The Secret World of Arrietty (2010) based on The Borrowers (1952)

The Secret World of Arrietty is an animated film from Studio Ghibli, the "Disney of Japan," based on Mary Norton's classic novel "The Borrowers."

The Borrowers is not a particularly exciting book. Much of the novel is spent setting up the world of the Borrowers, little people who "borrow" items from regular sized folk (explaining why earrings and pins always go missing). The main characters are the Clock family, Pod, Homily and their daughter Arrietty.

Don't get me wrong, it's a great book and re-reading it recently, I remembered how fond of the concept I was as a child. Little people! I'm not sure if I would rather have lived as a little person or with them in my house, but in any case it was fascinating to consider that a sugar cube would serve them for months.

The plot, though, is sparse. After setting up the world, we learn that Arrietty is old enough to go "borrowing" with her father while her mother worries at home.

There is a change in the house, however. A boy is staying in the house, convalescing from an illness and he spots Arrietty. Her parents immediately resign themselves to leaving -- borrowers cannot stay in a house where they are known by humans. Arrietty, however, trusts the boy and they become friends. Still, the family eventually leaves.

That doesn't sound like enough plot to fill 90 minutes but the film is filled with beautiful paintings and a fair amount of light comedic scenes alternately featuring the housecat or the maid who are both suspicious of the borrowings in the house.

The movie changes the book through setting -- it's modern Japan, rather than mid 20th c. England -- and a rather more explicit discussion of the boy (Sean in the film) and his illness. In the movie he is awaiting an operation.

Other than that, the movie stays very close to the book, even to the somewhat downbeat ending. It's a good artistic choice, but I can understand why an animated movie that doesn't end with a princess marriage might not have done so well at the box office.

Bottom line: The book is a children's classic and the movie is beautiful and features some good voice to Japanese mouth movement dubbing by Amy Poehler, Will Arnett and Carol Burnett.