critics consensus

With a story as uninspired as its animation, Earwig and the Witch is a surprising -- and near-total -- misfire for Studio Ghibli. Read critic reviews

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Earwig and the Witch Videos

Earwig and the Witch: Trailer 1

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Earwig and the Witch Photos

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Movie Info

Growing up in an orphanage in the British countryside, Earwig has no idea that her mother had magical powers. Her life changes dramatically when a strange couple takes her in, and she is forced to live with a selfish witch. As the headstrong young girl sets out to uncover the secrets of her new guardians, she discovers a world of spells and potions, and a mysterious song that may be the key to finding the family she has always wanted.

Rating:

PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Genre:

adventure, animation, fantasy, kids and family
Original Language:

English
Director:

Goro Miyazaki
Producer:

Toshio Suzuki
Writer:

Keiko Niwa, Emi Gunji
Release Date (Theaters):

Feb 3, 2021 limited
Release Date (Streaming):

Mar 23, 2021

Cast & Crew

Richard E. Grant
The Mandrake

Kacey Musgraves
Earwig's Mother

Dan Stevens
Thomas

Taylor Paige Henderson
Earwig

Vanessa Marshall
Bella Yaga

Pandora Colin
Matron

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News & Interviews for Earwig and the Witch

TV Premiere Dates 2021

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Critic Reviews for Earwig and the Witch

All Critics (45) | Top Critics (13) | Fresh (15) | Rotten (30)

There's very little stakes and there's very little character goals, so it's hard to get invested in the story or the characters.

February 11, 2021 | Rating: C- | Full Review…

Chris Stuckmann
ChrisStuckmann.com
Even if far from being top-tier Ghibli, it's not without its fantastical pleasures.

February 6, 2021 | Full Review…

Carlos Aguilar
Los Angeles Times
If Ghibli wanted to make their own mockbuster, then they pulled it off.

February 6, 2021 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…

Richard Whittaker
Austin Chronicle
From its whisper of a plot to its thinly sketched characters and joltingly ugly animation, it feels like a cheap knockoff of Studio Ghibli, even if it is the real thing.

February 5, 2021 | Full Review…

Kristy Puchko
Pajiba
It sacrifices Studio Ghibli's hand-drawn style but it's the absence of the studio's usual emotional beats that's the bigger problem.

February 4, 2021 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

Nick Dent
Time Out
Earwig's themes are so disjointed that it's not quite clear what the takeaway is.

February 4, 2021 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

Aja Romano
Vox
Largely ugly and off-putting.

April 9, 2021 | Rating: 2/4 | Full Review…

Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
The very thing that makes it novel, the change in format, also proves to be a drawback for viewers who are familiar with Studio Ghibli's body of work...it's a good thing, then that the younger Miyazaki is not aiming for realism...

March 2, 2021 | Full Review…

Rubén Rosario
Pop Culture Pros
An empty product that has all the ingredients of a successful Ghibli film with seemingly no idea how to put them together.

February 27, 2021 | Rating: 1.5/4 | Full Review…

Matthew Lucas
From the Front Row
The story follows a young girl and how she learns to exercise her sense of agency in new surroundings.

February 22, 2021 | Rating: 4.0/5.0 | Full Review…

Peter Martin
ScreenAnarchy
The film marks a new chapter for Studio Ghibli that opens it up to innovation as a new decade begins, and after watching Earwig and the Witch, fans of the studio will be eager for whatever projects come next.

February 22, 2021 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…

Megan Peters
ComicBook.com
Book-based CGI fantasy has scares, lacks spark.

February 20, 2021 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…

Sandie Angulo Chen
Common Sense Media