Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie's plot.

Studio Ghibli is the premier name in anime. Usually the name is synonymous with the great Hayao Miyazaki, and numerous Ghibli releases not helmed by this guy are somewhat overlooked. One of these such movies is My Neighbors the Yamadas which was created by Isao Takahata. I was a bit perplexed at first given the film's bizarre nature, but My Neighbors the Yamadas made a believer out of me in no time.

My Neighbors the Yamadas focuses on a modern Japanese family living in the city. You've got the brash and ornery father Takashi, his somewhat empty minded yet surprisingly clever wife Matsuko, and their two very different children, Nanoka and Noburo. Rounding out the family is the hilariously spiteful grandmother Shige, who never has a hard time making me laugh out loud.

There is no central storyline to this movie - My Neighbors the Yamadas is instead broken up into various back to back sequences. These segments are, for the most part, contained mini-stories which offer glimpses into the lives of the quirky Yamada family. Through this we learn about the everyday occurrences of their life. It may sound boring, but believe you me, there's never a dull moment spent with the Yamadas.

The reasoning for such a method of storytelling is because My Neighbors the Yamadas is based off of a comic strip in Japan. Each of the small stories feels just like a new chapter in a comic, and this wonderful storytelling method even offers us Haiku (some of them rather fitting for the Yamadas) in between these segments. Somehow this little touch is one of the most memorable and charming aspects of the film.

These small stories are pure gold. You'll find yourself laughing out loud while watching as Matsuko blames her family's empty-mindedness on an excess of ginger, Takashi's failed bonding attempts with his son, and other not so special sounding occurrences that are all quite charming when you watch them. My personal favorite involves Takashi wanting a family photo taken on the first snow - it leaves me in stitches even after repeated viewings.

One rather admirable aspect of the film is in how wonderfully Takahata handles family life. He doesn't present the Yamadas as being particularly dysfunctional or even out of the ordinary - they are kept simple so as not to interfere with the stories told through them. There's no doubt that most of us can all draw comparisons between the Yamadas and our own families. While My Neighbors the Yamadas may at first seem like nothing more than a play on stereotypes I assure you that it's so much more than that.

Given the unique style (even for an anime film) My Neighbors the Yamadas is easily the most distinguishable of all Ghibli films. It's like nothing else the film house has come up with, and it's quite sad to see that it's also the most ignored of the bunch. Traditionally Ghibli films play on strong female characters, and while Nanoko certainly fits the bill on that one, she's not the film's center. It's quite refreshing actually, and one aspect that sets Isao Takahashi from Hayao Miyazaki.

My Neighbors the Yamadas is also devoid of social and political commentary, which is usually a big focus for anime films. It's quite nice to see them occasionally leave these aspects behind so that they can focus on good old fashioned fun, and that's exactly what was done here.

The animation for this movie is incredible. Honestly this is one of the most stylistic films I've ever seen. Takahata went with a noticeably simple look for My Neighbors the Yamadas - with minimal detail paid to non-important characters and backgrounds. This works surprisingly well, and the negative space isn't distracting at all - if anything, it helps Takahata control your focus which is something all good storytellers can do. Furthermore we're also given a breathtakingly beautiful sequence in the beginning of the film depicting life's many hurdles. My favorite part though is the masked rider spoof. Extremely well done.

Disney did another very good job with the English dub - so much that the family is actually more believeable for me on this audio track. Jim Belushi plays the part of Takashi. This isn't someone I would generally associate with being a particularly good actor, but his performance here has made me a fan. Matsuko is voiced by Molly Shannon, and is my second favorite actor in this film. The lady can certainly play a confused and empty minded role, that's for sure. While there's nothing particularly wrong with any of the other performances there's not really anything particularly memorable about them.

Final Recommendation
If you're looking for something off-beat, a bit slow, but terribly funny and entertaining then My Neighbors the Yamadas might be a good pick. You'll need an open mind to really 'get' the movie, but because of it's style and story I'd recommend it to even non-anime fans.

By the way, this is an entry in CaptainD's good movie Write-off.

Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Good for a Rainy Day