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Belle (2021 film)

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Belle
Theatrical release poster
LiterallyThe Dragon and Freckled Princess
Directed byMamoru Hosoda
Written byMamoru Hosoda
Produced by
Starring
Edited byShigeru Nishiyama
Music by
  • Taisei Iwasaki
  • Ludvig Forssell
  • Yuta Bandoh
  • Miho Sakai
Production
company
Distributed byToho
Release dates
  • July 15, 2021 (2021-07-15) (Cannes)
  • July 16, 2021 (2021-07-16) (Japan)
Running time
124 minutes
CountriesJapan
France
LanguageJapanese
Box office$57 million[1]

Belle (竜とそばかすの姫, Ryū to Sobakasu no Hime, literally "The Dragon and Freckled Princess") is a 2021 Japanese animated science fantasy film written and directed by Mamoru Hosoda and produced by Studio Chizu, it is based on the 1756 French fairy tale Beauty and the Beast by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont. The film premiered on July 15, 2021 at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival,[2] where it was well-received by critics with a standing ovation that lasted 14 minutes.[3] It was theatrically released in Japan on July 16, 2021.

GKIDS has licensed the film in North America, with a nationwide release date set for January 14, 2022,[4] as well as previews in select IMAX theaters on January 14.[5] It received five Annie Award nominations, including for Best Independent Animated Feature, making it the most nominations for an anime film at the Annies, surpassing the previous films Spirited Away, Millennium Actress (both 2001), and Weathering with You (2019) with four.

Plot

Suzu Naito is a seventeen-year-old high school student who lives in rural Kōchi Prefecture. When she was young, she was close with her mother, who supported her love for singing and writing songs. However, one day, Suzu witnessed her mother attempting to save a child from flooding river at the cost of her own life. The traumatic experience caused Suzu to resent her mother for "abandoning" her for a stranger's child and become unable to sing. She is alienated from most of her classmates, with the exception of her childhood friend Shinobu Hisatake (whom she has a crush on); popular girl Ruka Watanabe; her sportsman classmate Shinjiro Chikami (nicknamed Kamishin); and her computer genius best friend Hiroka Betsuyaku. Under Hiro's suggestion, Suzu signs into the popular virtual world known as "U", and creates a beautiful avatar with freckles she names "Bell", the English translation of her own name's meaning. Upon logging into U, Suzu finds herself capable of singing like she used to. Bell's appearance is at first criticized due to her freckles, but after making several appearances while singing, Bell soon became a big hit. Following her popularity, people start to refer her as "Belle", which means "beautiful" in French.

During one of Belle's concerts, a dragon avatar, simply called "The Dragon", makes his appearance and ruins the concert. This prompts a vigilante group led by the self-righteous Justin to attack the Dragon, accusing him of ruining the peace of U. Suzu feels intrigued by the Dragon and begins to gather information about him. She discovers that he is popular amongst children, who considers him as their hero. Suzu enters U as Belle to search for the Dragon while evading Justin. She is led into the Dragon's castle by an angel avatar and finally meets the Dragon. Despite their rocky start, Belle grows closer with the Dragon. Meanwhile, in the real world, Ruka confides to Suzu that she has someone she likes. Since both Ruka and Shinobu are the most popular students at school, Suzu mistakenly believes that Shinobu is the one Ruka likes, until Ruka later clarifies that the one she likes is Kamishin. With Suzu's help, Ruka and Kamishin begin to date.

Back at U, Justin and his group locate the Dragon's castle and destroy it, but fail to capture the Dragon. Since Belle is close with the Dragon, Justin interrogates Belle, threatening to unveil her identity to the whole world if she refuses to cooperate. The Dragon rescues Belle at the last second, saving her from being unveiled before leaving once more. Suzu and Hiro immediately try to find out the Dragon's real identity before Justin can. Suzu is able to find the Dragon's identity, Kei, after hearing his younger brother sing the song that should be known only by her and the Dragon. From the live video, it is revealed that Kei and his brother are being abused by their father. Suzu contacts Kei to help, but Kei does not believe that she is Belle. To earn Kei's trust, Shinobu urges Suzu to sing as herself in U. Following Shinobu's urging, Suzu unveils herself to the whole world in U and begins to sing, gaining support from everyone listening. Watching Belle as Suzu, Kei decides to trust Suzu and tries to contact her again. Unfortunately, Kei's father sees the recorded video of his abuse posted online and immediately cuts off the internet connection before Kei can tell his address to Suzu.

From the recording of the room, Kamishin recognizes the buildings near Kei's hometown in Kawasaki, Kanagawa nearby Tokyo. Since the authorities cannot act until 48 hours have passed, Suzu quickly rushes to the city by herself to find Kei. Arriving at Kei's hometown, Suzu protects Kei and his brother from their father. Once the situation is settled, Suzu and Kei thank each other for giving them courage. The next day, Suzu returns home, and her father welcomes her at the station. Shinobu praises Suzu for her bravery and decides to stop being her guardian in her mother's place. Finally understanding her mother's actions, Suzu comes into terms with her mother's death and is ready to sing with her friends.

Voice cast

Character Cast
Japanese English[6]
Suzu Naito / Belle Kaho Nakamura[7] Kylie McNeill
The Dragon / Kei Takeru Satoh[8] Paul Castro Jr.
Suzu's Father Kōji Yakusho[9] Ben Lepley
Hiroka "Hiro-chan" Betsuyaku Lilas Ikuta Jessica DiCicco
Shinobu "Shinobu-kun" Hisatake Ryō Narita Manny Jacinto
Shinjiro "Kamishin" Chikami Shōta Sometani Brandon Engman
Ruka "Ruka-chan" Watanabe Tina Tamashiro Hunter Schafer
Justin Toshiyuki Morikawa Chace Crawford
Okumoto Fuyumi Sakamoto Ellyn Stern
Jelinek Kenjiro Tsuda Andrew Kishino
Swan Mami Koyama Noelle McGrath
Muitarō Hitokawa / Tokoraemaru Mamoru Miyano David Chen
Kita Michiko Shimizu Jessica Gee George
Yoshitani Ryoko Moriyama Barbara Goodson
Hatanaka Sachiyo Nakao Martha Harms
Nakai Yoshimi Iwasaki Wendee Lee
Suzu's Mother Sumi Shimamoto[10] Julie Nathanson
Kei's Father Ken Ishiguro Kiff VandenHeuvel

Production

While Studio Chizu worked on the project, it had help from veteran Disney animator and character designer Jin Kim and Michael Camacho on the design of Belle and studio Cartoon Saloon for the background work of the world of U.[11][12]

Critical reception

The film holds a 94% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 18 reviews, with a weighted average of 8.80/10.[13] On Metacritic, the film holds a rating of 89 out of 100, based on 7 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[14]

Awards and nominations

Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
Detroit Film Critics Society December 6, 2021 Best Animated Feature Belle Nominated [15]
Chicago Film Critics Association December 15, 2021 Best Animated Feature Nominated [16]
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards December 18, 2021 Best Animated Film Runner-up [17]
Florida Film Critics Circle December 22, 2021 Best Animated Feature Nominated [18]
Annie Awards February 26, 2022 Best Animated Feature — Independent Pending [19]
Outstanding Achievement for Animated Effects in an Animated Production Ryo Horibe, Yohei Shimozawa Pending
Outstanding Achievement for Directing in an Animated Feature Production Mamoru Hosoda Pending
Outstanding Achievement for Writing in an Animated Feature Production Pending
Outstanding Achievement for Production Design in an Animated Feature Production Tomm Moore, Ross Stewart, Alice Dieudonné, Almu Redondo, Maria Pareja Pending

References

  1. ^ "Belle: The Dragon and the Freckled Princess Box Office". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  2. ^ "Cannes Premiere: Hosoda Mamoru's 'Belle' Joins Festival Lineup". July 4, 2021.
  3. ^ "Mamoru Hosoda's Belle Gets 14-Minute Standing Ovation at Cannes". CBR. July 16, 2021. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  4. ^ "GKIDS Screens Mamoru Hosoda's Belle Film on January 14". Anime News Network. October 12, 2021. Retrieved October 12, 2021.
  5. ^ "Gkids' Brings Oscar® Nominated Director Mamoru Hosoda's "Belle" To Select Imax Theatres Nationwide". Anime News Network. November 19, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  6. ^ Mateo, Alex (December 9, 2021). "Mamoru Hosoda's Belle Film Reveals English Trailer, Dub Cast". Anime News Network. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  7. ^ "Mamoru Hosoda's Belle Film Casts Singer Kaho Nakamura as Main Lead Suzu". Anime News Network.
  8. ^ "Mamoru Hosoda's Belle Film Casts Takeru Satoh as the Dragon".
  9. ^ "Mamoru Hosoda's Belle Film Casts Kōji Yakusho as Suzu's Father". Anime News Network.
  10. ^ "竜とそばかすの姫 : 作品情報".
  11. ^ Studio Chizu Reveals New Trailer for “BELLE” and Announces International Roster|Studio Chizu
  12. ^ Mamoru Hosoda Teams Up With Cartoon Saloon And Disney Vet Jin Kim For New Film ‘Belle’|Cartoon Brew
  13. ^ "Belle (2021)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  14. ^ "Belle". Metacritic. Retrieved December 4, 2021.
  15. ^ "Detroit Film Critics Society Announces 2021 Nominations". Hollywood Critics Association. December 3, 2021. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  16. ^ Tallerico, Brian (December 13, 2021). "West Side Story Leads the 2021 Chicago Critics Nominees". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  17. ^ Shanfield, Ethan; Murphy, J. Kim (December 18, 2021). "'Drive My Car' and 'The Power of the Dog' Win Top Prizes at L.A. Film Critics Association Awards 2021 (Full List)". Variety. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  18. ^ Neglia, Matt (December 15, 2021). "The 2021 Florida Film Critics Circle (FFCC) Nominations". NextBigPicture. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  19. ^ Pedersen, Erik (December 21, 2021). "Annie Awards Nominations: 'Raya And The Last Dragon' & 'Encanto' Lead Field For Animation Prizes". Deadline. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
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