Majo no takkyûbin (1989)

Director:

Hayao Miyazaki

Writers:

Eiko Kadono (original book)
Hayao Miyazaki (screenplay)

Release Date:

29 July 1989 (Japan)

Genre:

Animation | Adventure | Family | Fantasy

Plot:

A young witch, on her mandatory year of independent life, finds fitting into a new community difficult while she supports herself by running an air courier service.

Plot Keywords:

Witch | Cat | Talking Cat | Courier | Courier Service

Awards:

4 wins

Cast

Minami Takayama	...	Kiki / Ursula (voice)
Rei Sakuma	...	Jiji (voice)
Kappei Yamaguchi	...	Tombo (voice)
Keiko Toda	...	Osono (voice)
Mieko Nobusawa	...	Kokiri, Kiki no haha (Kiki's mummy) (voice)
Kôichi Miura	...	Okino, Kiki no chichi (Kiki's daddy) (voice)
Haruko Kato	...	Rô-fujin (Madame) (voice)
Hiroko Seki	...	Barsa (Bertha) (voice)
Yuriko Fuchizaki	...	Ketto (voice)
Kôichi Yamadera	...	Bakery worker, policeman (voice)
Kikuko Inoue	...	Beautiful designer girl (voice)
Yûko Kobayashi	...	Young sempai witch (voice)
Mika Doi	...	Ketto's mother (voice)
Takaya Hashi	...	Ketto's father (voice)
Chika Sakamoto	...	Baby (voice)

Also Known As:

Kiki's Delivery Service (UK) (USA)
The Witch's Express Mail (literal title)

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:G | Switzerland:0 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | Finland:K-3 | Germany:o.Al. | Ireland:G | South Korea:All | Sweden:Btl | Denmark:A | Argentina:Atp | Canada:G | France:U | USA:G | UK:U | Spain:T

Company:

Nippon Television Network Corporation (NTV)

Trivia:

When Kiki first arrives in the city, she is almost hit by a bus bearing the name "Studio Ghibli". This is the name of Miyazaki's animation studio. "Ghibli" is seen on the side of two other buses; once as she is being questioned by the officer.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The Disney dub refers several times to the airship as a "dirigible", which is correct, but also as a "blimp", which it isn't; it is a zeppelin, a rigid airship with an internal skeleton that holds it in shape, not a blimp, which is basically a big helium-inflated balloon held in shape by the helium.

Quotes:

Kiki: Without even thinking about it, I used to be able to fly. Now I'm trying to look inside myself and find out how I did it.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Troldspejlet: (#38.4)" (2007)

Ghibli is impressive as always

First of all, 10 points to Ghibli for Variety. Producing this and 'Grave of the Fireflies' inside a year of each other would be like Disney doing 'Mary Poppins' and 'Judgement at Nuremberg' back to back.

Words that spring to mind after watching Kiki include 'delightful', 'light', 'bouyant', and so forth. It's obvious Miyazaki has refined his craft considerably from the early movies, which somehow seemed a bit... I don't know - stuttery. Kiki, though just flows effortlessly. Combine this with the beautiful use of lighting and colour to produce that summertime, Mediterranean sort of feel, and Kiki is a movie that is just thoroughly uplifting, never getting bogged down in complexities or dark intrigues.

Unfortunately - and this is the only thing holding it back from 4 stars from me - what it does get slightly bogged down in, is its own lightness. There were just a few sections where the lack of a villain, of any real action, of anything other than people being nice to each other, took the top 10% off what was otherwise a masterful movie. I suppose there were a few other flaws, too: some characters and situations which came into it were just not developed at all. And there was one moment that teetered on real poignancy - the old dog with what he thought was a stuffed toy - but it sort of didn't happen. Also allowing the cat - sorry, forgotten his name - to drop out of proceedings for most of the latter half the film, definitely removed a spark from the film (I can't believe I just complained about the LACK of a comic sidekick)

BTW, as someone who lives in Tasmania, which is allegedly the inspiration for much of the setting of this film, please come here by all means, but don't expect it to look like that. The bakery in Ross (central Tasmania) which supposedly inspired the one in the film is in one of the few Tasmanian towns that you _can't_ see the ocean from, and the general look of the movie is distinctly southern European, though I guess some of the rural shots look a bit Tasmanian.

Whatever the case, Miyazaki's attention to detail is, as usual, stunning. The town may have been cobbled together from his favourite bits of Italy, France, Tasmania and wherever else, but its nothing less than a labour of love nonetheless.

Anyway, 8 out of 10.