
Clinging to an unfinished letter written by her recently deceased father, young Momo moves with her mother from bustling Tokyo to the remote Japanese island of Shio. Upon their arrival, she begins to explore her new habitat, meeting local children and learning their routines and customs. However, it's not long before several bizarre occurrences crop up around the previously tranquil island. Orchards are found ransacked, prized trinkets start disappearing and, worst of all, ea... (Full plot summary below)
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Clinging to an unfinished letter written by her recently deceased father, young Momo moves with her mother from bustling Tokyo to the remote Japanese island of Shio. Upon their arrival, she begins to explore her new habitat, meeting local children and learning their routines and customs. However, it's not long before several bizarre occurrences crop up around the previously tranquil island. Orchards are found ransacked, prized trinkets start disappearing and, worst of all, each morning after her mother leaves for work, Momo hears strange mumblings coming from the attic of their home. Annoyed by these creepy goings-on and her mother's refusal to believe them, Momo embarks on a strange and supernatural adventure to discover the source of the mischief, which leads her to a trio of troublesome imps: the flatulent lizard Kawa, the childlike Mame and their hulking ogre leader Iwa. Momo also learns that her visit to the island is in some way connected to her father's mysterious letter.
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| Grolsch Film WorksAnton BitelThough made by the studio Production I.G, this is a markedly Ghibli-esque affair, overtly referencing Miyazaki's My Neighbour Totoro and Princess Mononoke among others. |
| SF WeeklyJonathan KieferFilmmakers of live-action fare, even that which ostensibly is aimed at adults, could learn a lot from its tact. |
| Village VoiceSherilyn ConnellyThe bickering goblins make a boffo comedy team, and while there's a recurring fart joke, it borders on classy. That's the power of good anime. |
| GuardianTom HughesThe hit-and-miss English dub flattens some of the dramatic beats, but this is still a rather lovely piece of work. |
| Minneapolis Star TribuneKristin TillotsonScene after gorgeously hand-drawn scene offer a visual feast, but two hours of it is a bit too long. |
| Movie MezzanineAndy CrumpWho cares if there's a better film to be cut out of A Letter to Momo's frames? If the experience of watching is exhausting, it's no less rewarding. |
| Entertainment WeeklyKeith StaskiewiczThankfully, the supernatural elements never overshadow the human story occurring in the foreground. |
| Seattle TimesTom KeoghDespite the hand-drawn film's supernatural edge, one of Okiura's lyrical strengths is acquainting a viewer with the poetry of the real - animated reflections of ordinary, beautiful things we see in everyday life without actually noticing them at all. |
| New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisEnveloped in a sweetness that buffers the depths of its emotions, Hiroyuki Okiura’s A Letter to Momo explores the stains of loss and regret on a personality too young to articulate them. |
| Chicago Sun-TimesBill StametsWriter-director Hiroyuki Okiura, however, does not match the high expectations for story and design set by other Japanese animators. |