What a tear-jerker of a movie. I don’t exactly know how this movie compared to the original TV series of the seventies, but damn, it was so worth it. An excellent recommendation if you’re looking for a sad and depressing movie that’s full of emotions.
This is just one of those recap movies that just works: the creators successfully stuffed the story it’s based on in 90 minutes, and they more than gave the lead character of Marco credit. When a recap movie can get such a huge emotional response out of me like with this movie, I really don’t have any complaints.
The story of Marco is an endearing one, as he travels from the middle of Italy to the middle of Argentine in order to see his mother again. The reason why this movie works is his fantastic characterization throughout his journey. He’ such a lovable character and yet he has to go through so many ordeals in order to get to his destination. And it’s not like this is a stereotypical world in which everyone is against him either: some people are nice, others are just tired of street-kids and treat him roughly. Like most of Nippon Animation’s literary adaptations, the setting is very realistic.
As for the flaws… it does make use of the “useless mother”-cliche, but heck: for once it’s central to the plot, so it’s not that big of a deal. At heart, this movie doesn’t just show the ordeals of a small kid, but also tries to show us who he is, what drives him and what he wants to be when he grows up. It’s a movie that has lots of the charms of a regular World Masterpiece Theatre series, cropped up into just an hour and a half. I’m still amazed at how well and complete the result turned out.
In any case, this is the last thing you’ll see of me this decade. Have a happy end of the year, everyone!
| Storytelling: | 9/10 – Realistic, heart-wrenching and yet not overdoing the drama. |
| Characters: | 9/10 – Marco is such an engaging character. |
| Production-Values: | 8/10 – Simple graphics, but the animation is fluid and the music is powerful. |
| Setting: | 9/10 – Ah, the realism! |
Thank you, this is one of my favorite anime films ever made. The music is probably the most incredible part of the film. I was also surprised all the females in the movie looks rather manly lol but hey that’s Italian women I guess? JOKE JOKE! The portrayal of Latin American culture was done incredibly well too, the more cruel nature of some groups, and the more genuine kind side of the others.