Memórias de Ontem

I really had no idea animation could be so touching and moving. A young woman on her way to the countryside to help out with some farm chores keeps getting flashbacks of her 10 year old, 5th grade self. That may sound boring, but instead I was riveted from beginning until the heart warming finish, enjoying her memories along the way. We all carry around with us such kind of memories-having trouble with a particular subject in school, flirting with members of the opposite sex, being teased by classmates or older siblings, misbehaving and being severely punished, not getting something we really wanted and on and on. While she was having her flashbacks, I was having mine, making it all a very personal experience. Her life has been shaped by her memories, and now she is guided by them as she comes face to face with a momentous, potentially life-altering decision. Even if she was only an animated character, I got so bound up in the story that I desperately hoped for her to make the right choice. Sometimes I even forgot that I was watching an animated movie.

This movie has all of the grace and beauty of Grave of the Fireflies, without the oppresive depression. Takahata has such an eye for detail and subtlety; the characters' observations about life and coming to terms with who you were and are when combined with the beauty of the animation and scenery are poetic and elgiec.

What could be a trite romantic tale instead blossoms into art due to the hyper-realism of Takahata's story-telling.

This movie requires some work to understand, but the effort is rewarded generously. Even though its been just a few minutes since I finished watching it, I can already tell that the images and characters will be playing in my head for a very long time.

This move is an absolute gem -- see it if at all possible!

The success of this film will depend largely on the extent to which you can identify with the central character, and how much you can emphasis with the central theme of growing up. Those with a pre-determined idea of what Studio Ghibli is and what their films represent may be somewhat put out by the nature of the film, which is perhaps more mature in its themes and sensitive in its characterisations than something like Panda! Go Panda! (1972) or the iconic My Neighbour Totoro (1988); creating a film that is based very much in reality, but abstracted by the more fantastical allusions to childhood and memory.

Unlike the more widely regarded Ghibli films, the fantasy elements of Only Yesterday (1991) come from within the narrative; as our central character recalls elements of her life as a child as she finds herself at something of a difficult crossroads. She's approaching thirty, but still very much a youngster at heart, and has to juggle between chasing her dreams and living up to the expectations of her family and the stereotypical idea of a woman as the domesticated wife and mother. As she leaves the city to spend the summer picking safflower on the farm of some distant relatives she is accompanied, figuratively, by her ten year old self, as the lessons and events that shaped her young life are used again to help her make that all important decision that will ultimately set the course for the rest of her life. Although the subject matter might hint at melodrama, the presentation here is really very special indeed; using reality and imagination, past and present, and the appropriation of specific, pop-cultural reference points to create this sad and somewhat tragic character who finally finds an outlet for all of her hopes and dreams in this evocative, rural setting.

If you're familiar with director Isao Takahata's earlier Ghibli film, the highly acclaimed Grave of the Fireflies (1987), then you'll be somewhat familiar with his personal approach to storytelling, which here, takes full advantage of a rural period setting, the complex relationship between the various characters, the ideas of time and memory, and a creation of a particular world that stresses realism and accuracy to almost the smallest detail. With this is mind, I'd rate Takahata as not only one of the greatest animation directors of the last twenty-five years, but one of the greatest film directors of all time; easily on a par with the likes of Andrei Tarkovsky, Yasujirō Ozu, Kenji Mizoguchi, Miklós Jancsó, Peter Watkins, Michael Powell and Akira Kurosawa, etc, with the keen eye for detail, impeccable performances (both spoken and animated) and the overall approach to the story (which is entirely personal, but still completely fascinating) enlivening the drama and taking it beyond the merely adequate conventions of animated cinema to the next conceivable level of greatness.

Although I'm three years younger than the character of Taeko as presented in the film (and from a completely different background and generation) I could completely empathise with her situation and her dream of something much more rewarding than the bland office job and the continual expectations of family and friends. As a result, the film was more satisfying and more emotionally captivating than it might have been had I failed to make such a connection. As it was, the film forced me to think about my own childhood, and indeed, what the ten year old version of me would have made of the current twenty-four year old incarnation. Even if you fail to make a similar connection with Taeko, the film still works as a result of its memorable and entirely believable characters, the clever use of storytelling and that beautifully moving and somewhat magical finale. I guess some viewers will perhaps find it slow or harder to relate to, especially if you judge it at the same level of films like Spirited Away (2000) and Howl's Moving Castle (2005), however, those in the right frame of mind and willing to give themselves up the characters - emotionally speaking - will be rewarded with one of the most beautiful and carefully realised films of the last 20 years.

As much as I love those films of Hayao Miyazaki, Only Yesterday seems to affect me in a way that is entirely personal and unforgettable. The character, as both a ten year old and as a twenty-seven year old is perfectly rendered, acted and animated. The situations that occur in her life, in both of the separate time-lines, are believable and actually add something to the drama and her eventual switch in direction in those last few scenes. For me, Only Yesterday is simply great; a modern masterpiece to rival the aforementioned Grave of the Fireflies and a must for anyone with a real appreciation for intelligent, character-based, emotionally captivating cinema.

This is probably my favorite animated film of all -- and now it looks even more beautiful than ever (thanks to the Japnese DVD release). This is a story of a 20-something "office lady" who is vaguely dissatisfied with what she sees as increasingly pointless life in the big city. As she visits the rural family of her sister's husband for a working vacation, she also revisits her fifth grade self. (The contemporary scenes are done in a fairly realistic fashion, the flashbacks have a lovely pastel look -- that would later be used even more extensively in "Our Neighbors, the Yamadas"). This film does not draw upon cartoons for its background, but on the films of Ozu and Naruse. The intelligence and sublety of the characterization is extraordinary. This also has a very appealing use of Hungarian folk music (the favored music of our heroine's young farmer friend). If you've never before sobbed tears of joy over closing credits before, you will here. (It never fails for me -- at about 7 times and counting). While Takahata's "Grave of the Fireflies" may have a more timely (and harrowing) tale to tell, I think this understated little story is even more beautiful and effective.

This is one of Studio Ghibli's less known films. It tells the story of middle-aged Taeko's gradual realization of her love for the Japanese countryside. Through frequent funny and realistic childhood coming-of-age flashbacks we see that even during moments when life seems hopelessly complicated, it's really quite simple. On a similar note, the ability of anime to refine the needlessly complicated to its essence is one of its great qualities in my opinion. The scene in which little Taeko merrily walks into the sky is an (exaggerated) example of this ability. A live action attempt to show childhood elation would be much more strained. The film does glorify farm living, but doesn't gloss over the difficulties to the extent that most films do. I was skeptical of any animated film's ability to inspire emotion for the beauty of the countryside. I mean... it's just drawings that presume to represent the real thing right? Well, the animators obviously did their research. The scenery isn't artificially...scenic, but it is very beautiful in a subdued, natural way. What most impresses me is the constantly calm mood of the film. Where other films would escalate certain situations to cheesy melodramatics, this film keeps it's feet on the ground (except for little Taeko... I love that scene). On a final note, the voice acting was superb, and the famous (among otaku) ending sequence is very uplifting. If Miramax releases a subtitled version of this, do yourself a favor and pick up a copy.