I accidentally saw that "Mary and the Flower of Magic" is a new work by Mirin Hongchang, the director of "Arrietty the Borrower". Because I like Arrietty very much, I want to see it. When I walked into the movie theater, I found out that it was in Mandarin, and I wanted to cry without tears.
Kittens, brooms, little girls with ponytails, little boys with distinct characteristics... This movie looks like a combined version of "Arrietty the Borrower" and "The Witch's Delivery Service".
Since "Arrietty" and "Mary" are both works by Mirin Hongchang, let's talk about them together.
Let’s start with the story of Mary.
"Mary is such a quick-tempered girl. When she sees something interesting, she immediately does it..." At the beginning of the animation, the nanny scolded Mary with love.
"Isn't that her virtue!" said Aunt Charlotte. The movie borrowed the words of the aunt who was a witch, and explained Mary's character in one sentence: courage.
If there is something you want to do, do it right away, don't delay, don't hesitate, dare to think and do it, this is indeed a better advantage than a disadvantage. How many people can't get this kind of life attitude!
In the story, the little girl Mary was sent to her aunt's house in the countryside for the summer vacation. By chance, she discovered the magical flower of "night flight" in the forest. Guided by the flowers, Mary rode a broom to a magical school of magic. After the principal knew that Mary had a magical flower, he took Mary's good friend Peter away. At a critical moment, Mary overcomes her inner fear and bravely enters the wizarding school alone to rescue Peter and other animals controlled by the headmaster.
Let's talk about the story of Arrietty.
Arrietty's story is actually very simple. She and her parents are little people who borrow things to get by, living in the house of Xiang who moved to the countryside to recuperate because of a bad heart. When borrowing things, the two met, and then met and knew each other. But if the little man is found, he must move. To survive even in danger, the little people have always worked hard to survive, they desperately tried to survive. Because of the move, the two separated and the story ended. But Xiang's words still moved me: "Arrietty, you are already a part of my heart, and I will never forget you." It was Arrietty who gave Xiang the courage to survive.
I have to say, I prefer Arrietty. The film doesn't have Mary's grandiose struggle against danger and darkness. Rather, it is a subtle and silent moving. Xiang has been in poor health since he was a child and can't do anything. But when he saw Arrietty, he hoped to do something, to have the strength to protect her. When saying goodbye, Xiang said, "Fortunately, I caught up..." Just these little things moved me to tears. For me, the little things in the silent place can move people more; for me, what can move me to cry is a good work.
Make a brief comparison.
[Ghibli and non-Ghibli]: "Arrietty" is Mirin Hiroshi's debut work, which was created by Miyazaki as a disciple of Hayao Miyazaki when he was still in Studio Ghibli. Ghibli's animations, with beautiful pictures, well-made, and warm stories, always resonate with people. When creating "Mary", Milin Hongchang had already fried Ghibli squid. However, even without Ghibli, there are still many shadows of Ghibli in the style of the movie, the soundtrack, and even the appearance of the characters.
[Meeting of the hero and heroine]: The encounter between Arrietty and Xiang was when Arrietty went to borrow something, and the hero discovered her. He told Arrietty not to worry, not to be afraid. But she was still nervous and lost a sugar cube in a panic. Later, Xiang put the sugar cube where Arrietty lived, and wrote a sentence: You forgot to take it with you. At the end of the story, when the two parted, the sugar cube appeared once. This time, Arrietty took the sugar cube from Xiang, probably because she thought she would never see Xiang again, so she took the sugar cube with her. Yep. And the encounter between Mary and Peter was a bit funny. Mary was breaking free from a basket full of leaves, and was seen by Peter, who happened to deliver the letter. Peter saw her red hair and jokingly called her "red-haired girl" ', making Mary unhappy. But in fact, isn't this just a prank by a little boy.
【Cat's Traction】Cat plays an important traction role in both films. In "Mary and the Flower of Magic", Peter's cat took Mary into the forest, and there was a follow-up story. In Arrietty the Borrower, Arrietty had to move because she was discovered by humans. On the way to the house, it was Xiang's cat who took Xiang to find Arrietty, catching up with the last goodbye.
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