Rent A Letter to Momo (2011)

3.9 of 5 from 90 ratings
2h 0min
Rent A Letter to Momo (aka Momo e no tegami) Online DVD & Blu-ray Rental
  • General info
  • Available formats
Synopsis:
The last time Momo saw her father, they had a fight. Now all she has left to remember him by is an incomplete letter penned with the words "Dear Momo", but nothing more. Moving with her mother to the remote Japanese island of Shio, Momo soon discovers three Yokai living in her attic, a trio of mischievous spirit creatures that only she can see and who create mayhem in the tiny seaside community as she tries desperately to keep them hidden. But these funny monsters have a serious side and may hold the key to helping Momo discover what her father had been trying to tell her.
Directors:
Producers:
Keiko Matsushita, Motoki Mukaichi, Mariko Noguchi, Arimasa Okada
Voiced By:
Karen Miyama, Yûka, Daizaburo Arakawa, Toshiyuki Nishida, Kôichi Yamadera, Cho, Yoshisada Sakaguchi, Ikuko Tani, Takeo Ogawa, Kota Fuji, Katsuki Hashimoto, Amanda Pace, Stephanie Sheh, Kirk Thornton, Fred Tatasciore, Dana Snyder, Bob Bergen, Frank Ashmore, Philece Sampler, Rick Zieff
Writers:
Hiroyuki Okiura
Aka:
Momo e no tegami
Studio:
Anime Ltd
Genres:
Anime & Animation
Countries:
Japan
BBFC:
Release Date:
02/05/2016
Run Time:
120 minutes
Languages:
English Dolby Digital 5.1, Japanese Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles:
English
DVD Regions:
Region 2
Formats:
Pal
Aspect Ratio:
Widescreen 1.78:1 / 16:9
Colour:
Colour
Bonus:
  • Gallery
  • Making Of
  • Trailers
  • Test Film
BBFC:
Release Date:
02/05/2016
Run Time:
120 minutes
Languages:
English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Subtitles:
English
Formats:
Pal
Aspect Ratio:
Widescreen 1.78:1 / 16:9
Colour:
Colour
BLU-RAY Regions:
B
Bonus:
  • Gallery
  • Making Of
  • Trailers
  • Test Film

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Reviews (2) of A Letter to Momo

Uplifting, warm-hearted and sensitive - A Letter to Momo review by Cliff

Spoiler Alert
14/11/2019

I thoroughly enjoyed this film. It draws on familiar antecedents from Labyrinth to Spirited Away and yet transcends them. Despite all the humour and adventure, it deals with the difficult issue of a parent's death in a sensitive and thoughtful way, rather than being simplistic and sentimental. The artwork is based on real-life locations and is drawn in a deliberately artistic way. The animation of the human figures is carefully observed.

2 out of 2 members found this review helpful.

Ghibli lite - A Letter to Momo review by RT

Spoiler Alert
20/04/2024

Version I saw: UK DVD release (subtitled)

Actors: 6/10

Plot/script: 6/10

Photography/visual style: 7/10

Music/score: 6/10

Overall: 6/10

It's probably a bad sign that, when I came to review this film, I remembered very little of the plot, and needed to look up a synopsis to refresh my memory.

The story follows Momo, a preteen city-girl whose father dies, forcing her and her mother to move to her mother's rural childhood home. There, she accidentally summons three mischievous yokai (mystical creatures from Japanese folklore somewhat akin to fairies or goblins) who shake up her life with their antics, forcing her to confront her unresolved family and other issues.

It's a fairly well-trodden path narratively, but I think it owes most to iconic Studio Ghibli works including Kiki's Delivery Service and My Neighbour Totoro. The attempt, it seems, is to create a version of these stories aged up to the tween demographic.

Although Momo and her mother are voiced by fairly inexperienced actors, the three yokai are played by a selection of tried-and-trusted veterans: Cho, Koichi Yamadera and Toshiyuki Nishida. What life and energy there is emerges mainly from this trio of likeable, cartoonish agents of chaos.

The art style, tasked with marrying up magical fantasy with everyday realism, presents what seems an authentic portrayal of the Japanese countryside, but perhaps leans further in the direction of realism and away from the fantastical than I might have liked.

If I have one major criticism though, it is not of the film itself at all, but the subtitles. With white lettering and no border, they became difficult to read against any bright background, and impossible when the background was white, as it often was. To make things worse, they are dubtitles - the script of the English dub, in which extra lines have been added - so on some occasions we see a line of dialogue pop up into complete silence. The only way this can have passed is if nobody at western distributor Anime Limited bothered to watch the finished product before shipping it, and fraknly, it is not good enough.

Aside from the subtitles, I don't honestly think there is a great deal wrong with A Letter To Momo. If it has weaknesses, they are just in extent. On pacing, they erred on the side of slow and gentle. The human characters are recognizable and relatable, to the extent of being humdrum and mundane. The tone is bittersweet, but I might have preferred a bit more of the undeniable charm and warmth that can be seen at times.

The end result, though, is somewhat middle-of-the-road, lacklustre. I enjoyed the 2 hours-ish I spent watching it, but the fact is that there are many better films I could have been watching instead.

For my full review, see my independent film review blog on Blogspot, Cinema Inferno.

0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.

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