Little Amélie or the Character of Rain

Based on Amélie Nothomb’s bestselling novel The Character of Rain, the magical animated feature Little Amélie or the Character of Rain looks at the world through the eyes of a Belgian girl living in Japan and approaching her third birthday. The film traces Amélie’s growing understanding of the world, balancing the joy of discovery with unexpected tragedy.

Central to the film’s premise is the Japanese belief that children under age three are akin to gods, though one could also link it to the psychological claim that newborns can’t distinguish between themselves and their surroundings. Realizing that the outside world is an entirely separate entity, Amélie is determined to make up for lost time and discover as much as she can about it as quickly as possible, to the chagrin of her parents and nannies.

Animated in an almost impressionistic manner, Little Amélie uses pastel colours and a drawing style that forgoes strong outlines, the perfect (and beautiful) visual equivalent to the young girl’s synesthesia, as well as her wide-eyed curiosity. It is influenced by the narrative techniques of Japanese master animator Hayao Miyazaki, whose child characters invariably journey to other worlds in their quests to deal with grief and trauma, and by the visual technique of French master Rémi Chayé, who also worked on layouts for this film.

Exquisite and moving both because of its technique and its indelible exploration of the mind of a child discovering the world, Little Amélie is an unforgettable moviegoing experience.

ANITA LEE