Haunting Trailer for Studio Ghibli's 'When Marnie Was There'

Although legendary storyteller Hayao Miyazaki may be retired, or semi-retired or whatever it actually is, Studio Ghibli is still in very good hands. And they're smart enough to pay attention to every single word Miyazaki has ever said, which includes his list of the 50 best children's novels. One of the movies on that list was Joan G. Robinson's 1981 book, When Marnie Was There, and the studio has just released the first trailer for their adaptation of it.

Beautifully rendered and poetic, the film bears the hallmarks of director Hiromasa Yonebayashi, who did an excellent job on The Secret World of Arrietty, the studio's highest grossing U.S. release ever. A lonely young girl named Anna is at the center of this ghost story, with Marnie the mysterious and strange new friend she meets one day. Then Marnie suddenly vanishes and Anna learns some interesting truths about who, or what, she really was.  Not that you can tell any of that from the trailer which offers nothing in the way of plot, but the emotions are clear and Ghibli  may have another animated classic on their hands.

We'll be sure to update you when a U.S. date is nailed down.


When Marnie Was There - bande annonce 1 [VO] by Filmosphere