This is a very special film indeed. Studio Ponoc, a Japanese animation studio that arose when it seemed like Studio Ghibli, home of Hayao Miyazaki, was shuttering operations, has returned with a beautiful new movie. It’s their first since 2017’s excellent “Mary and the Witch’s Flower,” and was postponed, in part, because so many of its animators had to work on Miyazaki’s Oscar-winning “The Boy and the Heron.” But now they are back and operating at full capacity. An adaptation of the 2014 book of the same name, written by A.F. Harrold and illustrated by Emily Gravett, “The Imaginary” follows a young girl (voiced in the American version by Evie Kiszel) and her imaginary friend Rudger (Louie Rudge-Buchanan). Together they get into adventures and uncover an island where forgotten Imaginaries live, hiding out from nefarious forces. Gorgeously animated and deeply felt, “The Imaginary” is, somewhat inconceivably, the third movie released this year to deal with imaginary friends (after Blumhouse’s “Imaginary” and John Krasinski’s “IF”). It’s easily the best. This is an all-ages film that will delight each demographic. It could also be a dark horse contender for the Best Animated Feature Oscar nomination. Be ahead of the game. Watch “The Imaginary.” – Drew Taylor
Rudger is a boy no one can see, imagined by Amanda to share her thrilling make-believe adventures. When Rudger arrives alone at The Town of Imaginaries, where forgotten Imaginaries live and find work, he faces a mysterious threat.
- Director
- Yoshiyuki Momose
- Writers
- Yoshiaki Nishimura
- A.F. Harrold
- Emily Gravett
- Stars
- Kokoro Terada
- Rio Suzuki
- Sakura Andô
