Reviews

I find it curious that there are two distinct groups for this movie. Group one hates to waste even one star, but will write reams about how awful it is. Group two thinks it is wonderful and regrets not having enough stars to give it full credit. There is a small contingent that found it "thoughtful" and gave it 6 to 9 stars. I am in the last group.

My better half hates nearly all Sci-fi. She tolerates George Lucas, even though he can't write dialog, but on the whole, she detests space opera, i.e., rip-offs of cowboy westerns with laser blasters and pressure suits instead of 6-guns and big hats. She finds them to be a waste of time and money – you know – 2 hours and 10 bucks gone forever. She did see this one, though I am sure she did it out of deference to me after I had insisted that she give it a chance. She liked it, not for the special effects or the "science" but for the characters, the acting and the plot.

My dad had an album called "Classical Music for People Who Hate Classical Music". This is "Science Fiction for People Who Hate Science Fiction. Of course, if you need action packed shoot'em ups, you won't like this film either. I can understand that. When I was a kid we would all get our quarters and go down to the matinée on Saturday and if a movie had too much "just talking" we would feel gypped.

I enjoyed this one. Part of it was keeping track of what happened first. Decades ago I saw a film called "Two For The Road". It was the first non-linear sequence film I had ever seen which was really confusing at first, but these days it's not such a big deal.

I did see one critique, which invoked "Fermat's Principal" by way of a criticism. I thought that was a unique approach. On the other hand, light has ways of arriving at the same point at the same relative time but at different local times. The lengths of the paths may be greater or lesser but as far as the actual photons are concerned, it all happens instantly because at the speed of light, time has a duration of zero. Is any of this relevant? As far as the story is concerned, not really. I am more interested in relativity, not the Einstein version, but the human version. The later is the myriad ways in which the millions of interconnections of neurons interact with external and internal data in concert with the personal tides of neurotransmitters that build an ever-changing model of the personal universe. This particular movie gives that (my) version of relativity an interesting and rather fun joy ride.

Is the story a stretch? Well, it is Science FICTION, so – Of Course It Is !

Is there a Stargate orbiting Saturn (or Jupiter if you watched the movie)? Probably not.

Is there a galaxy wide federation that has its center of government on a planet near the galactic core? Unlikely.

Is there a star a few parsecs from here whose life forms live on the inner side of a gigantic rotating ring that is 200 million miles in diameter x 100 thousand miles wide with walls on either side of it 1000 miles high to keep the atmosphere from spilling out into space the whole thing of which is made out of un-obtain-e-um? Ha Ha Ha Ha ha hack cough choke cough wheeze (etc. etc. ending with wheezing and taking a few deep breaths before saying) Oh help! Ugh huh ah - - - - - - - -

But you know what? I loved it, loved them all, not in spite of the "stretch", but because of it.

Oh yes, I almost forgot. I have to give it stars. I kind of hate this part. OK, only 9 stars because I had to see it twice to follow the time shifty thing. There, that's my plot give away. Actually, I ought to give it 11 stars because the time thing means that I had an excuse to see it again right away. Hmmmm. Maybe tonight I will get up real early before the Sci-Fi hater gets up so I can see it again.

I can't count on my fingers the number of Studio Ghibli offerings that are far superior to this one because I would need to be a Hindu god to have that many hands. The words that come to mind are "disappointing" and "somewhat boring". My own life story would be as interesting (not that it is anything special) and there must be tens of millions of stories that are more interesting than mine or the plot of this movie.

About production values, it is as beautifully rendered as ever with one exception. The attempts at reality in Taeko's features in some shots were a fail. Her face seemed distorted sometimes. I don't remember any of the other character's faces having it. I sometimes have wrinkles like that, but I'm old.

At least half of the film is devoted to typical experiences in fifth grade that don't seem to have much bearing on the rest of the film. For me there was a lot of "so what" going on. Little boys are pigs. Sometimes little girls are too. What else is new? Her big sisters are pains in the ass, but again, that's just life. Her sisters obviously feel the same about her. More significant, is that Taeko's father is distant and harsh and her mother starts every third sentence to her with "You should …", which always sounds like she is really saying, "You should be somebody else." That, I get. And it is worth a couple of stars for reality. OK, OK! Her schoolmate's antics are worth a star too.

The other half of the movie (intercut (which didn't bother me at all) with the fifth grade memories ) is in her late to mid twenties deciding to take a summer vacation with relatives in the country picking saffron flowers and weeding rice paddies. It can be back breaking work, but she much prefers it to her life in Tokyo. (I get that too as I am no fan of big cities.) She meets a young man, Toshio. They have friendly conversations. He's a nice guy but they don't express by word or manner or hidden looks that there is any romantic interest on either side. (Toward the end there are some faint indications that he could be having some, but if so, he is as bad as any fifth grader about hiding it. Actually, it's worse given that he is an adult.)

In the last few minutes of the two-hour movie, Granny suggests to Taeko that she could marry Toshio and live with them for good. She is taken aback by the suggestion and not filled with joy. He shows up to take her to the train home. There is a confused conversation. He takes her to the train. She leaves, as credits roll and memories of her fifth grade schoolmates fill the train car. The credits finish. The train reaches the next station and she gets off and takes another train back. Joyous reunion!

I have to say that I was filled with dread during the last twenty minutes that the movie would end that way. It's a hack job of an ending and I guess we are supposed to be left with the impression that they get married and live happily ever after.

Well, life rarely works that way. She clearly likes the young man and apparently he likes her. Often that is enough. But I would hardly expect better than just an OK relationship based on a compulsive act less than an hour after being presented with an idea that isn't one's own. And "just OK" often turns after a few years or decades to, "What in the hell was I thinking." I know all about that. I was in my forties after a messy divorce before I found someone I genuinely love. And by "love", I don't mean the emotional high one gets in the first month or two of a relationship. That part fades fairly quickly. I mean the bond that is left after six months or more.

Taeko seems to be a fairly sensible woman, but we can only pretend that she tells Granny, "I really do love it here and I hate the idea of going back to Tokyo. So thank you for the invitation. I would really like to live with you and your family. You know I will pull my own weight, but about getting married, not now, at least not yet and maybe never. We'll see."

Or maybe she and Toshio skipped the emo high and went straight to the bond without realizing it. I suppose that could happen. And after all, it's only a movie.

It wasn't terrible and some of it was fairly good, but I had to force myself to watch through the early and middle parts hoping for better and out of respect for nearly every other Studio Ghibli film.

I am a 70 year old male who spent most of the last two months visiting family including my grandsons-in-law, ages 1 and 3. During the last week, Trolls was on endless rewind from morning until they went to bed. I paid little attention to it until I happened to hear/watch "True Colors". Later that day I sat down with the boys and watched it with them.

So here I am reading all the IMDb comments on the value or lack there-of in this movie. The low-star crowd, have much to say, pages of words, about its lack of complexity, value, maturity, blah blah blah. I got here by way of looking up Cindi Lauper's song, which happens at the crux of the film, a song that is all about, "Do you know who you are?" and "Do you know that I care?"

So all you Burg dwellers, who are you? What do you care about? When was the last time you actually looked at a deep blue sky and multi-shaded clouds or the moon and stars? When was the last time you really listened to someone you care about? Or do you get all your happiness from your fancy car or McMansion?

I know, I will rewrite Trolls to be more "realistic". That ought to cheer everyone up!

Branch arrives a few seconds too late to save Poppy but decides to see if any of the captives are still alive. He arrives a few seconds too late to save them too but stumbles across the king's cape-bauble and frees Creek. The two of them head back and gives the Trolls the sad news. All turn gray and wait to die. But between Branch and Creek (who "cOhmmmms" them back to some semblance of self preservation) they all leave the area.

Generations pass and the Bergens discover dentistry, skin care and barber shops and are not quite so disgusting looking. But inside they are as clueless and ugly as ever. The old myth about eating trolls fades into obscurity and they never figure out how to be happy on their own. They spread their dirty little town into cities of filth and coal dust to drive their trains and steam cars. They build roads and highways and spread their "civilization" to all ends of the planet.

In the meantime, the Trolls, still gray, find that if they are quick and clever, they can make a decent living by stealing food and pretty baubles from the Bergens. Before he died of old age, Creek founded a religion, which was just as cynical and self-serving as he secretly was and his priests live off donations from the other Trolls.

Just about the time that every square inch of the Bergen planet is covered in asphalt and every inch of sky is obscured by gray clouds of smog and coal dust; every plant dies from lack of sun and water, the seas turn to pink/gray muck from a super bloom of algae and the temperature climbs to 300 degrees which results in everyone and everything dying a horrible death.

The End

It's a kid movie! Get over it! Is it great? Well, it's not Casablanca or The Big Chill or Citizen Kane (Thank Goodness). But yeah, I liked it. And I think that anyone who has a shred of inner child left will like it too.

Grownups! Phegh!

* * * * * *

IMDb. I realize that the following may get me kicked off but...

Since my post, I have had a chance to watch my own TV and discover what's going on in the real world. My little attempt at satire is a little to close to comfort. Why am I surprised to find that the Bergens really are in charge and nobody seems to be able or willing to do anything about it?

I stand by my original statement.

Groan-ups! Phegh! Phegh! Double Phegh!