Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea review

The world can easily be divided into two types of person: those who love Hayao Miyazaki, and those yet to see any of his films. His latest, Ponyo (on the Cliff by the Sea to give it it's full title) is his first original feature since 2001's Spirited Away, and after the middling results of his adaptation of Howl's Moving Castle it's a relief to confirm that Miyazaki is back on magical form.

The film opens with a breathtaking scene revealing Fujimoto, the father of the sea (voiced by a miscast Liam Neeson in the English version) helping to control the balance of the oceans from his underwater home. Ponyo is one of his daughters, a strange goldfish-like creature with a human face, who runs (swims?) away from home, only to find herself trapped in a glass bottle. Rescued from death by a five year old human boy called Sosuke, Ponyo sets off on a journey to become human herself.

It's no surprise to find Miyazaki riffing on The Little Mermaid given the director's love of fairytales, and the idea of a main character achieving transformation through trials and tribulations is a well worn path. Miyazaki infuses a strong ecological message throughout the film, though it’s a credit to the writing that it never feels forced. Characters are just as vivid as expected, with the humans never getting lost amongst the outlandish ocean-based action. Lead human Sosuke is slightly bland, though his mother Lisa provides much entertainment as she proves to be one of the more irresponsible parents in recent memory; speeding round high cliffs, cracking open a beer when angry, throwing the occasional temper tantrum, it’s hard to imagine a Disney film featuring a character so un-PC.

Once again Studio Ghibli have surpassed themselves with a film of unparalleled technical achievement, different to western animation but no less beautiful for it. Ponyo herself is a character designed purely to enchant, from her initial goldfish phase through to her human form, and all those in between. The sheer level of detail during a set piece where a tsunami of giant fish attack the coast is jaw-dropping. Credit must also go to Jo Hisaishi for his lush score, all swooping strings designed to whisk you away to the bottom of the ocean.

While never as audacious as classics Spirited Away and My Neighbour Totoro, Ponyo is still a film certain to charm young and old alike. Oh, and it features the catchiest end credits song for a long time.