GKIDS Retrospective: 'Miss Hokusai'

We continue our series of reviews chronicling all of the (non-Studio Ghibli) animated films distributed by GKIDS Films — some of the most original and breathtakingly beautiful animated films from around the world — and how they hold up for an American audience.

The entire retrospective is found here, and this time we’ve got…

Miss Hokusai (2015):
Keiichi Hara, director

What’s it about?

Miss Hokusai is based on a manga by Hinako Sugiura, which originally ran 1983-1987, about the life of Katsushika Ōi – also known as O-Ei – who worked beside, and in the shadow of, her father Hokusai. Hokusai was a legendary artist who lived in the middle of the 19th century and became synonymous with woodblock prints and Ukiyo-e painting. If you’ve ever seen The Great Wave Off Kanagawa, which has become a worldwide cultural touchstone, that’s Hokusai.

The film follows his daughter O-Ei as she works as his “assistant” and produces artwork (dragons, portraits, and erotica) that’s eventually sold under her father’s name.

Though she’s shy and reserved in public, her true personality is quite the opposite. And even though she excels at painting women and erotica, she’s fairly young and constantly ridiculed by her father and his friends for trying to paint ideas and situations about which she has no direct experience.

While she deals with constant professional struggles, O-Ei must also deal with family strife. Her younger sister is blind and quite ill, but Hokusai refuses to visit her out of a superstitious fear of sickness.

Ultimately, Miss Hokusai is an emotional coming-of-age drama focused on one of Japan’s most unsung artists.

What are the cultures at play? And how about the languages?

The film is set in early 19th century Edo (Tokyo) and is heavily steeped in the culture – particularly the artistic culture – of Japan during the waning days of the Tokugawa Shogunate. The film (to its credit) doesn’t make much of an effort to explain potentially unfamiliar elements of that culture to the audience, so someone who’s completely unfamiliar with Japan’s history and culture will likely be left bewildered by a few scenes.

The film also makes the assumption that the audience is at least aware of Hokusai (the legendary painter), Japanese woodblock prints, and his most famous piece: The Great Wave Off Kanagawa. Beyond a basic understanding of those things, though, the film is fairly self-contained and shouldn’t be too hard to follow.

Obviously, the film is in Japanese, and the cast is stellar. In particular, the voices of O-Ei (Anne Watanabe) and Hokusai (Yutaka Matsushige) feel perfectly cast. I watched on Netflix, which doesn’t offer the English dub as an option, but that’s hardly a loss since I wouldn’t have opted for it anyway.

Will my kids like it? Is there anything objectionable for young kids?

Kids with patience for narrative-driven stories will likely enjoy Miss Hokusai. There’s very little humor, no frenetic editing, and no big action set pieces, which are hallmarks of so much U.S. animation. But the story here is engaging and genuine. Artistic kids, especially, will probably really enjoy the story of Hokusai and his daughter.

There’s nothing patently objectionable here. There’s some frank talk of erotic art, at which O-Ei excels, and there are a couple visits to brothels. Both are fairly benign, but kids may be confused and ask some (perfectly understandable and relevant) questions during those scenes. There’s also a death (that happens off screen) meant to turn on the waterworks, so some sensitive kids (and adults) might become… emotionally compromised.

Will I like it?

If you’re reading this, I’m going to assume you’re a fan of animation (generally) or Japanese animation (specifically). If that’s true, then yes, you’ll like Miss Hokusai. Director Keiichi Hara (Summer Days with Coo) has crafted a brilliant and poignant story about O-Ei and Hokusai that scratches at the actual historical events yet dramatizes them for a modern audience.

Plus, it doesn’t hurt that the animation is divine. You’ll want to fall into every frame and live an entire existence in each scene.

How can I see it?

GKIDS and Universal released a Blu-ray edition of the film that has a feature-length documentary about the making of the film and an English dub, along with the original Japanese. The film is also available digitally from most retailers and is currently on Netflix (in Japanese only).