Cartoon Brew Reviews Ponyo (Spoiler Free)

Jerry Beck reviews Ponyo - sans spoilers, thank you - at Cartoon Brew. Seems he liked it a lot, but was surprised by the movie's surrealism. Pleasantly surprised? Of course. Here's a short clip:

Going in, I hoped this feature might have the potential of being Miyazaki’s most widely accessible (to western audiences) film, but it isn’t. It seems to be even more steeped in Japanese folklore and cultural sensibility than Spirited Away, once again challenging established Hollywood “rules” of narrative storytelling.

With all this in mind, I do recommend the Ponyo experience, especially to small kids and parents of young children. The good news is that Miyazaki is still making “classic” Japanese anime features that push the medium and can blow your mind… just this time don’t forget your meds.