Arrietty, Hiromasa Yonebayashi, Studio Ghibli

Arrietty is a Japanese animation directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi. The screenplay was written by Hayao Miyazaki and Keiko Niwa. It was released in 2010. It is based on the book The Borrowers by Mary Norton. The film is about a young boy called Shō who comes to convaless with his aunt Sadako. Also living in the house are a family of tiny people who borrow things from the humans to survive. To protect themselves they must keep their existence unknown to the humans. As Shō arrives at his aunt’s he sees the cat trying to attack something in the bushes until it is disturbed by a crow. As the cat moves away he gets a glimpse of Arrietty the young borrower girl as she makes her way to a vent.

That night Pod, Arreitty’s father takes her on her first borrower mission. They manage to obtain a sugar cube but coming back through Shō’s room she is discovered by him as she tries to take a tissue. The film follows the adventures of Arrietty and her family as their world collides with that of the humans.

It is a beautifully conceived world full of wonder. The detail is stunning. There are ladybirds flying off, individual drops of water. Truly a labour of love. For me the story isn’t quite up there with some of the other Ghibli titles but nevertheless still a great piece of animation.