Day Seven: Majo no Takkyuubin (MotM 2017)

Also known as Kiki’s Delivery Service. Rather, I’m not sure anyone has ever called it Majo no Takkyuubin outside of Japan.

Another short post today, as I’m a little worn out from the constant day-by-day analyses. I’ll do the bare-bones version, with just enough to get my points across without sounding entirely lazy with it.

Studio Ghibli is basically the Disney of the anime world. Their movies are praised by most audiences around the world and have a nice focus on embellishing the everyday life with fantastical premises. It’s not often that one studio becomes known for cranking out hit after hit after hit for decades without fail. While not the most popular of their films, Kiki’s Delivery Service still stands as a classic in the eyes of many Ghibli enthusiasts.

I don’t get it.

By no means is it a bad film. Animation is solid, characters are likable, and the atmosphere is predictably magical. The major issue is that there isn’t any real impact to it. There’s no “oomph.” No real drama that the audience can care about, no developed moral message or social commentary (though there’s some attempt at independence vs. dependence), no resolve for the surface goal of the film. It almost feels like a slice of life, where things happen on a daily basis that feel a little more magical based on the witchiness of the female lead. Should people read my blog often, they’d know my stance on most slice of life’s.

Kiki’s Delivery Service doesn’t really take many chances. Perhaps for its time the plot could be seen as something out of the ordinary. However now, it doesn’t exactly scream “unique.” While not necessarily a problem, the possibility of a little more meat to the meal would definitely help the audience leave with a full belly—especially those with large expectations. I suppose my biggest issue with the film is the lack of an overall point. Combined with being anywhere between mediocre and above-average in most respects outside of animation and atmosphere, it doesn’t have that glaze of “classic” to me that many others would argue for it.

At the end of the day, it wasn’t something I wouldn’t watch again. It has a nice tranquility to it that makes it worth watching over and over. Though, I feel as though I’ll forget it before too long, as even with the strength of naivety and animation, it comes across as somewhat bland. It’s a nice treat made with the utmost care, but even the best of professionals have times when they’re not on fire.

Final Score: 6/10

The rating for this title and all others can be found on MyAnimeList.

For more, check out the March of the Movies Archive!