Review of The Boy and the Beast (2015) by Mark M — 25 Jun 2016

They say good things come to those who wait, and it can't be much truer for fans of Mamoru Hosoda. Following a consistent three year gap in between each of his films, the director of The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006) and Summer Wars (2009) follows up his amazing Wolf Children (2012) with The Boy and the Beast, excluding frequent collaborator and co-writer, Satoko Okudera, for a purer vision, though something is most certainly lost in the transition.

As one of the established directors in Japanese animation and storytelling, Hosoda's filmography is steeped in rich storytelling and poignant characterization, as the writer-director often dives headfirst into stories that examine the thematic notion of familial bond and its marriage with Japanese folklore, and though The Boy and the Beast doesn't quite reach the heights of its 2012 predecessor, it remains a solid piece of animation that mixes elements from Hosoda's previous three films to refreshing results, while the lack of Okudera's presence in the screenplay certainly brings some aspects down a few notches.

Bringing his A-game with yet another emotionally driven narrative, Hosoda explores the duality of man and beast with his central characters, Ren - later named Kyuta - and Kumatetsu, as each mirrors the other despite the inherent difference with one being a human child and the other being an adult anthropomorphic bear. But as previously mentioned, The Boy and the Beast lacks the refined edge of Okudera, with its story involving Ren/Kyuta's human and beast family being rather 'simplistic' as opposed to the lengths both Hosoda and Okudera took with Wolf Children and Summer Wars. The film instead slants towards being a 'showy' spectacle brought by the martial arts angle involving Kumatetsu, him training Ren/Kyuta, and the rivalry the duo share with the other parties vying for lordship in The Boy and the Beast's central narrative.

Boasting a consistent style of animation - Ren/Kyuta could easily be mistaken for Wolf Children's Ame - and design, The Boy and the Beast excels at what Hosoda envisioned it to be, both in terms of storytelling and entertainment, and is certainly a treat for both passing viewers and newcomers, but invested fans will certainly miss the balanced edge from previous Hosoda films. Nonetheless, it can't be argued that Hosoda is a rising force to be reckoned with and is well on his way to reaching the higher echelons of Japanese animation inhabited by the likes of Hayao Miyazaki and the late Satoshi Kon.