Quartile rating: 7.5/10 · 1 rating
Follows the behind-the-scenes work of Studio Ghibli, focusing on the notable figures Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, and Toshio Suzuki.
A rare, intimate fly-on-the-wall documentary capturing Miyazaki and Takahata at work during a genuine creative crossroads (The Wind Rises and The Tale of Princess Kaguya simultaneously in production). Its novelty is exceptional — almost no outsider access to Studio Ghibli had ever been granted at this level, and the candid portraits of two aging masters wrestling with mortality, legacy, and craft are singular. Cinematography is competent and observational but not formally adventurous. The loose, episodic structure works as verite but lacks narrative propulsion, and the ending, while elegiac, trails off rather than arriving with impact. Acting is not applicable in the traditional sense; the documentary subjects are authentic and compelling but uneven in screen presence.