Perry Kate Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

AnhartLinkin This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

Lidia Draper Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

Scarlet The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

CinemaClown A less experimental & more grounded effort when compared to his earlier works, Tokyo Godfathers is a funny, poignant & melancholic story that unfolds without playing with the viewers' sense of reality but still packs enough twists n turns to keep them guessing.Taking place on Christmas Eve, the story of Tokyo Godfathers follows 3 homeless friends, a middle-aged alcoholic, a former drag queen & a runaway girl who while foraging through the garbage encounter an abandoned newborn and later set out to unite the baby with his parents.Co-written & directed by Satoshi Kon, his third feature film is a departure from his reality & imagination blending projects such as Perfect Blue & Millennium Actress but it still carries a sense of mystery that requires the full attention of its viewers, for the plot takes many unexpected turns before reaching its final outcome.The illustrations of the hand-drawn animation are slightly different as well but it's rich & finely detailed. Humour is sprinkled throughout the narrative but there is a somber tone to it as well. The mystery surrounding the baby's parents takes them on a series of adventures, and the ending provides a proper closure to the arcs of each one of them.Covering the themes of loss, family, abandonment, homelessness & forgiveness in a warm, accessible fashion and staying true to the Christmas spirit with a miracle that redeems all, Tokyo Godfathers unfolds at a much calmer pace than expected but the reward for sitting through it is a satisfying one. The film shows a different side of Satoshi Kon's creativity but it's another fine addition to his oeuvre.

SnoopyStyle This is a beautifully drawn Japanese anime. On Christmas Eve, three homeless vagrants finds a baby. Then a night of adventure begins. There are Japanese mobsters, lots of family drama, lot of interconnected coincidences.If there was one big problem for me, there are way too many coincidental run-ins that it gets too mind-numbing after awhile. As for the characters, we have three distinct and well drawn characters. They are all damaged in their own way, and we see how their friendships help save each other. This one is a definite recommend not just for the beautiful animation.

Sean Lamberger The most accessible film of director Satoshi Kon's all-too-brief anime career. Where Perfect Blue and Paprika are more adventurous and challenging, they're also difficult to sit back and enjoy in a traditional sense without falling into a deep state of analysis. This one, of three bickering homeless chums who find an infant girl in the garbage, retains the quirks, charms and emotional punch of Kon's other works without challenging quite so many conventions. Sweet, funny and grounded, it's constantly flashing a dry wit and, although it often tugs at the heart strings, things never get overly soft or weepy. The trio of leads are diverse and interesting, each with an onion skin of personal history to explore, and their hunt for the child's parents amidst the overpopulation of a major world metropolis constantly jolts out in surprising new directions. Beautifully written, drawn and animated, it can also be a bit static and randomly fortuitous.

Crid I will admit right at the start, I'm not a big fan of subtitled anime. I always prefer to watch with an English dub track, unless the dub is really bad. I prefer to watch what is happening on the screen rather than having to constantly flick between the picture and the words.For this reason, I put off watching Tokyo Godfathers for a long time. I had seen Satoshi Kon's other releases. I found Perfect Blue very uncomfortable to watch. Millennium Actress used clever storytelling but I felt a bit too distant from the story itself (I suspect this was because there were a lot of Japanese cultural and historical references in it). Then I found Paranoia Agent and thought it was excellent (despite the strange ending). In the end I bit the bullet and watched Tokyo Godfathers and wished I hadn't put it off for so long.The story may be a little unconventional, both for anime films and also Christmas films, but Kon makes it work. This film will certainly go on my "must watch at Christmas" list, along with Nightmare Before Christmas (another unconventional animated Christmas film).Some reviewers have criticised the number of coincidences that occur in the story, but personally I feel that the viewer can interpret this however they want to. If you believe in a higher power you can take the numerous references to 12-25 and the event that saves Hana as an indication that a higher power is pulling the strings. If you don't believe in such things, you can take it as serendipity or just a story with several happy endings.The film itself is a little different from Kon's other works. It doesn't try to blur the line between fantasy and reality (except for one short dream sequence). Despite the subject matter (three homeless people) it's actually a pretty happy film on the whole, with only a couple of slightly unpleasant scenes. It'll make you laugh, it'll make you cry, it'll make you go "awww".I do still hope that one day this film will be re-released with an English dub track. But even with subtitles the dialogue moves slow enough that you can take in the film and the subtitles without feeling you're having to rush your reading or that you're missing some beautiful visuals.I am now eagerly awaiting seeing Kon's next film - Paprika.