A Lacking Fantasy Work: "Mari Iyagi"

Synopsis

One day, an office worker named Nam-woo receives a package from childhood friend Jun-ho. This leads him to reminisce to their last summer together at the small fishing village that was their hometown and just before Jun-ho left for boarding school in Seoul. While exploring an abandoned lighthouse one day, he finds a unique looking marble. He soon discovers that the marble holds the power to transport him to a fantasy world where a mysterious flying girl named Mari lived.

The Good

With the way the general art of the film is designed, the fantasy portions, when they do happen, really stand out by giving a whimsical feel to the film. The light tones and the simplistic style makes it seem as if the scenes came way out of a storybook or painting. As for the design of the fantasy world itself, it didn’t have anything largely unique, but it did have a cute look to it. Really, anything that has a cute giant animal deserves some appreciation.

Outside of the presentation of the fantasy world, it’s interesting how it acts as a piece for the story of growth that the film is trying to present. Another highlight of the film is the way that the fantasy world and real world melded together for the climax. Simply put, the fantasy side of the film made for the main point of enjoyment.

The Bad

With the simplistic style of the film, the realistic portion of the film comes off as somewhat bland and awkward in some points. The animation could have been done better and the background looks better than the people. On the note of the people, they didn’t really leave all that big of an impact. The story that they give has an interesting point but the characters didn’t give much. Even the story could have been done better given how it leaves plenty of questions while packing in more into the plot than it should.

Conclusion

Fantasy-wise, the film has some cute points and a simple but enjoyable art in how it adds a touch of whimsy. In terms of plot and characters though, it’s rather weak though it clearly tried to go for an impactful story involving youth and other aspects. It could have focused more on the melding of fantasy and reality while toning down the additional stories it tried to bring. Overall, it was a film that had potential but ended up rather awkward.

Rating: 6/10