Song of the Sea

GKIDS | Release Date: December 19, 2014

8.3	USER SCORE Universal acclaim based on 187 Ratings

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scrimpledimplesNov 28, 2015

First of all, I would like to qualify the rest of this review by first explaining that I enjoy sleepy films about nothing; I'm a massive fan of the films of Bill Forsyth, Wes Anderson, Raymond Briggs and perhaps more appropriate as aFirst of all, I would like to qualify the rest of this review by first explaining that I enjoy sleepy films about nothing; I'm a massive fan of the films of Bill Forsyth, Wes Anderson, Raymond Briggs and perhaps more appropriate as a comparison here, Sylvain Chomet. I was drawn to this by its aesthetic, and came to it really wanting to enjoy it.

The inlay of the DVD box carried the weight of a hundred stars, from a number of respectable publications, but as I only happened upon this by chance in the supermarket and wasn't even aware of it until today, despite its academy award nominations et al. With this in mind, it isn't like I had massive expectations or been subjected to hype it couldn't possibly live up to.

The film is indeed visually appealing, as expected, with fluid animation and nicely stylised characters and environments. Unfortunately, and quite unexpectedly, that is where the enjoyment ended. The pacing is atrocious, and the film seems directionless as it meanders to a... conclusion, I... guess? Contrary to what other reviewers have said, I fail to see much in the way of empathy or compassion exhibited in the characters, the 'jealous bratty brother who eventually comes good' is over-done to the point of being largely unlikeable and the few 'touching' scenes seem tokenistic. The Illusionist manages to convey a lot of emotion, character and unspoken back-story in a few on-screen seconds, even without dialogue; and our relationship with the elderly couple of When The Wind Blows are built by their keenly detailed semi-detached bungalow, family photo mantles and the cherry tobacco familiarity of a grandparent. The characters are puddle deep and storytelling in general is vague, and feels largely like Spirited Away rewritten based on Celtic folklore. Using "largely" in that last sentence is a lot kinder than the "blatantly" I felt it deserved. It feels almost as making the story vague and leaving deliberately large gaps between the lines is not to create healthy ambiguity for your imagination to fill, but a cynical attempt at seeming more interesting than it actually is; creating the illusion that still waters run deep and all that.

This film is visually pleasant, but there are a lot of titles out there that manage to be pretty as well as genuinely warm and charming. I really feel that this is being held in higher regard than it should be, perhaps due to a fiercely loyal geographic thing or a desire to support the underdog, which I would usually be all for but this time, sadly not. I fail to see any good in this beyond its visual appeal and I fail to see an audience for this beyond emperor's new clothes hipsters, as it is pretending to be too cryptic for children and it doesn't wear its heart on its sleeve enough for adults.… Expand

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