Movie Review: When Marnie was
there
We
have heard about ‘Spirited Away’, ‘Howl’s Moving Castle’, ‘My Neighbour Totoro’
and the list goes on. They are masterpieces which have compelling storytelling
and fantasy elements. ‘When Marnie was
there’ belongs to the films set in grounded reality. Yes, you will find some magic
(it’s studio Ghibli, after all). It has been directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi and adapted from Joan G.
Robinson’s 1967 novel. The novel and the film share the
same name.
We
are introduced to 12-year old Anna who is a self-depreciating girl with a low
self-esteem. She lives with her foster parents in Sapporo. After an asthma
attack, her doctor advises that she should go to the countryside for fresh air.
She is packed off to live with the Oiwas.
There
she begins to have dreams of a mysterious blonde girl who once lived in the
marsh house. After a mishap at Tanabata festival, she rows to the mansion and
discovers the girl from her dreams. They find each other to be kindred spirits.
Gradually, Anna opens up how she feels abandoned by her parents who died when she was young and so did her grandmother. She also tells a secret about her foster parents. Marnie helps Anna to deal with the feelings she had bottled up inside. Marnie reveals that she is bullied and frightened by her maids. Anna helps Marnie in overcoming her fears and accompanies her to the much dreaded silo.
Sometimes
Marnie just disappears like the wind…Who is Marnie, really? That’s the question
which kept me hooked. The film is a lot more than that. The film deals with the
issues of struggling with loss, loneliness, abandonment and desperation. It is
difficult to come to term with all those feelings. It portrays this struggle
beautifully. The deep scars may leave some traces but they can be healed by
love. Anna and Marnie showed me what true friendship and real courage means.
The
film is aesthetically beautiful. I adore the Marsh house, the reflection of the
setting suns, the dense canopy through which sunlight infiltrates and every
frame! It doesn’t have many dialogues but allows the graphics to take the lead.
The music is in sync with the moods. I loved ‘Fine on the Outside’ by Priscilla
Ahn. It is the song you need when you need to vent out.
Towards
the end, Anna becomes more self-accepting and embraces life with a smile. She
and Sayaka (her new friend) later learn from Hisako, an old friend of Marnie’s
about the truth of her past. The mystery comes to a full circle.
So,
who was Marnie? Go and see the film to find out!
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