Ask Movie Slate - Episode 251 - Kiki’s Delivery Service

Seriously tho, this movie is excellent.

You have a wonderful setting, with very likeable characters, and the most simple storyline of all. A witch moves out of her home to start the next step of her life. That’s it.

Combine that with the beautiful Miyazaki animation, the super charming writing, the good character arcs, and Joe Hisaishi’s iconic score, and you have a downright wonderful movie. Definitely check this one out!

And now, if you excuse me, I need to figure out this flying. Oh dear.

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Today’s Movie Slate is brought to you thanks to Yonlionz.

“Kiki’s Delivery Service” is, perhaps, my favorite Hayao Miyazaki movie. It’s not a matter of contest, or to imply that Miyazaki is a perfect director, but this is as closest to perfection as one his movies has ever gotten for me. In part it’s thanks to how simple and straight forward the story is. A witch moves out of her home to start a new life in a seaside town. There you go, that’s it. What follows it’s a solid set of character arcs with various degrees of satisfying conclusions, memorable set pieces (the cat in the bird cage, the crows with the artist in the cabin, the fish pie, the Zeppelin climax), all bathed in Joe Hisaishi’s iconic music.

Not to say it’s fully perfect, mind. I said it’s close to perfection, but there’s a couple wrinkles. The songs are kind of insufferable. A movie like this didn’t need songs in it. As much as the Zeppelin ending is enjoyable it’s kind of a jarring contrast with how laid back and slice-of-life everything has felt up until that point. And the character of the bitchy granddaughter could’ve used a bit of fleshing out.

But these are just small wrinkles on a movie that’s smooth, fun and enjoyable from beginning to end. There’s nothing else like it and it’s just a hexing good time.