Search Film, Company, People...

KIKI'S DELIVERY SERVICE

MAJYO NO TAKKYUBIN

By Takashi SHIMIZU

NJUTAFILMS - as DISTR Theatrical, TV, DVD-video, VOD, SWEDEN

Action/Adventure - Completed 2014

Kiki, a descendent of witches, journeys to a small strange town near the sea. She meets new locals and is eager to start up her own delivery service, but she is not expecting the obstacles that await her…

- Year of production
- 2014
- Genres
- Action/Adventure, Children's
- Countries
- JAPAN
- Languages
- JAPANESE, ENGLISH
- Budget
- 5 - 10 M$
- Duration
- 109 mn
- Director(s)
- Takashi SHIMIZU
- Writer(s)
- Satoko OKUDERA, Takashi SHIMIZU
- Cast
- Fuka KOSHIBA, Ryuhei HIROTA, Machiko ONO, Hiroshi YAMAMOTO, Hirofumi ARAI, Yoh YOSHIDA, Minako KOTOBUKI, Yuri , Tadanobu SASANO, Michitaka TSUTSUI, Rie MIYAZAWA
- ISAN
- 0000-0003-D94D-0000-N-0000-0000-5
- EIDR
- 10.5240/BA14-B325-21E5-2774-8B51-R
- Producer(s)
- Haruo UMEKAWA (Studio 3)
- Synopsis
- Kiki (Fuka Koshiba) is the daughter of Koriki (Rie Miyazawa), a witch, and Okino (Michitaka Tsutsui), a ‘normal’ human being. Following an ancient law of witchery, once Kiki turns 13 she must leave her home and travel to another place, where she must live on her own for one year. With Jiji, her black cat (Minako Kotobuki), she climbs on her broom and flies off until she finds the town of Koriko, set in a group of islands far over the sea. Flying over the town, she spies a windwill. Landing, she smells bread and comes into the ‘Buy Bye Bakery’, where she meets Osono (Machiko Ono), the kind-hearted owner. Bearing in mind her mother’s admonition to always ‘keep smiling’, she decides to start a broom-based delivery service. Her first job, however, is a disaster. The youth Tombo (Ryohei Hirota) asks her to deliver a book for him, but his interest is in how she manages to fly. Kiki is not impressed, and their relationship gets off to a bad start. She is disappointed at how her first job has turned out, but manages to demonstrate her flying ability to many in the town, and soon has lots of work. Jiji doesn’t share her enthusiasm, but Kiki ignores this and is thoroughly enjoying herself. However Maruko, the baby hippo at the Koriko Zoo, is ill, and her keeper Nazuru (Hirofumi Arai) announces over the radio that this is because Kiki has put a curse on the animal. Kiki is hurt by this heartless outburst, and she begins to have doubts. Word of the ‘curse’ spreads, and soon Kiki has no more work. Everything she has delivered is returned to her. In shock, she loses her ability to fly, and resolves to abandon her hopes of becoming a full-fledged witch. Osono and her husband are worried, but then a request comes from the zoo. There is a storm approaching, no boats can sail from the island, and Maruko needs to be taken to Dr Ishi (Tadanobu Asano), a veterinarian on another island. But Kiki cannot fly, and a powerful storm is coming. What will she do? Will she recover both her magic and her smile?