scene of Anna breaking down and admitting how shitty she was and declaring her love for her mom. No, she just changes her speech pattern in a noticeable way, and even the mom recognizes this, wiping away tears at this introduction.

The only reason I dont rank this higher is because the first half of the movie is very difficult to get through. Its very slow, and I just dont care for Anna in that first half. Her whole character is just mopey and sullen, which doesnt make for a very dynamic movie. I GET that she has her reasons, but when were forced to spend half the film dealing with a bratty teen and no real explanation as to WHY shes behaving this way, before the PLOT actually kicks init drags the film down just a LITTLE bit, and keeps me from putting it at the top of the list.

Genny: When Marnie was There is like lofi beats to relax to The Movie. I'm not gonna seek it out for anything other than that purpose, but it's enjoyable enough. Once you know the twist it kind of negates what little suspense there is in young Marnie's life (this was my second time watching this for the record), and as strangely sweet as her relationship is with Anna I don't quite understand why they're initially so drawn to each other. I don't believe Marnie is a ghost, or a clairvoyant or time traveler so she couldn't know she's befriending her own granddaughter could she? Anyway in my opinion this isn't the worst Ghibli has to offer, nor is it even close to the best. It's a little above average in a company with an astounding pedigree of wonderful films (also Tales from Earthsea and Only Yesterday), which is of course high praise.

Johnbobb: man don't you just hate when that cute girl you're secretly in love with turns out to be the ghost of your grandma

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Congrats to azuarc on being really good at predicting stuff