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      Ponyo

      2008, Adventure/Fantasy, 1h 40m

      174 Reviews 50,000+ Ratings

      What to know

      Critics Consensus

      While not Miyazaki's best film, Ponyo is a visually stunning fairy tale that's a sweetly poetic treat for children of all ages. Read critic reviews

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      Movie Info

      During a forbidden excursion to see the surface world, a goldfish princess encounters a human boy named Sosuke, who gives her the name Ponyo. Ponyo longs to become human, and as her friendship with Sosuke grows, she becomes more humanlike. Ponyo's father brings her back to their ocean kingdom, but so strong is Ponyo's wish to live on the surface that she breaks free, and in the process, spills a collection of magical elixirs that endanger Sosuke's village.

      • Rating: G

      • Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Anime

      • Original Language: Japanese

      • Director: Hayao Miyazaki

      • Producer: Toshio Suzuki

      • Writer: Melissa Mathison, Hayao Miyazaki

      • Release Date (Theaters):  wide

      • Release Date (Streaming):

      • Box Office (Gross USA): $15.1M

      • Runtime:

      • Distributor: Walt Disney

      • Production Co: Studio Ghibli, Walt Disney Studios

      • Sound Mix: Dolby Digital Surround EX, Dolby Digital

      • Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

      Cast & Crew

      Cate Blanchett
      Matt Damon
      Liam Neeson
      Tina Fey
      Noah Cyrus
      Frankie Jonas
      Cloris Leachman
      Lily Tomlin
      Betty White
      Kurt Knutsson
      Jennessa Rose
      John Lasseter
      Brad Lewis
      Peter Sohn
      Kathleen Kennedy
      Frank Marshall
      Steve Alpert
      John Lasseter
      Hayao Miyazaki
      Hayao Miyazaki
      Joe Hisaishi

      News & Interviews for Ponyo

      Critic Reviews for Ponyo

      Audience Reviews for Ponyo

      • Feb 14, 2016

        Probably my least favorite of Miyazaki's films, mostly because this is just so damn weird. The story is badly explained, and the animation is uncharacteristically shitty at times (at least compared to Miyazaki's work in general, which is usually of the highest quality). The characters look like they're made of fucking Jello half the time. What really annoys me is despite how crazy, unusual, and magical all of the events of the movie are, no one seems to even give a shit. There are waves like 200 feet tall, ancient fish swimming everywhere, and a fish who turns into a girl, and no one even cares! Why does no one give a shit in this film about anything?! That's what really bothers me here, along with all of the other issues that plague this film.

        Stephen S Super Reviewer
      • Apr 08, 2012

        Ponyo does run a bit too long and treads into a million different directions at the same time, but it is a lush fairy tale filled with imagination and ingenuity. The entire affair seems to have been written and animated from the perspective of a child, with actions exaggerated, larger than life situations and fanciful images around every corner. The story lacks complete explanations of some points for audiences-maybe there is a problem in the American culture-but really, no bother. Ponyo can be both nightmarish and graceful, gorgeous to look at and perplexing all at the same time. It's about friendship which transcends looks, abilities, flaws or family.

        Super Reviewer
      • Jan 16, 2012

        For American animated movies, the forefront of this genre is obviously Pixar. The studio manages to attract children and adults with its great storytelling, gorgeous and fluid animation, and memorable characters... Hayao Miyazaki is arguably on the same caliber as Pixar. If "Ponyo" were a well of imagination, it would be shooting up water all over the place. It's overflowing with very diverse, strange, and unique imaginative settings, effects, and characters. See, the thing about Pixar is how they take stories that have occurred to adults and place them upon cute animals, children, or children-friendly protagonists. The journey these characters take are tweaked to appeal to children but "Ponyo"... wow, everything is created from the imaginative vision and mind of a child. There's creepy imagery and strange concepts going on, but "Ponyo" is entertaining throughout. The transition from the Japanese voice actors to the American? Almost flawless. Great move to get professional A-list actors to substitute for the original voice actors -- I wouldn't even know if the Japanese version or American is better. The only problem I had with this movie is that though it is visually spectacular, it could've been MORE entertaining but other then that, "Ponyo" is one of those animated movies that any child and adult will willingly invest their attention to.

        Super Reviewer
      • Sep 22, 2011

        Sosuke: Mom! Ponyo came back, and she's a little girl now! "Welcome To A World Where Anything Is Possible." Ponyo, simply put, is one of the best animated films I have seen. It's a beautiful and overall delightful movie that is just a joy to watch. It kind of makes you feel like your five years old again. It sucks you in and you can't take your eyes off it. It is like watching another, better world. The film does what a lot of animated movies don't, in that it is as engrossing plot wise as it is visually. And that's saying a lot because visually this is a masterpiece. The story starts with a five year old boy, Sosuke, finding a gold fish in the ocean. He names it Ponyo and spends the say with it only to lose it at sea and that's when the real magic starts. The American version has a superb voice cast including Cate Blanchett, Liam Neeson, Matt Damon and Tina Fey. The film has enormous heart which is shown through the love of Sosuke and Ponyo. It isn't as confusing as I had expected, but it does have some elements of, "So what is going on?" I would expect kids to be infatuated with this movie though, purely because of the spectacle. Little kids don't need to understand every little detail of the plot, they just need something beautiful to look at and this is it. For adults, it has a lot of substance and makes for an extremely enjoyable hundred minutes. Family films don't come much better than this.

        Super Reviewer

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