Bescheidene Helden: Ponoc Short Films Theatre

I disagree with the other reviews. These three shorts were well animated, had very different plots and can be enjoyed on a relaxing family evening.

The first story focuses on a brother and sister who find their courage after their family has been torn apart and they are forced to face their greatest fear. Their heroic gesture reunites the family, and the two grow up in the process. The second story deals with the theme of food allergies and how deadly they can be. It was an eye opener as it isn't something often dealt with in media in general. The little hero of this tale has had it rough his whole life but decides not to give up and through this act, he shows his bravery and will to fight. The last story depicts the life of a lonely man who has become so invisible to everyone around him that he appears to have lost all substance. Despite his struggles, he finds his courage after being shown kindness by two characters who don't exact judgement upon him. Through his act of heroism, he regains his substance. This one is the most allegorical of the three.

Don't go into this expecting a Studio Ghibli film. Rather, enjoy these shorts for what they are and the lessons young and old can learn from them. The animation is flawless, the stories are well rounded, they are all suspenseful with happy endings, and are overall very cute. Little slices of life with sound morals.

3 short series made into a movie. Not a fan of kanino&kanini as it was boring to watch compared to invisible and life aint gonna lose. Love the 2nd short and adore the 3rd. Recommended for family viewing.

Studio Ponoc's second animation film ended up being a collection of three shorter films, each focusing on unlikely heroes that don't set out to do great deeds, but who achieve a small degree of greatness even still.

The first short film, Kanini & Kanino, was directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi and resembles his directorial debut, The Secret World of Arrietty, a lot. Some would argue it resembles that film a bit too much. It's also the segment most resembling what you would call Studio Ghibli style, which makes sense because Yonebayashi worked for them when he directed Arrietty. It's a visually pleasing little story about shrimp-sized kids going on an adventure to find their lost father, but it doesn't really soar as far as plot goes.

The second film, Life Ain't Gonna Lose, was directed by Yoshiyuki Momose and tells of a young boy with a severe egg allergy. Even a hint of eggs in his food will cause him to go into shock and as thus he must live his entire life walking on eggshells, if you'll pardon my terrible pun. This is the segment that I liked the most, mainly because its characters have the most personality and you quickly come to care for their struggles. It's also the most grounded story. People like this most certainly exist and it must not be easy for them. Which makes the boy's upbeat energy all the more endearing.

The third and last film, Invisible, was directed by Akihiko Yamashita and tells of a man so alone and ignored that he's in danger of becoming so impermanent that he'll literally float away. But even those ignored can have their moment if they're in the right place at the right time. Visually the most interesting of the three segments and with a poignant message.

All in all I liked the collection. It's nothing groundbreaking, but each of the segments was at least animated well, the music was nice and I was positively reminded of those short story films Disney did in the 1940s.

Modest Heroes is an anthology movie. The first segment is about tiny little crab people or something. Two crab people lose their father and have to find him. For some reason, it drove me nuts. I hated how there was dialogue, but the characters only ever said each other's names or grunted/laughed/used other non-words. It was just something on a gut level that made me unjustifiably angry. I wish they'd either talked properly or said nothing at all. It looked nice visually but the no man's land when it came to communication bothered me non-stop.

The second film is a lot more grounded and moves away from fantasy. It's about a young boy who's allergic to eggs, and looks at the stresses of raising a kid who could well die if they're exposed to something they shouldn't eat. It sort of works emotionally, but the way it escalates at the end felt a bit contrived. I didn't entirely buy it. Maybe shortcuts have to be taken for some short stories to work, but eh(gg).

The third film gets fantastical again, being about an invisible man who finds himself becoming even more invisible, losing his grip on the world and becoming less able to interact with it. It's easily the most visually engaging of the three, and I think it has the most interesting premise, too. It's definitely a highlight and saves Modest Heroes somewhat. To consider it as one whole, it's not bad for something that's just an hour long and the presentation is strong, but the storytelling - outside that final short - is kind of lacklustre.

The core concept behind this movie is sweet, wonderful and touching. There are small things in everyday life that takes a great deal of courage and fortitude. There are "modest heroes" out there who deserves our recognition and I'm sure that we all know quite a few of them. Unfortunately, the three stories told here struggle to do justice to this idea. They range from meh to sort of ok-ish. On top of that, the music and the animation are often just too weak to support the narrative ambitions of this title. There are a couple of good ideas here and there, but the of lack pathos, weight and artistic direction results in a mediocre rendering of those ideas.