Les Murs vagabonds

This films best quality is its animation. By far this is the best thing about it. The buildings moving in the water and the underwater scenes are great. The story is really original and if the movie was shortened by twenty minutes or so, it would have worked much better. The thing that massively holds this film back are the characters and runtime. The runtime is just under two hours and it drags. The films two leads keep apologizing to each other time and time agian to where its just annoying. The mysterious conclusion on what happened at the end just seemed cheap and that they didn't know how to end it. So while there are quite a lot of positives to keep the film afloat to me, it is certainly far from perfect. That saying I think a 7/10 is deserving seeing as the film worked enough to where it had more good then bad things for it.

A lovely visual treat with an inventive story idea.

I love that this was a contemplative movie with serious culture shots fired through it. From vintage snack treats, to the feeling of growing up and the old buildings and places you frequent then lose but the memories remain. The intro credits sequence of the buildings getting built as their lives continue across the process was very well done. Strong japanese city details from the views to the sounds. Very authentic and detailed.

It is a long movie and the last 1/4 where they're jumping into the ocean to save each other got repetitive and didn't really yield the payoff for the action it delivered.

The destination wasn't as deep or perfect as it could have been but I think we knew that was going to happen by the half way mark. This movie posed thoughts rather than delivered answers and it was as much about the journey as it was the destination.

It's great to have another movie with no baddies (antagonist) or violence in it that can still hold your attention and activate your mind. Western cinema has stagnated on that concept and can't seem to think it's way out of that cul de sac. It is to Japan's credit that they can.

When it comes to the fantasy genre, anime movies have a lot to offer. Which is why I was looking forward to this movie.

Drifting Home is a movie that could have been really good. But, it tries to be 2 things at once. I admire plenty of stuff about this movie. I think there's a really sweet friendship at the core of the movie, some good teenage drama (except for one character, who I thought was very annoying), a couple of good character stories, interesting supernatural entities and really good direction. There are many shots in this movie which are beautifully drawn. And it actually has some intense escape sequences which I didn't expect.

It's just that this movie can't decide what it is. If this was a 90 minute school drama, I might have really enjoyed this. If it was a supernatural mystery with some character building as well, I would have really enjoyed that as well, because the first hour was a great setup for a mystery. But it's neither of those things. It takes 2 hours of runtime trying to be both at once which didn't work for me. Since it sees itself as a drama it doesn't explain many of the supernatural stuff that happens convenient for the sake of the characters and the plot. And the drama in the middle of all the disastrous stuff happening, worked for once but it got really repetitive after a while. In the end it just dragged on and got a bit messy. I don't think it's bad at all. It's just that it could have been a lot more than it is.

This show could have been good if they didnt rely on unruly children being annoying and bickering the whole time to create drama and obstacles.

The art is great, the theme is unique. But the characters are just completely unbearable.

The children all looking back at their life remembering their best memories when they are like 12 years old is super annoying, they make them reminisce like they have lived these long traumatic lives full of woes and hardships. These are kids, not 50 year olds meeting up for a class reunion.

Kid being a jerk to everyone just to be a jerk. Other kid being a jerk just because hes selfish. Other kid being a jerk because the other kids being selfish.

The only likeable characters are the ones that seem more like side characters just there to fill the empty space.

Very complex plot not intended for kids. At the surface the plot might seems a supernatural teenage story. But for old school Japanese anime lovers they would appreciate and understand the story which discusses childhood trauma and its effect (isolation, anger, emotional numbness and failed relationships).

The plot was extraordinary, using the water and storms as metaphor for emotions and feelings and stressing on the importance of close relationships.

I don't understand the low rating of the movie, I think most of people didn't get it. It reminds me so much of studio ghibli movies, entertaining but with an important message.

A movie that provoks emotions and leave you with a feeling of loss and relief at the same time.