Ivan Radford | On 07, Jul 2024

Director: Yoshiyuki Momose
Cast: Kokoro Terada, Louie Rudge-Buchanan, Rio Suzuki, Evie Kiszel, Sakura Andô, Hayley Atwell, Riisa Naka, Sky Katz, Takayuki Yamada, Jeremy Swift, Kal Penn
Certificate: PG

Ever since Mary and the Witch’s Flower, Studio Ponoc has been poised to be the natural successor to Studio Ghibli. Their latest, The Imaginary, only reinforces that impression, once again focusing on a young child venturing into a fantastical world of imagination. If that territory feels a little too familiar at times, it doesn’t detract from the magic of childlike creativity so beautifully splashed across the screen.

Based on the novel of the same name by AF Harrold, the film follows Rudger – not Roger – the imaginary friend of the young Amanda. They go on incredible adventures together, with Rudger in awe of the sheer power her mind holds to conjure up impossible and inventive places and things, not least himself. But when she ends up in a coma, he finds himself wondering what that means for him. Will she forget him? And, if her memory stops imagining him, will he simply disappear forever?

This existential crisis is worsened by the arrival of Mr Bunting, a sinister fellow with an even more sinister moustache who apparently likes to devour people’s imaginary friends whole. He stalks through the world sniffing out fresh bouquets of imagination, accompanied by what looks to be the young girl from the Ringu movies. And so we found ourselves in a curious web of tones and concepts, sitting somewhere between Toy Story, Doctor Sleep and a long-running Japanese horror franchise, with a slice of Inside Out for good measure.

It’s an inconsistent jumble of ideas and feelings, not least because the script gets bogged down halfway through trying to explain a subplot involving a realm where imaginary friends forgotten by humans go to live. But Director Momose Yoshiyuki – a Ghibli veteran – ensures we never lose a sense of wonder at the brilliantly impossible set pieces, and balances a classical, Ghibli-esque visual style with some gorgeous textures and depths as other dimensions collide with reality.

The voice cast, too, bring a genuine heart to both the characters’ flights of fantasy and everyday struggles with loss. At its core, this is a thoughtful coming-of-age story that pays tribute to the importance of the things we leave behind, and the value of the things that we hold on to. It’s fitting that you have to look past some surface obstacles to see that simple magic. And Netflix, having inked a deal to become Ponoc’s streaming home (including the Modest Heroes anthology of short films), not only sees that but also sees the studio’s potential for the future.

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