Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke) has earned his reputation as one of animation’s most respected and revered personalities, and with the English-language release of his latest film Ponyo (originally Gake no Ue no Ponyo, or Ponyo on the Cliff), his position is safely secured.  Released through the unique coupling of Walt Disney Pictures and Studio Ghibli under the skilled tutelage of Pixar’s John Lasseter (Toy Story, Cars), the director’s latest effort is an embarrassment of visual and narrative riches, ranking among his most poetic work and easily one of the year’s most endearing releases.

Loosely based on Hans Christen Anderson’s original Little Mermaid tale, Ponyo follows the friendship between 5-year old Sosuke and the titular character Ponyo, the little fish-girl (referenced in the film as a goldfish, but looking nothing like one) who longs to be human after being saved from certain doom from a discarded bottle.  However, these dreams are soon dashed by Ponyo’s wizard-like father, Fujimoto, a guardian of the sea who detests the human interference on his domain’s ecosystem, and forbids his daughter to return to the surface.  Ponyo escapes, using her father’s magic to take human (and occasionally chicken-like) form, allowing her to return to Sosuke and inadvertently setting off a chain of events that may lead to the destruction of the world.

Curious parents should take note that Ponyo, much like Pixar’s own Miyazaki-inspired fable Up, offers a view of parenting and familial situations that are seldom touched on in modern cinema.  Sosuke’s family unit, complete with two working parents and thoughtful community showing the 5-year old a tremendous amount of trust, touches upon moments that will be more than familiar to some of the film’s youngest (and possibly older) viewers.  The film is just as sympathetic to the needs of its adult characters as its younger ones, never rendering their behavior (some questionable) as villainous or evil, instead attempts to find common ground between love and necessity.  Miyazaki handles this delicately; perhaps the most apt comparison would be his own My Neighbor Totoro.

The budding friendship between Sosuke and Ponyo (in both human and fish-form) feels real, touched with the type of honesty and believability that child characters are often denied in film.  Furthermore, they act their age, approaching their world and circumstances as best they can and with complete sincerity in tone and action.  Films that elevate the younger often do as to the detriment of the older, misjudging the audiences ability to figure things out and (like Sosuke and Ponyo) appreciate their world on their own level.  This lack of patronization is evident in every frame, and wholly welcome in a digital world of children gone (artificially) wild.

The animation on display is thrilling, painted in stunning clarity and with such a minds-eye attention to color and detail that younger eyes accustomed to the computerized efficiency of modern CG may suffer temporary sugar-shock.  The locales (which include real-life island port of Tomonoura) are rendered with all the warmth and personality of storybook illustrations, interacting with moving parts and positively overflowing with life.  The brain recognizes that children walk/leap down stairs differently than their larger adult counterparts, while at other times the utter strangeness of the unfamiliar demand the bend and stretch that only animation can supply them.

The film’s key and most iconic moment, Ponyo’s return to land via a thunderous tsunami is a stunning reminder of the power of moving pictures – reports have the director himself animating much of this sequence, allowing us to share in this endlessly delightful expression of imagination and surrealism.  Some have worried that smaller children may be frightened with some of the aquatic imagery of this scene, but it’s more likely their young minds will simply be dazzled at what’s on-screen.  I know I was.

Those either worried or who would traditionally ignore ‘dubbed’ animation imports needn’t, as the production has (as with all English-language Miyazaki editions) once again been handled with intrinsic care by none other than Pixar’s John Lasseter, whose own achievements in animation easily stand alongside those of his subject.  The English cast, which includes Liam Neeson, Tina, Fey, Matt Damon, and Cate Blanchett in pivotal speaking roles, were particularly sublime, never allowing their celebrity to upstage the overall picture, allowing their performances to effortlessly blend in.  It was also quite wonderful to hear the trio of female comedians, Lily Tomlin, Cloris Leachman, and Betty White working together as the elderly Himawara Nursing Home residents found of little Sosuke.  Lasseter’s translation and vocal directions are both respectful and (as with his Pixar projects) overwhelmingly effective.

The opportunity to experience a Hayao Miyazaki film on the big-screen is a treat worth savoring, and one not to be missed.  Where fans place Ponyo among the director’s impressive library of works will be difficult to guess, although I’m certain its position will shift and shuffle to each viewers unique rhythms and personal experiences.  Such is often the case when dealing with such an inspirational work of art as this, whose beauty and warmth flows like warm buttered buns, magical in expression and guaranteed to enchant those willing to let themselves in.  Absolutely worth your time, when and whenever that might be.