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We are at a pinnacle point in how much Japanese animation has broken into the theatrical release scene here in the States. More animated films from Japan are now getting released in theaters and it’s nice to see, because back in the day, you could only dream that an animated film could make it onto the big screen and not be sent directly to DVD. Unless you were Pokemon, Studio Ghibli, or the random festival darling, you never got to see Japan’s animated experiences on the big screen in the States. Obviously, due to the increased popularity of anime and the “demand” for more of it to the point that it’s killing its industry, you get to see a varied batch of animated films on the biggest screen possible. Of course, most are only showing up for the action franchises that have the biggest audience, and that’s a shame, because you could very much show that same support for your favorite films from anime franchises to either new original projects or lesser-known series getting the theatrical treatment. I’m extremely happy for everyone who showed up for The Boy and the Heron because it shows there is an audience that craves those cinematic animated experiences from Japan. Still, it is disheartening to know those folks will not show up for other original anime films or non-franchise stuff, because when you explore outside of that realm and be a little more adventurous, you can find stuff that you may not have known about or wanted. For example, something like The Concierge.
This film is directed by Yoshimi Itazu, written by Satomi Oshima, and based on the two-volume manga by Tsuchika Nishimura. We follow a concierge-in-training named Akino, voiced by Natsumi Kawaida. She is determined to work at the amazing Hokkyoku Department Store and help out the customers there. The thing is, the customers are all endangered animals, and they all have different needs and desires. Can Akino rise to the occasion and help out everyone who needs some assistance?
The real bitter part of this film is how it’s structured. Technically, there is nothing wrong with it being set up with the story being a bunch of smaller stories that reach the 70-minute mark. It means that you will either love or dislike this more slice-of-life approach. It makes sense that it’s set up like that due to the writer previously working on Fortune Favors Lady Nikkuko, which was also a film mostly held together by vignettes and amazing animation.With that format, it leaves a lot of characters to feel one-note and forgettable. There are some likable characters, and the touching moments work with how we cherish memories and the ones that are close to us. Something is appealing about a film that is all about being the best that you can be and bringing joy to someone you helped make their day. However, the more impactful moments would have worked more if there was, simply put, more time to let the story breathe, letting our main character bond and interact more with other characters or letting the side characters breathe. This film probably should have ironed out some of the story beat problems by being 90 minutes. Sure, the source material is only two volumes, but the film didn’t need to speed through everything and then halt the story to have a third-act conflict show up abruptly, or have some story moments resolve themselves fairly quickly with some last-minute saves. Again, this world where endangered or extinct animals shop at this giant luxury store is a fun concept where you can also talk about environmentalism and how humans have wiped entire species off the face of the earth. There is just not enough time to engross yourself or learn more about the characters.
The fact I want more out of this not only because it would help flesh out everything, but because I love the world they craft, it is a good thing. What we get is a film that has a lot of great ideas, but no time to explore them to the extent that they probably could. The cast is made of characters who have one character trait and not much else. Some characters pop in to be introduced, only to show up one other time. Still, our lead Akino is bubbly and always ready to do what she can, even under pressure to perform well from the mysterious individual grading how she is doing. The “villain” doesn’t have much to him outside of being the employer, and is more of a road bump that is easily solved by the customers that our lead has helped out throughout the entire runtime. Some of the best moments are when Akino is helping out certain animal customers, like a mammoth who is a famous sculpture artist, a father and daughter ferret duo who want to get each other a present after not seeing each other for a while, and a Japanese Wolf who is trying to marry/court another Japanese Wolf. When it delves into the store’s future and what kind of impression/legacy the owner wants everyone to associate it with, it was, to me, the weaker half of the film. I don’t recall why so many films in the theatrical animation scene recently feel like they have to rush to get to their next story beat. Let filmgoers chill and enjoy the worlds in which you are inviting them. Who knows, maybe they didn’t have the budget to make it longer, and or something happened during the production pipeline where they chose the vignettes as the focus rather than having a more cohesive and deeper plot. Or maybe it was just tough to make a film based on this property.
The animation is wonderful. The team at Production I.G. tends to put out some amazing work and it’s no different here. The characters feel so lively, the colors are vibrant and make the whole world pop, and due to the more simplistic designs and line work, the characters get to be more expressive than others with more restrictive designs. They squash, stretch, and have so many surprising expressions when they are reacting in a big way. The designs are also just wonderful and identifiable of what each animal is, and what type of person each character is in terms of who they were with a personality. It shows that you don’t need to go full-on MAPPA with the animation to make a good-looking animation. More detail doesn’t always mean the end product is going to be better. It just means more work. The store itself is also just grand in the scale of it. Even before we see how truly big it is, you can just see how large this place is. Not just having multiple specialty stores, but also a full-blown restaurant that serves vegan dishes. That part was honestly a nice little world-building detail, since when you are introduced to the dining experience, it makes you think about how this world would work with humans helping out animals at this department store. I also love all the little details, like how the guy watching over our lead will pop up from out of nowhere or from small compartments to make sure she knows something important about being helpful. With the energetic animation, quirky characters, and heartfelt themes, the overall presentation is just a lot of fun to watch.
It might be uneven, a bit too short in the runtime department, and it needed something to keep it all together more, but The Concierge is a delightful film that wears its charm on its sleeves. I don’t think folks will prefer this over some other major Japanese films coming out this year like The Imaginary from Studio Ponoc and Yoshiyuki Momose, but anytime a new non-anime franchise film comes out and is this delightful in its execution and appeal, then that is just as important to show that anime is not just one type of Japanese media. It can be a multitude of visual looks, stories, characters, and experiences. Not entirely sure when Crunchyroll, who bought the rights to this film, will release it in the States in theaters, but if you can watch it in theaters, please do so. Even though I very much loved seeing Sirocco and the Kingdom of the Winds last year at Animation is Film, I wanted to see this film also. It might not be perfect, but there is a lot to love about it that still makes it worth watching.
Rating: Go See It!
The Other Side of Animation 