Scanialara You won't be disappointed!

Steineded How sad is this?

ChicRawIdol A brilliant film that helped define a genre

Nessieldwi Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

dee.reid No, this isn't "Beauty and the Beast" (1991), though this story also involves beasts - in animated form. This is "The Boy and the Beast," the most recent Japanese animation (Anime') offering from director/writer/producer Mamoru Hosoda, who is very quickly becoming one of the greats in Anime' - after such revered Japanese Anime' directors like Mamoru Oshii ("Ghost in the Shell," the "Patlabor" series), Yoshiaki Kawajiri ("Ninja Scroll," "Wicked City," "Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust"), Katsuhiro Otomo ("Akira," "Steamboy") and of course, the now-retired Anime' legend Hayao Miyazaki ("Spirited Away," "Princess Mononoke," "Ponyo," etc.)Hosoda has come a long way from his debut "The Girl Who Leapt Through Time" (2006) and my personal favorite of his, 2009's "Summer Wars." It was the latter film of his that convinced me of Hosoda's true worth as an inspired director.Hosoda's films are not easily categorized, in that they often combine genres ranging from comedy, to science fiction, to fantasy, to heartfelt character-driven dramas. It is this skillful blending of different genres that set his "Summer Wars" apart from a lot of Anime' features produced nowadays (most films, period), and why I considered it one of the best animated films so far this millennium.And now we're at his most recent, 2015's "The Boy and the Beast." While not as strong as his previous entries, it is by no means a wasted effort. True to his form, "The Boy and the Beast" combines different storytelling genres to tell an inspired fantasy tale that while not completely original, does seem fresh and unique given the interesting scenario that the film's events take place in.In Japan's Shibuya district, Ren is a nine-year-old orphan struggling to get by on the streets by any means necessary. One night, he accidentally stumbles upon the so-called "Beast Realm," a world inhabited by, well, beasts, who take on many characteristics shared by those living in the human world. He is taken in by the gruff, unkempt bear-like warrior-beast Kumatetsu (who appears to be based on late Japanese film legend Toshiro Mifune's "Kikuchiyo" character from "Seven Samurai"), who needs an apprentice, as he is competing to become the new lord of the Beast Realm.The two bicker constantly, but over time an unconventional teacher-student/father-son relationship develops between the two, and Ren, who Kumatetsu unceremoniously renamed "Kyuta," becomes a master student who eventually earns the begrudging love and respect of his teacher."The Boy and the Beast" delivers much of what it promises: stunning animation (complemented by helpful CGI in more than a few places), a sincere and heartfelt story, well-timed humor, and stunning action sequences. "The Boy and the Beast" is not "The Girl Who Leapt Through Time" or even "Summer Wars," but this is nonetheless a strong and entertaining entry in a distinguished director's catalog who can only keep going up.8/10

Jacob Thompson Mamoru Hosoda is arguably one of the best filmmakers working in animation today. And nowhere is that more clear than in the Boy in the Beast. Coming off fresh from other fantastic animated films such as The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and Wolf Children, Hosoda crafts a funny, compelling, bittersweet, and well animated tale about mentorship and confronting your demons.The struggles the main characters go through is done in a way that's both plausible and implausible at the same time. I really love films that allow you to relate to a character's dilemmas in a way you wouldn't expect. I also really love the relationship between the titular characters. I normally don't get into relationships that are mostly shouting and arguing, but the two share a relationship more reminiscent of a bickering father and son rather than something more obnoxious or dark. Both characters have their flaws that you would think would make them unlikable, but each has their own reasoning for being how they are and either side is completely understandable and relatable. As the film progresses, you slowly learn that both characters are on the same side of the same coin.Its only downfall in my opinion is the third act. Without giving anything away, it's fine for what it is, but it mainly came off as kinda forced and not explored quite as well as some of the other aspects of the film. It's not terrible and it doesn't really harm the film as a whole, I feel it would've come off a lot stronger if it was explored a lot more.But besides that, I absolutely freaking loved The Boy and the Beast. Mamoru Hosoda truly is gifted with the craft of telling stories through Japanese animation. Many people have been referring to him as the next Hayao Miyazaki. But honestly, I don't think that's necessarily true. Both are great directors and both have this wonderful ability to take realtivley dumb ideas and somehow make them plausible. But Hosoda is something entirely different. I connect to his films in a different way than I do Miyazaki's. Each has their own style and their own means of forming a connection with their audience. And this film truly connected with me.

SquigglyCrunch The Boy and the Beast follows a young boy who gets raised and trained to fight in the world of beasts. The animation is pretty great. It's noticeably smoother and more unique than other anime I've seen, and it's overall a very pretty movie to watch. The fight scenes are also great. They're fast-paced, well choreographed, and just plain fun. I wish they lasted longer and didn't bend to the clichés of anime by often cutting away to less interesting things, but when the fights happened they were certainly a treat. The characters are pretty interesting too. They're relatively well- developed and fun to watch interact with each other. The writing ranges from pretty great to awful. In typical anime fashion characters will, from time to time, embark on lengthy, poetic explanations about things that don't mean a whole heck of a lot. While long monologues aren't bad things all the time, the way it happens in most anime is just kind of cringe-inducing because of how unrealistic it is, and this movie is no exception. They stand out even more because of how good the writing usually is. The movie does bend to a handful other anime clichés that I think it tried to avoid most of the time, but still failed to at times. I don't know why, but it doesn't matter. That's just how it happened. Overall The Boy and the Beast is a fun and interesting watch, with a few writing issues and other clichés that are shamelessly indulged in that ultimately affect the entire movie. In the end I'd recommend this movie.

nicolasalvarino This is the first movie I've watched of Mamoru Hosoda. It's a good anime movie, but not superb.The movie starts by presenting us a world hidden to humans where anthropomorphic beasts live ruled by beasts-grandmasters who can reincarnate into gods. A lonely and lost kid, named Ren, accidentally enters into this hidden world and it's adopted by an aspiring grandmaster, named Kumatetsu, who is himself in someway lost. Hosoda makes us believe that Ren will become Kumatetsu's disciple and that he'll learn how to be strong and (insert typical plot development). But I was happily surprised to see that the master-apprentice relationship goes both ways. Human and Beast learn from each other and grow together for 8 years.After this very strong beginning, I was expecting to see an amazing movie, but it quickly started a spiral into too many "-_- really?..." moments. There is an underlying theme in the movie about finding oneself, and dealing with self-doubt and the darkness that exists within each of us. But these ideas are presented very poorly (except with the great introduction of Kaede) and the plot starts to make no sense whatsoever. I won't spoil much, but really, almost nothing makes sense from this point. At the end, even the Grandmaster, Kaede, Ren, everybody starts to act illogical. Finally, the movie concludes in a nonsensical cheesy all-out-Naruto-style battle, which is an awful way to close the themes of inner darkness and finding personal strength (specially given the final enemy).In summary: . The first part has a 9 over 10. Maybe even a 10/10. . The rest of the movie (which is most of the movie) is a 5. . The animation and the scenery are really great. The landscapes, the camera angles, the pacing, they were all very good (except for a part when they visit a bunch of grandmasters in a very fast paced journey that didn't add much anyway). Without any of this, it would be a 6/10, because the plot holes are too annoying.It's not an amazing movie, but you will enjoy it.