Belle

For the past 15 years, writer-director Mamoru Hosoda has risen to become one of the top talents in the world of Japanese animation, and his latest film, Belle, may be one of his best achievements yet.  Mixing elements of a relatable teen coming of age story, a commentary on social media, as well as elements of the classic Beauty and the Beast story, this is an inventive and compelling commentary on human nature that is joyous, hopeful, and filled with a lot of truths.

After a successful theatrical run in Japan, as well as a screening at the Cannes Film Festival (where it received a rare 14-minute standing ovation), Belle is being released here by GKids in both an English dub, and the original Japanese soundtrack with subtitles.  In all my years of watching anime (and foreign films in general), I have always preferred the original soundtrack.  But, I must be honest, this is one of the best English dubs for a foreign film I have ever heard.  Music plays a big part of this film's story, and the original songs featured in the film have all been rerecorded in English by the film's lead dub actress, Kylie McNeill, and they are absolutely beautiful.  McNeill not only delivers a fantastic performance, but her takes on the film's songs had me hunting them down on line as soon as I got home from my screening.  I applaud the talent involved with this English language version, as this is one of the rare times I did not feel like I was missing something by watching a foreign film not in its original language.

McNeill provides the English voice of Suzu, an awkward and shy teenage girl in a small Japanese town who has a hard time opening up to a lot of the other kids at her school, as well as to her father (Ben Lepley).  When Suzu was a child, she loved to sing, and her mother (Julie Nathanson) encouraged her daughter's gift of music.  But a terrible tragedy ended everything when her mother was killed saving another child who was in danger of drowning.  Since then, Suzu has never sung again, and has basically closed herself off to all but a select few others, such as her best friend at school, Hiroka (Jessica DiCicco).  It is Hiroka who introduces Suzu to "U", a virtual reality social media world where you can be anything you want to be and gives the user the opportunity to reinvent themselves through an avatar.

Suzu signs into the program, and creates an avatar based on the most popular girl at her school, Ruka (Hunter Schafer).  Naming herself "Belle", Suzu finds the bravery she forgot she had through the other users, and even finds the ability to sing once again.  Her songs as Belle lead to millions of followers on line, and even virtual concerts that become events within the U world.  During one of her concerts, a mysterious avatar in the form of a vicious Dragon (Paul Castro Jr.) crashes the event, and causes destruction.  He is being pursued by a group who pass themselves off as superheroes in the U world, and claim to be fighting to protect the other users.  The Dragon has a reputation for being violent and unruly, yet oddly enough, certain children users support him, and see him as a friend.

The Dragon intrigues Suzu enough that she seeks him out within the U World, and slowly begins to befriend him and gain his trust by writing a song just for him.  As they spend time together, Suzu can't help but notice the scars and wounds he has on his body, and becomes suspicious, since the avatar a user gets is based somewhat on their own physical appearance. ("Belle" shares Suzu's freckles on her face.) Fearing that perhaps the user behind the Dragon avatar might be hurt or in danger, Suzu and her friends do what they can to try to find out who the Dragon truly is, and if there is a way that they can save them from whoever is hurting them in real life.  

Though Belle is largely an in-house effort by Hosoda's Studio Chizu, they did receive some outside help by veteran Disney animator, Jin Kim (he provided the character design for the Belle avatar), and acclaimed Ireland animation studio, Cartoon Saloon (Wolfwalkers), who created the backdrops for the virtual U World.  These combined efforts lead to not only one of the most visually striking animated films I have seen in a while, but films in general.  The film mixes traditional hand-drawn animation with CG so expertly, I eventually stopped noticing the different styles the film implements.  The combined efforts of the various talented artists is seamless, and creates some unforgettable moments that are so vast and expansive, it's worth seeing it on the largest screen possible. (The film in playing in IMAX in select areas.) This is a movie that is constantly alive with visual invention, as there's always something to admire, from the serene beauty of the small town real world settings, to the open spaces of U.  

More than just a visual wonder, the movie is also poignant and powerful as it covers a number of emotional themes such as social isolation, dealing with loss and pain, as well as physical and emotional abuse.  It's also nice to have a movie set around social media that is not overly critical of it, nor is it trying to "expose" it.  It gives Suzu a voice to sing and stand out once again, and her journey becomes how she learns to stand out in her own life, as well as the virtual one.  The movie takes a balanced view on its central subject matter, and manages to highlight both the pros and cons of social media, without fully embracing either side.  It also gives plenty of time for the people in Suzu's life to take center stage, and they have been developed just as endearingly as she has, culminating in a script that can be funny, sad, and incredibly powerful when it chooses to be.

Belle is truly one of the great films of 2021, and deserves to be seen at a theater if possible.  It's the rare kind of film that is constantly dazzling, and fully emotional and heartfelt.  It also serves as yet another reminder of what can be done with animation beyond talking animals, Minions, or 90 minute corporate products. 

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