Miss Hokusai

GKIDS | Release Date: October 14, 2016

7.9	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 7 Ratings

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NBFCJan 17, 2018

Loved the art direction and the Edo Japan setting. There are also some genuinely touching moments between Oei and her younger blind sister.

But....that's kinda it. The plot mostly boils down to an incoherent series of vignettes that neverLoved the art direction and the Edo Japan setting. There are also some genuinely touching moments between Oei and her younger blind sister.

But....that's kinda it.

The plot mostly boils down to an incoherent series of vignettes that never really build up to a story. I usually love it when animation takes the slice-of-life approach (Ex. Only Yesterday), which is something the film appears to be aiming for but it constantly undermines itself by placing odd supernatural elements in way that felt completely random.

As a historical biopic, it's very shallow and not very insightful when it comes to the art or the historical figures in question. It also commits the immortal sin of having the ending be one long exposition dumb about what happened to everybody.

This movie also has one of the most scatter-brained soundtracks I've ever heard in a feature film. It opens with Rolling Stones-esque rock tune....okay. Now it's traditional Japanese oriental music....okay. Now it's acoustic guitar.....MAKE UP YOUR MIND ALREADY!!!!!

I don't mind the movie taking "A Knight's Tale" approach of placing modern rock music to a period piece setting (it actually would have been something kinda fresh and different). But if you are gonna take this approach, you better commit!

Instead, the choice of soundtrack feels just as random as the story. During one particular downbeat sequence they play a really out-of-place piece of loud high-squealing guitar music that completely undermines the emotion of the scene.

It's a shame because I was really looking forward to this one but outside of a few poignant moments, Miss Hokusai ended just being heartbreakingly lackluster.… Expand

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