I got the opportunity to watch Rudolph and Ippaiattena thanks to Japan Film Festival Australia, without them I'd be completely clueless as to when I'd ever get to see this movie again, by which I mean I hope this film gets released in my country one day. It was also the Japanese version, I have no clue if an English dub is in production or will ever be made, so sorry to those who dislike subtitles.
Rudolph and Ippaiattena I found was about making tough decisions in life and sticking to them, and that sometimes things change for better or worse, and you kinda gotta roll with it. It also encourages learning and seeking knowledge to help keep yourself stable and safe.
Despite being CGI animated the film likes to keep some classic anime motifs like dramatic shots and action cuts. The film can get sad or heavy but never too sour, as actually the film is rather quite refreshingly light in tone. The characters all have distinct personalities, and I found the mains quite charming in that old fashioned story-telling kind of way, their friendships are also endearing too (though there is a lack of female characters, it's an old novel). Forgot to say the animation looks mighty impressive for a studio that mostly handled animation for television, and interestingly styled character design that I'm personally fond of.
I really hope the film gets officially released further into the world, possibly too late for a theatrical release but hopefully a Blu Ray release will be possible. I'm personally quite a large fan of this film but that may be because of my affinity to cats and the fact that this film unlike many other family films doesn't demonize any other species for humor, which is refreshing. Hope to see it again soon!
