Mune: Guardian of the Moon

It is so refreshing to find an original story beautifully and simply told without being overblown. It avoids many of the Disney clichés with regards to evil villains who are simply "boo" fodder, sidekicks who are there only to provide comedy relief etc. Instead we have characters who are flawed rather than being simply good or bad. It is almost Zeussian in its weirdness, but the fantasy all adds to its gentle charm.

This was such a unique movie, and I really appreciated it for that, but on the other hand, it was so unique that there's no way I could have gotten some of my family to sit through it. It's almost too slow and complex for young children, so I'm not sure who the target audience really was. It was like watching art in motion. It was refreshingly different. I'd recommend it to people, but I can't say it's become a favorite.

7.75 of 10. Stylistically and in terms of the quality of animation and imagery, one of the best recent cartoon films. The story is pure fantasy and works as sort of new a fairy tale clearly for children but with various themes that make it enjoyable for everyone in a family and certainly safe enough for kids to enjoy alone.

The deeper messages of the story involve the complexity of the universe and the benefits of working positively with one another as opposed to alone with minions doing your bidding under the threat of your power. The other ongoing message is a softened version of curiosity killing the cat. Curiosity here is both good and can get you into serious trouble, as can over confidence, arrogance, and too much power.

The story and cartoon is all woven together, as is the cartoon within the cartoon. It also makes beautiful use of new voice actors as opposed to relying on stars. It deserves to catch on as an underground classic that the critics and production corporations failed to identify and properly distribute.

Animation - All around the animation in this movie is just beautiful. All the different visuals and ideas in this movie are just wonderful. This is worth watching just for the appearance alone.

Story - This is a movie that is full of brilliant concepts, but they don't all tie into each other very well. The pacing is all over the place. Maybe if the movie was longer or had a better script it could've worked better. The only version I could find was with the English dub, and not the original though. Maybe some of it is more interesting in the original and maybe the story flows smoother, but based on the length of scenes I doubt it. The story isn't terrible, just a bit disjointed and generic at times.

Characters - This movie is a bit light on the character development. It probably could've spent more time on developing any of the characters. Honestly one of the biggest problems with this movie is that it is way too short.

Glim - (this bit might contain spoilers) Glim is a character whose concept is more interesting than her personality. She is a person made of candle wax that melts when too hot and freezes when too cold. Its kind of a cool idea. The problem is, she is completely unnecessary. Glim combines two of the tropes I hate the most - completely bland an unnecessary love interest, and the fake-out death. She could've been removed from the story completely (along with those "comic relief" demon things) and nothing would've been changed. The only reason I can see for why she is in the movie is so that there is a female character. If the movie really needed a female character though then why not make one of the guardians a girl?

Found 'Mune: Guardian of the Moon' in HMV a week ago and only got round to watching it a couple of days ago, as a hopeful remedy from having stumbled upon and watched a number of badly done animated films. The film actually looked and sounded good, so expectations were hopeful.

Expectations that were not just met but exceeded. 'Mune: Guardian of the Moon' stands out as one of the better animated films seen recently by quite a considerable distance, of the animated films seen in the past week it is one of the best looking and is also one of the most thought-provoking and entertaining. Perhaps the still very charming and touchingly sweet romance was not as necessary as it could have been and Sohone's frequent comments on girls and ladies are tiresomely repetitive and will induce their fair share of cringes and eye-rolls (for a film with so much heart these distracted somewhat).

However, the animation is incredible. Not in a long time in animation has there been a more wondrously and imaginatively rendered world, which makes it as easy as pie to get properly immersed in and be transported. The colours are truly a feast on the eyes, everything is very smoothly designed and the backgrounds and details, from the little things all the way up to the big effects, will amaze anyone with the richness and depth of the detail.

There is a great music score too, capturing the whimsy, ethereal sparkle and mystery of the story and world effortlessly. The writing does a fine job of not only entertaining but also intriguing. There's plenty for the whole family, regardless of age and gender, to be amused and charmed at, while there is a surprising amount of sincere depth here which gives 'Mune: Guardian of the Moon' a refreshingly unexpected amount of heart.

Story-wise, 'Mune: Guardian of the Moon' is remarkably complex while with enough simplicity to not lose younger children. Older children and adults will be amazed at the story and world's individual complexity while still making sense and treating its audience with respect. There is plenty of imagination here and the positive messaging makes its point but with more subtlety and tact than most films incorporating similar messaging. While there is a lot of style here, there is also a lot of heart.

'Mune: Guardians of the Moon' excels with its characters too. While not complex as such, these characters are both interesting and likable. The chemistry between Mune and Glim is very charming. The voice acting is very good and dynamic.

In summary, luminous and beautiful, a refreshing much-needed antidote. 8/10 Bethany Cox