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I finally caught up with this.
It was okay.
It's a "realistic" Ghibli film, like Whisper of the Heart or Only Yesterday, but it falls ridiculously short in comparison to those films. Poppy Hill starts strong, and is a pleasant and charming enough experience overall... there's some lovely animation and attention to small mundane details, the kind of thing that makes me feel strangely nostalgic despite, you know, not growing up in Japan. That's Ghibli magic. But it's in short supply. The foundation is a flimsy, predictable mystery that drags its feet to an obvious conclusion, sidestepping any potentially challenging material or moral dilemmas along the way. I always enjoy soaking in a Ghibli movie for two hours, but having just seen Only Yesterday, instantly one of my new favorites, earlier this year, this thing feels like Poor Man's Ghibli.
A mild nay, maybe? I could really go either way here. It's a tough call.
I've only got maybe a handful of Studio Ghibli films remaining (including Gorō's first one). Gonna be pretty sad when I'm all out of new Ghibli movies to see. :(
It's a yay from me. The movie is very charming and sweet in a very understated way and captures a certain feeling of nostalgia. It's not in the upper echelon of Ghibli, but it's very good.