This is an awesome film, with old fashioned values and beautiful animation. The fourteen-year-old girl in this movie talks with respect to her parents and is a kind hearted girl. She and her parents are wary of the humans as they are much bigger than Arrietty and her family. This is because Arrietty and her family basically live in a land of giants, where everything is huge including crows, cats, and even the rats. Arrietty and her mother and father call themselves “borrowers” as they, like other small people, borrow what they need from the humans such as food. But, as her father points out, they only take what they need to survive. On one occasion as Arrietty is out with her father to forage sugar and tissue paper, she comes across a young man named Shawn who is staying with his aunt.
Shawn’s parents have recently divorced and Shawn is also battling a health problem with his heart and is scheduled for surgery. The boy is lonely and takes to helping Arrietty when he sees her. Her father warns her to stay away from him but ultimately Arrietty sees the good in Shawn’s heart and they look out for one another.
I screened this film with a lot of parents and their kids, including young children, and although there are a few scenes dealing with large animals and close calls for the little people, no child in the auditorium seemed scared. Since this film features solid themes such as helping others, friendship and respect, we are recommending this movie for all ages and we are more than happy to award it our Dove “Family-Approved” Seal in addition to our highest rating, five Doves. This is a wholesome and heartwarming movie you can share with the entire family.