There is another world out there which nobody wants to talk about but only the bravest can access it! Life can be really hard on people, let alone children but this movie will teach you, in perfect harmony with Japanese philosophy and beliefs, that nothing in this life happens by chance. If you are brave enough to discover more about yourself, don't miss out on this masterpiece. Bravo!

What can I say?Starts off fine and dandy, the usual story, a BRAVE STORY! Downtrodden hero got some family problems make him want to run and hide and make things better. Kid meets kid, second kid has some problems too and a way of making things better. Cue the fantasy world! Real world is tough, fantasy world is tough too but there you have a goal, a reason for being, people to help, quests to fulfill and dark demons to vanquish. Same old same old but done well enough.BUTWhat were they thinking with the end of this film? What message are they trying to give? Where were they coming from? I was left dumbfounded! My mental ability is not something I brag about so it's possible there are people other than the writers who have a clue about this finale.On TV they showed people leaving the cinema crying after watching this, I think I know why!

The movie was great. Normally, i'm not the biggest fan of anime, so I did not expected to much of this movie. For that, I am grateful.There was a bit of "Alice in wonderland" vibe to it. In this story you get pulled away from real life and come to a world with beautiful mix animation that stunned me every time.There are a few thing in the movie that are not at a high level. Like the story, it starts real slow. When finally the movie got warmed up, the story gets sloppy and it comes at you as a airplane crashing down and before you know it, it is over. You wanted the ending not to start but like most inevitable things, this ending comes to fast.Therefor i find this movie a great one, not only i was surprised about the mixed animations. Also the moral of the story gets a hold on you. This movie is Walhalla for every anime lover.

This 2006 summer anime movie definitely had its moments, but remained naive at parts. I have heard, however, that those who have read the two-book fantasy novel appreciated the movie much more. Just for the record, I have not read the novel, but my wife tells me that the novel has more adult audiences while the movie seems to want to target kid audiences as well.Visually, the art is nothing spectacular, albeit using soft pastel colors... fitting for this dream vision fantasy setting. There is one feel good pop theme song (Aquatimes?), as well as Wentz as one of the voice actors for the Japanese pretty boy fans (my wife and her mother).The story takes a simple good-versus-evil formula and puts it in a surreal fantasy world representing two boys' personal struggles to cope with reality. I particularly like the adventure style that is lost in many fantasy pieces today (too busy showing off the visuals). I have the feeling the book is more detailed in this respect, and the anime seems to skip a few of the earlier adventures, I suspect, since there seems to be some holes in the story/character development. Despite that, my eyes were not entirely dry throughout the whole movie.That said, there could have been more development in some areas... character development, relationship development, battle action, more use of creativity while in a fantasy realm (no doubt covered probably in the novel). For a more sophisticated audience, you might leave feeling somewhat unfulfilled.As far as an anime for kids, it's got a good message and good enough characters to deliver that message. In the end, it is not bad at all, and if you are an anime fan, it's worth a look though it may be forgettable.