My Neighbors the Yamadas (A)

[thistlechaser]

My hard drive (which seemed so big when I bought it) keeps getting full, so today I'm trying to watch some old stuff so I can delete delete delete.

Tonari no Yamada-kun (My Neighbors the Yamadas) is a Studio Ghibli movie from just five years ago, so I was hoping it'd be good. I'm not really sure what it was, but "good" wouldn't be a word I would use to describe it. (On the other hand, I wouldn't exactly call it "bad", either. "Boring as all hell"? Yes, but for some reason not all-out "bad".)

The animation style was ultra, ultra simplistic. For the most part, there were no backgrounds at all -- just white. That screenshot at least has a splash of color behind the characters.

Tonari has no storyline, no real plot, and no climax at the end. Instead, through a series of mostly realistic short scenes, it tells about the life of typical Japanese married couple. It was only the very few less realistic scenes that I enjoyed, and my favorite one was about the married couple "having" children:

To get their first child, the couple goes floating down the river until they spot something. (My first thought was that that was a bare butt. See? "I like big butts and I cannot lie...") They pull it onto their boat, but drop it by mistake and a baby bursts out of the peach and into the air. Luckily they catch it.

Perhaps shocked by the explosive arrival of their first child, they try a different way to get a second one. Daddy jumps off the boat with a knife in hand and wanders through the growth of bamboo. When he finds a tree he likes, slice! What ever could be inside?

Though they stick with two children, they make one last stop. This was my favorite part of the scene. Peeking around... Yep! babies in the cabbage heads! The colors during this scene were so pretty. If the whole movie had been done in this style, I would have loved it.

Unfortunately the "birthing" children scene only lasts a minute or two. The whole movie was an hour and fifty minutes, but honestly it felt like ten hours. I could have (or should have) stopped watching it, but I kept expecting something to happen. In a way it was sort of semi-interesting to see into a normal life, but... it was just so so so boring.

And for a last bit of confusion, though the movie is titled "My Neighbors the Yamadas", the Yamadas were the main characters and it was told from their POV...

Comments

[flutterbyjaz.livejournal.com]

Sounds like the film (or at least the sections you liked) was/were based on Momotaro (peach boy) and some other popular myths.
Momotaro is a myth about a boy who comes out of a peach floating down the river. I forget what the whole poin of the story was, prolly be happy with the gifts you're given or something. The animation does look simplistic, maybe it was intended for young audiences, considering the content you supplied. It also looks a bit old, maybe it was just recently translated??
Hope that helped a bit, and sorry if I am intruding... I was skimming and I can't help but say something when it comes down to Japanese language and/or culture. I'm a little spaztik! 8)

Re:

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Ah, that makes sense! "Babies born in the cabbage patch" is sort of a myth-ish story, too. I've not heard of Momotaro before, but that seems to fit.

The animation does look simplistic, maybe it was intended for young audiences, considering the content you supplied. It also looks a bit old, maybe it was just recently translated??

I'm not exactly sure who it was intended for, but I suspect an adult. (I think a kid would be even more bored, what with talk of going to work every day and housekeeping and all that.)

I thought it looked old as well, but it was released by the studio in... um, 1999 or 1995, I forget now which it was.

And you're not intruding at all! Thanks for the comment!

Re:

[flutterbyjaz.livejournal.com]

Well, if it was released as recently as that, then it was probably purposely simplistic. And maybe you're right about the adult audiences, although, it could have been for teaching purposes as well. Us foreigners don't usually know stuff like that. ;) You're definately welcome. :)

[hamburger.livejournal.com]

... and the story with the bamboo is also based on a myth! Although, if I remember correctly, it's a Chinese myth. One that I do believe they told in 'Big Bird Goes to China' (but I think that special was made long after your childhood, Thistle.). Something about a princess who emerged from bamboo.

I can think of one Miyazaki flick you still haven't seen! ;) (No. I never give up.)

Re:

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Oh, cool! I figured the bamboo one was probably a myth, too. Thanks for the confirmation!

I can think of one Miyazaki flick you still haven't seen! ;) (No. I never give up.)

Heeheehee. There's a guy who's BTing all of the Miyazaki/Ghibli movies, so unless he gives up before finishing them all, eventually I'll reach it!