Review of Kiki's Delivery Service (1989) by Flipje — 09 Feb 2020

Perhaps I am not the intended audience for such a film. I understand it was made in 1989 and for kids and released to a wider audience in the late 90s. Though, I have enjoyed numerous Anime works by Studio Ghibli, I found this less than enthralling.

For instance, I became bored by how many of the characters came off as two dimensional from Kiki herself to her cat to the boy chasing her to the pregnant woman that offers her a room in the oceanside town.

There is also the exagerrated expressions and over-the-top interactions I find distracting - perhaps for children, this is not so off-putting. And I will admit, what annoyed me the most and took me out of the film was how wreckless the character was.

Every time Kiki rode her broom, I felt for her cat hanging on for dear life. It reminded me of those scenes in American films where one character has no thought or concern for others while racing around at the end of the film to rescue someone or something.

Whether in a car or running, this trope annoys me to no end and I would describe Kiki as a pure idiot on her broom (for an audience of kids, this is a dangerous thing to not acknowledge or at least rectify).

This narcistic element ruined the film for me. Yes, it was established early on she was a novice while flying her broom. And yes, she is from a small village. When she enters the town, of course, she causes havoc by nearly colliding into a bus and causing several accidents.

Cue the kids laughing at this some twenty years ago. Today, this made me roll my eyes. Moreover, with her first delivery, she manages to screw it up mainly because she has not learned to master her flying.

I would never hire a person like this but this film is basically all about ideals and wish fulfillment and was made for an audience (of kids) who can easily identify with this character. She is a freelancer in the town of her dreams, meeting wonderful, wholesome people.

Kiki is less a character and more a child's wish fulfilmment. On the one hand this is harmless and again, I understand, I am not the intended audience. Yet I found this film infantile. And while classics should stand the test of time, I feel the reason this film has re-emerged has more to do with the Zeitgeist of the gig economy.

Viewers who first saw Kiki twenty years ago as children will probably return to it with the hopes of before. Yet Kiki is not a character that has depth. Instead of evolving as a person, her story is rather bland and predictable.

When she loses her ability to fly, this might have translated to an audience of children as about losing confidence or magic. Today, for those viewers watching it for the first time time or returning to it, this might well reflect back on an audience of Millenials who suffer burnout each year.

And I feel for the modern audiences of today. The modern economy is horrendous and people stand alone. This film is eye candy for the soul that longs for that world of generous strangers and supportive friendships.

Again, an infantile view of life. Though the fantastical elements were unique and I admired this alternative world, I felt this film was less character-driven with organic human interactions and more about being a form of consolation.

And again, coming back to Kiki, girl please learn how to fly that broom.