The first thing noticeable about this film is that its title is a clever play on words; the main character, originally called “Mr. Link”, is missing a home, a family, and his entire species. There is also a second meaning. Missing Link is an evolutionary (and revolutionary) link in the craft of stop-motion animation. Before […]

A gentle melancholy hangs over the anime feature Penguin Highway (2018), setting it apart from similar fantasy-adventures. Fourth-grader Aoyama (voice by Kana Kita) is almost too precocious and self-possessed. Never at a loss for a reply to a bully or an interfering adult, he says what viewers may wish they’d thought to say in school. […]

For decades, “animation” meant drawn animation in America. Except for George Pal’s Puppetoons, stop-motion was a minor variant, used for movie monsters, Alka-Seltzer commercials and the occasional holiday special. But in recent years stop-motion animation has enjoyed an unprecedented efflorescence. One of principle creators of that flowering is the Aardman Animations studio. The found dialogue […]

Cameron “June” Bailey is an irrepressible young girl who, by age 10, proves capable of mentally designing an amusement park that Disney’s Imagineers would envy. Her parents admire her creativity; Mom whispers June’s suggestions into the ear of Peanut (a monkey with a magic pencil) and a magical ride appears in June’s imaginary “Wonderland”. (Makes […]

The 13-episode broadcast series ReLife (2016) felt like it ended prematurely, with the main characters’ stories unfinished. The four-part Final Arc OAV (2018) brings the story to a satisfying conclusion. Arata Kaizaki (voice by Micah Solusod), had been a promising high school student. Warm and caring, he brought out the best in the people around […]

The adventures of the swimmers in the Free! (2013) series proved so popular, they spawned follow-up series and feature films High Speed! Free! Starting Days (2015) is a prequel to the original series: Four talented young athletes enter Iwatobi Middle School. Kind, soft-spoken Makoto (Johnny Yong Bosch) tries to look after everyone. Introverted Haruka (Todd […]