Tabisuru nuigurumi: Traveling "Daru"

A plush toy on a quest and eyes brimming with tears. Animator Ushio Tazawa’s directorial debut is characterised by its melancholic atmosphere and distinctive moody shots of landscapes and urban environments, which indicate the influence of the filmmaker’s previous engagements, particularly his work for Makoto Shinkai (he also worked for Studio 4°C). (15/04/2014)

Daru returns... This movie has a very simple narrative. Its predictable ending is why I could not even consider five stars, especially after seeing the original ending in the Sintel animation. The rest is impressive, though, from the very nice animation, which has some really beautiful moments (the night sky, the way the planet is portrayed), to the very good soundtrack and the very well-crafted and measured emotional aspect. I believe that there will be people who will be moved to tears and affected by it. I enjoyed it, except for the ending, which was quite predictable, and although it is probably as good as it could be, it was just not surprising in any way. 7.5/10. (12/01/2017)