It’s time for a true romance film which I can’t say that I had really heard of before. I can safely say it’s one of the better romance titles that I’ve seen in a while. We finally have a main heroine who is really aggressive and going for what she wants instead of just being evasive the whole time. I love the confidence and that sets the film on a good start right from the jump. The movie’s attempts at being more action packed tend to fail but the film tends to be on point when it comes to the romance.

The movie starts off by introducing us to Miyo who is madly in love with Hinode. She does everything she can to get him to notice her like body slamming him, lunging at him, yelling about how she loves him, etc. He apparently told her off many times and so now he just completely ignores her which makes her sad. Fortunately Miyo grabbed a cat mask from a shady cat dealer and so she uses this to become a cat and become friends with Hinode that way. He loves the cat so that is how Miyo gets his love for now but she hopes to one day win as a human too. In the meantime though, is this deal a little too good to be true.

So like I said the weakest part is the whole cat salesman and the action going on over there. It’s pretty out there and weird which is fun because it’s so jarring from the rest of the story but I feel like it goes on for a tad too long by the end of it. We get a fairly long climax of running after the guy, tackling him, etc. The problem is that he seems to be all powerful with how he can shape shift, fly, etc. So the fact that they can do anything to him doesn’t really make sense. You have to suspend a whole lot of disbelief for all of the scenes involving him.

The cat world is interesting but also a little under developed. I guess everyone who gets turned into cats just sort of give up but you’d expect more general chaos and anarchy. Narratively it is satisfying to see the various characters make their declarations and fight back but the whole thing takes itself a little too seriously. I like the angle of Miyo turning into a cat and even the whole mask system and how cats can turn into humans. I would keep that but I would reduce the focus in the climax on the other world.

Back to the main story though, I really liked Miyo as the lead. I appreciated the fact that she always kept up a positive outlook and did her best to stay strong no matter what was going on. She certainly went through a whole lot of hardships and really had to tough it out on her own. Her parents split up and so she’s been trying to be fair to her new stepmom while also guarding herself from being attached. While she plays off her love to Hinode as a bit of a joke, it’s still really serious for her and every rejection hurts.

Through it all she never really takes it out on the other characters. Her loyalty is also nice like when she jumped off of a building to take care of some bullies. I definitely wouldn’t advise doing that for obvious reasons but she wasn’t about to let them bad mouth Hinode. They were sure talking loud to be heard from the roof though. Eventually Miyo isn’t able to get it together and breaks down by the end but she stayed strong for a real long time. Ultimately she’s one of the better main heroines that I’ve seen in a while and I will always give tremendous respect to any character who is able to properly charge forward and speak out her feelings.

I also really liked the step mom Kaoru who was also doing her best. She was trying not to be pushy but was naturally trying to bond with Miyo at least a little. Kaoru did her best throughout and also didn’t let herself get pushed around. When the old mother came to visit, Kaoru stood her ground and fought back really well. She was one of the better developed characters in the film and was a crucial piece in getting things to end well.

Her cat Kinako also ends up getting a pretty sizable role. At first I thought she seemed rather random the whole time but the pieces came together. She is fairly quick on the uptake all things considered and could bluff her way out of situations really well. I would have liked to have seen more of her initial meetups with the various characters instead of the 3 day time skip but it was a very intriguing part of the movie either way.

Then we have Hinode who is a solid guy but probably one of the weaker characters by default. He basically gets embarrassed by Miyo the whole time so he stays away. The guy likes to be quiet and stay out of the limelight which is impossible in this situation. I just have a hard time sympathizing with him when he doesn’t stand up to the bullies or defend Miyo in any way. When some bullies stole her love letter he should have been a bit more forceful and definitely shouldn’t have taken it out on her. That was easily his worst scene.

In his plot, it also seemed reasonable to close down the ceramics shop even though he liked it. Clearly it was not going over very well and his own skills were not enough to keep it afloat. Feelings and platitudes are all well and good but in the end they just weren’t enough. If he really wanted to keep things in place then he needed to work on his skills more. That would really have been the only way for him to have made a difference here. Instead he just got nervous too often and that came back to bite him.

Part of why I could get behind the romance more this time is because there were no rebounds or anything of the sort. Miyo liked Hinode from the start and while he was mainly avoiding her, it’s not like he had anyone else that he liked. It took a very long time so this wasn’t a sudden development either and so this felt like a well crafted romance. We got to really learn about both characters and their trials. I would argue that Miyo faced much harsher and greater challenges the whole time but they both did have their tough times.

Miyo also had a great friend who was really with her through all of the tough times. The friend was definitely not on board with the romance but it makes sense since she was trying to protect Miyo from what she saw as future heartbreak. She really wanted to avoid that at all costs which makes sense. In a way that’s what makes her such a good friend, it’s only natural that you would end up getting upset at the guy who keeps rejecting Miyo.

Meanwhile the animation is pretty solid and smooth. It’s not always the most colorful but it definitely doesn’t hold the film back. I like how fast paced it can all get. Then the soundtrack is solid like you would expect. We get a pair of emotional songs and the overall soundtrack matches the film’s cheerful energy. The movie was definitely on point with all of these technical aspects and the writing so I have no real issues here.

Overall, A Whisker Away is a pretty good film. It’s rare that I say this but it could probably have focused on the romance more and the supernatural less and it could have been even better. That said, it’s a film I would highly recommend you check out because it’s just so much different from your average romance experience. The guy isn’t chasing after the girl and things get all complicated. This time the heroine takes matters into her own hands and it’s just a lot of fun.

Overall 7/10