Srta. Hokusai

As others have noted, some of the musical choices can be a bit off-kilter, but perhaps they are meant to demonstrate that bustling Tokugawa-era Edo was every bit as exciting as modern-day Tokyo. The animation is gorgeous, and the fact that "Miss Hokusai" does not follow traditional biopic conventions only strengthens it. It also passes the Bechdel test with flying colors, without being historically inaccurate. With all the interest around Hokusai and woodblock prints in the West, it's unfortunate that this film was not publicized more.

American films are a shallow, inane mess. That's why people go see foreign films at art houses. They want to feel good about themselves, and they want to look good to others. Miss Hokusai probably isn't playing in theaters anymore. But if it was, it's a great place to take a date if you want to impress them with your amazing and elitist tastes.

I'm not one for typical anime. And of the other anime-ish films that were big in America - Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, etc. - I guess I kind of liked them, but I'm not sure why, other than I'm supposed to like them, and it's good and right to like them. Agree, NPR crowd?

Well. Miss Hokusai is a film critic's dream. As soon as I saw it playing at my local college town theatre, I already knew it got 100% from Metacritic and consistent red tomatoes on Rotten Tomatoes. Film critics' tastes are extremely predictable. The more pretentious and experimental a film, the more it merits 5 stars, or 10 stars, or whatever's the highest rating of X publication or website.

Why Miss Hokusai gets rave reviews from critics:

-It's Japanese anime-ish, and critics and TED lecture fans alike all salivate for those.

-It has - gasp! - LBGT in there, and it's not even implied or subdued!!

-I don't know what the f--- it's about, but it sure looks good!

-Japanese Edo period, about famous artist/painter! Critics love artsiness.

-Beautiful Japanese anime-ish characters! Critics appreciate different cultures.

-Japan, Japan, oh how they love and adore Japan!

-Gorgeous 19th-century Edo cityscape and scenery. Critics adore and appreciate cinematography, history, architecture, and the outdoors - a plus if it's a different culture!

-And what is the film about again? I don't care, it seems experimental and cool, so I'll upvote it!

Anyway, I'm guilty of thinking like critics, so I was pretty impressed with the film, and I enjoyed it. I'd hate to say this, but it really is way better than typical American films. Art-house elitism!

We meet O-Ei, grown daughter of the famous Japanese painter Hokusai. She has a younger sister, O-Nao, who is blind. (O-Ei's name was actually Katsushka Ōi, but it also appears as "O-Ei".) Hokusai is depicted as a gruff, single-minded man, living in his studio, apart from his wife and children. The blind young sister is invented - as is most of the rest of the story. But she plays a very important part.

There are great moments here. One incredibly beautiful moment occurs near the end of the film. And of course, there's a delightful scene involving his most famous print, "The Great Wave off Kanagawa".

The animation is beautifully done, in typical Japanese fashion. Not as beautifully as Miyazaki, but still, good.

The story covers a lot of ground, including the Japanese form of erotic art (shunga). Part of that thread involves an important plot element.

The musical score is very Western and modern, which could be a little off-putting. As the credits went by, I saw one of the song titles given in Spanish!.

It's a movie that keeps you involved, and doesn't let you nod off.

PS: Keep your eyes on the little dog that shows up at the beginning.

In 1814 Edo, Japan, a master artist Katsushika Hokusai, known as Tetsuzo, and his daughter O-Ei spend their time creating splendid paintings, some on commission and some just because. Tetsuzo lives away from his wife and younger daughter, who is blind, and he tends to have little to do with them, perhaps because he is afraid of illness and disability. Instead, he instructs O-Ei and others in his art, but in some ways his daughter outstrips even his talent. This lands them in trouble on occasion, for example when one of her paintings is believed by its owner to be enchanted by devils, but Tetsuzo knows how to make things right again. If only his daughter wasn't so hot-headed!

This is a beautifully rendered anime based on a manga, Sarusuberi; having not read the manga, I don't know how faithful the film is to the source material. In any event, it looks lovely and the story of the artists' lives is very well told. It has more of an episodic feel to it than a straight plot-line, but since Tetsuzo was apparently a real person in 19th Century Edo (now Tokyo), that method of story-telling works very well. If you like anime, you'll love this movie.

Miss Hokusai is a "slice of life" animation, it portrays the characters' at their daily lives in briskly light mood. It may set in one of the most romanticized eras, yet it's mostly a few short stories about artists, especially the heroine Oei, woven together. This is a tribute to Japanese classic painting ukiyo-e, the tumultuous time told in different light and appreciation of the artists themselves.

Oei is the daughter of talented painter Hokusai, who has a knack for painting herself. She can be crude at times, but she gives of warm subtle kindness, especially with her drawings. There's no great dilemma or adventure, although it presents a few strange mysteries. The animation is more of a method to appreciate the art as it changes constantly when the characters do narrative or monologue.

It uses classic touches on the tales, which can seem supernatural yet bizarrely fitting for that particular era. The setting is made with great care, details like the street corner or dimmed room with faint light of candles provide fine atmosphere for these characters to play in. Occasionally, they would talk in vague words, it's not a drama where people yell at each other frequently, there's a restrained on their mannerisms.

Miss Hokusai is a nice homage to early art works, celebrated by modern Japanese animation, it's quaint, unimposing and warmly colorful.