The directorial debut of renowned anime screenwriter Mari Okada is finally out in theaters in Japan. Kim Morrissy finds out if this highly anticipated fantasy film lives up to the hype.
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Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms
Sayonara no Asa ni Yakusoku no Hana wo Kazarou · さよならの朝に約束の花をかざろう · 2018
An eternal girl raises a mortal child through the years.
Synopsis
Erial, a young woman from the immortal Iolph clan, is torn from her homeland during a violent raid and finds herself raising an orphaned human infant alone in an unfamiliar world. As the years pass and the child grows into adulthood, Erial barely ages at all, forcing her to confront the quiet grief of loving someone whose life will always move faster than her own. The film traces decades of their bond, exploring motherhood, mortality, and the ache of watching someone you love grow old without you.
Trailer
Characters
22
Staff
1582nd Key Animation21
ADR Director2
Animation Check1
Animation Director5
Art Director2
Assistant Animation Director4
Assistant Director1
Background Art11
Character Design3
Studios
Main Studio
HakiPoints
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I wavered between four and five stars on this. I thought the dialogue was often overwrought, much too maudlin and/or pretentious.
Read full reviewMari Okada's directorial debut film is finally available on Blu-ray! Theron Martin gives his full review of this underappreciated fantasy feature.
Read full reviewIn her directorial debut Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms, Mari Okada weaves a beautiful story about motherhood, aging, and loss.
Read full reviewOkada reaches for the stars but doesn't quite get there.
Read full reviewThis female-centred story set among dragons and ancient clans is a sentimental tale of motherhood and ageing
Read full reviewThis high fantasy dragons'n'immortals tale is visually seductive, if somewhat sentimental
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