Comfy Cozy Cinema: Kiki's Delivery Service

I suggested to my husband that we try to do a few Comfy Cozy Cinema choices this fall, and he agreed. 

Movie Title: Kiki's Delivery Service

Original Release Date: 1989

Where I Found It: DVD at my public library

Rating: G

Time: 1 hr. 45 min.

Amazon Rating: 4.9 / 5 with 10,412 ratings

Cast: Animated, with Kirsten Dunst as Kiki, Phil Hartman as Jiji the cat,

Janeane Garofalo as Ursula, and Debbie Reynolds as Madame

I can't remember the last time I saw an animated film. I was apprehensive when I saw this film was from Japan, worried this film might be like the animated films from Japan like Speed Racer that I saw as a young person. 

I needn't have worried. Kiki's Delivery Service is an exceptional film. I was immediately captivated by the details in the film, the buzzing bee, the shifting point-of-view of the camera, the little gesture the bus driver makes when he shifts into gear. The film feels startlingly lifelike.

The story is about a young witch who turns thirteen and must strike out on her own. The only skill Kiki has is flying on her broomstick, so she decides to run a delivery service. The owner of a bakery provides Kiki with a place to stay and helps her get her business going. In addition to the baker, Kiki soon meets and befriends a boy fascinated with flying, an old lady, and an artist named Ursula. 

Kiki is horrified when she realizes that she is losing her magic, one of the most powerful parts of the movie, and it is the artist who is able to help Kiki cope with the way our gifts can come and go.

Kiki faces the same struggles as most teens, and with the help of her new friends, she learns more about herself and how to deal with others. 

I couldn't help speculating about what our world might be like if kids were sent out on their own at thirteen, to make their own way in life. 

My Comfy Cozy Rating: High 

Comfy Cozy Qualities: The trials of adolescence including

learning to make friends, discovering your strengths and weaknesses,

and learning how to make it in the world

Here's a bit of the movie in its trailer.

I was happy to discover that my library not only had the DVD, but it also had the book from which the movie was taken, Kiki's Delivery Service by Eiko Kadono. It was delightful, too, though it was different from the movie. In the book, Kiki is not paid with money but is instead given a small gift in gratitude for her service. In the movie, Kiki faces big problems, including saving a boy from a wayward airship and losing her magic powers; in the book, Kiki faces small problems, including using her flying abilities to dry a person's clothes quickly, to deliver a knitted belly band to a woman's son who is boat pilot, and finding a replacement gear for a clock in the clock tower during an important event. I loved the little stories in the book as much as the big stories in the movie. My review of the book is here.

This is year two of Comfy Cozy Cinema, hosted by Erin at Still Life, with Cracker Crumbs and Lisa at Boondock Ramblings. Erin and Lisa invite us all to join in by watching the movie, posting about it, and linking up within a week of the day listed on the chart below.