The Boy and the Beast [DVD]

I bought this movie based on a recommendation from a librarian. I love this movie.A boy whose mother dies when he is 9 has somewhat cruel family members who will have to look after him. He runs away. While on the street, he follows some odd fellows and discovers that they are really beasts/animals that actually walk on hind legs and talk. He ends up bonding with one kind of rough guy and the beast ends up training him on how to fight and become his apprentice. He realizes that he can move between their world and ours and starts to grow and discover more about himself and the two worlds.Very detailed ending. You need to pay attention to some of the details during the movie or the end might not make much sense. It is based on a lot of traditional values within Japanese culture.

As in my other rating for 'The Girl Who Leapt Through Time'... I'm a definite fan of Hosoda Mamoru anime works, and that includes this one, Bakemono no Ko (The Boy and the Beast)...Having not seen Mirai yet, can't comment on whether this movie is the sole outlier of a string of critically- and popularly-acclaimed hits. But it lacks something those movies before it (TGWLTT, Summer Wars, and Wolf Children, esp'y) had in spades -- investment in the characters, and a plot that builds to a satisfying and emotional crescendo...Which is weird, since this whole movie builds just such a structure relentlessly, at first glance. However, while all the ingredients of the movie seem present enough to be as involving as its predecessors... there are beats that seems to be slightly 'off-tune', if that's in any way helpful (which proofreading this, it's not... but I stand behind it :P ). And like baking... you can have the best ingredients in the world, but shite technique = shite productOne thing I really, really walk away impressed with seeing Summer Wars (and Kon Satoshi's masterpiece Tokyo Godfathers)... is that everything, every circumstance, every action of every character, seems to be for a reason, and such is expressed verbally (and more challengingly, non-verbally thru imagery and good ol' storytelling) with CLARITY (early Stephen Spielberg comes to mind), while not dumbing down to the viewer. This is what invests me in the chars and story, takes me on a ride as all movies are supposed to.**SPOILERS TO FOLLOW***::That seems to hit a few potholes in TB&TB, an example being the kujira (whale) significance... Ichirouhiko had been isolated from human society longer than Kyuta/Ren... yet he was able to glean the gravity of the Whale from Moby Dick in a few seconds of holding the book? Plus, the tension just isn't there at the final boss match. Then there's the stadium fight -- the entirety of rivalry between Iozen and Kumatetsu seemed just lightly brushed on (as opposed to Hyakushubou/Tatara, whose actions, lines, and scenes imprint far more profoundly on my mind than the prodigal's interactions).::This seems to be a pattern a lot of famous directors fall into (of movies too & in the West as well, but here specifically of anime) -- you put your heart and soul into your first couple of movies/series... get famous... then either market pressures or lack-of-drive/exhaustion or both... create a product that doesn't hit previous marks. All of my favorites, including Kon, Shinkai, and Miyazaki, have had their 'duds'... the truly great ones learn, recover, and drive through to prior brilliance and beyond. I feel this is Hosoda's one IF 'Mirai' turns out to be similar (or Lord forbid, worse).In summary, TB&TB had me invested, just nowhere near TGWLTT and not even the same ballpark as Summer Wars or Wolf Children (which tbh, had me *too* invested... such a intensely-sad, painfully-but-fiercely beautiful story and art). Four stars...Here's looking forward to seeing 'Mirai', in which Hosoda returns to his shoujo heroines once more. Can't wait! :)

I'm 39 i love this movie and all the others by the same director. children under 14, I don't think they are going to get anything out of this or keep their attention for long.. I could be wrong. Otherwise no reason children under 14 can't watch it, no graphic violence or sexuality.. If your looking at this look at "Summer Wars", "The girl who leapt thru time".More and more modern anime is HEAVILY reliant on CG, this has those elements but is not as obvious or in your face or used as background or environmental. unlike some more recent films. where everything is CG and cel-shaded.As far and dubbed/subtitled.. i watched it in both and while I relish the original voice inflection and meaning of the subs, I like not reading and just watching a movie in English. It is well dubbed and voice acted.Great movie.

Great movie, My entire family loved it! loved the drawing style. Watched the movie in Japanese and English subtitles and it seemed to make sense. Some movies you get ,the subs don't make sense so glad to see this one was on point in my opinion. English dub was also available so that's good for the people that like to watch movies that way.One little thing that was annoying is that you do not have the option to watch the movie in English with English subs. Its either Japanese/English subs or English/no CC. Not the movies fault more the company that made the blu ray. (-1 star for that)

Great story. The cantankerous, inarticlate, crude sage takes on a fisty but emotionally wounded apprentice, who's partnership leads to their mutual betterment and enlightenment, bonded by their companionship and love. Both struggle to overcome their inner demons and damaged past to find inner peace. Entertaining action and emotion from an ensamble cast surrounding the main characters--the proverbial village that shapes the man. Endeering and very well animated from a classic studio, with other great titles. Check it out! You won't be dissappointed.

Excellent movie as other have stated!Please note however, if you rent this movie from Amazon, you only have the English dub option. You can't switch the language/audio to Japanese, which I found a bit of a disappointment. Here is the description from the product page, but again, if you rent this movie, it's in English only:Language: Japanese, EnglishSubtitles: EnglishDubbed: EnglishI always prefer the original Japanese dialogue with English subtitles because the English dub can be hit or miss (and it's usually miss..) But with that said, the movie is still highly enjoyable in English, and they did a pretty commendable job with the English dub.

So I've seen other movies by the same person but I think this movie by far is my favorite out of his others. All of them are good of course, but this story was really fun for me, imaginative, and unique. It was also not completely predictable, I mean yes it is to a certain extent like most films, but there were a few things that happened that I was not expecting and that really made me more invested in the story. Over all, really happy I got this movie and happy to add it to my collection!

If like me, you're in the UK and wondering just where in the world is this film, well look no further and buy this one. For whatever reason it's not getting a UK release and this one is the Australian release but i can confirm 100% that it works on UK Blu Ray players and Playstation 4. What you're getting is the 5.1 Sound English Dub, Japanese Dub, and English subtitles, the same version released uncut the rest of the world.I am a massive fan of Mamoru Hosoda and think his work is better than Ghibli and this one doesn't disappoint. The tale of a runaway boy who gets lost in the world of the beasts, a world that runs parallel to our own. He becomes adopted and trained as an apprentice by a good for nothing beast but who also happens to excel at fighting. Can the boy grow to love and learn by this slob and does the curiosity of the human world come calling back?I certainly wouldn't say that it's better than Wolf Children but the animation is fantastic with a strong sense of passing time and character development. Excellent english voice over provided by Funimation. There is humour throughout with some conflict in between both on a personal level and to each other. It falls a little short in the ending with the heroic flair but i was happy with the overall result.Enjoy!

Loved it

good

Excellent movie, well worth buying.

Great movie,heard great reviews and amazing animation. Perfect delivery timing 5 stars