81
Metascore
18 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90VarietyPeter DebrugeVarietyPeter DebrugeIt’s the work of a true auteur (in what feels like his most personal film yet) presented as innocuous family entertainment.
- 90The New York TimesBilge EbiriThe New York TimesBilge EbiriFluctuating between the minor daily occurrences of Kun’s life and his touching sojourns into the past and the future, Hosoda’s film privileges moments of emotion over belabored story mechanics. Thus, it gathers complexity without sacrificing any of its guileless modesty.
- 90Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranLos Angeles TimesKenneth TuranMaster Japanese animator Mamoru Hosoda makes family films, but not in the way you think. It’s not that his films are suitable for all ages, though they mostly are. And it’s not even that the family unit is central to his work, though it is. Rather it’s that Hosoda’s films stretch the boundaries of both style and content within the family film rubric.
- 90Rolling StonePeter TraversRolling StonePeter TraversMirai casts a spell that works on children and adults alike, but in different ways. Its creator’s artistry and empathy are the connecting links. It may be the animator’s smallest film, but it stands tall. You’ll be enchanted.
- 89Austin ChronicleMarc SavlovAustin ChronicleMarc SavlovAn anime version of "Mr. Mom" this is not. Director Hosoda’s clear-eyed story allows for comic moments of fatherly ineptitude but focuses just as often on the marital and familial stress this sudden role reversal causes.
- 80The Hollywood ReporterLeslie FelperinThe Hollywood ReporterLeslie FelperinHosoda has a lovely, light touch and leavens the proceedings with dry, well-observed humor.
- 80EmpireDavid ParkinsonEmpireDavid ParkinsonTempering its flights of fancy with moments of whimsical humour and kid’s-eye realism, this thoughtful treatise on growing pains reveals a realist side of Japanimation that’s all too rarely seen.
- 63Slant MagazinePat BrownSlant MagazinePat BrownThe fabric of the fantasy world depicted in the film lacks the cohesion of its central theme about appreciating one’s place in a family tree.