It doesn't need thunderous gimmicks or musical cues - or characters so outlandish that they're ready-made for collectibles bought at fast-food restaurants - to be a wonderful movie. Small Wonder: Arrietty (voiced by Bridgit Mendler) is an inches-tall Borrower whose family lives within the walls of a human household. The artwork is gorgeous and meticulous, the story beautiful. Viewers used to the whiz bang, frenetic pace of other animated features may find The Secret World of Arrietty slow-moving and lacking in special effects, but that's its strength. Our kids can handle complicated material, as long as it's handled intelligently and with compassion. And yet the story unfurls with no heavy-handedness, just a realism that doesn't condescend to its young audience. In Ghibli movies, children and teens are allowed to be sad, despondent, worried, afraid, and burdened - it's not a sugar-coated world. But even more substantial is how the movie straightforwardly presents the plight of a boy who's often left alone and is lonely, and of a girl who doesn't get to interact with others like herself. On the surface is the wonder of a teen discovering a miniature counterpart who lives in a world much like his own, only within the walls and under the floorboards of his house.
The beauty of Studio Ghibli movies is that they have such depth and heart, and this film is a perfect example.
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