Eiga Daisuki Pompo-san

I was fortunate enough to watch a screening of this at the Anime NYC convention in November, months before the public release. It was part of a double billing along with Belle, the latest film by Mamoru Hosoda, whom you might know from Wolf Children. While Belle packed the auditorium and received far more hype in the form of its own booth and advertisements all throughout the convention, Pompo felt like the actual masterpiece. From the very beginning of the movie, the cinematography stunned me. Compared to most other anime, the world of Nyallywood seemed very much alive, colorful, and dynamic. Every scene transition was fancy, sort of like how Akudama Drive was initially presented. But while the snazzy effects tapered off after episode 1, for Pompo, it remained for the entire movie. Perspectives and establishing shots were wide and varied, and any flapping mouth scenes were kept to a minimum amount of time. The character designs may be simple, but that allowed the characters to act more fluidly. Pompo's creed when it comes to movie production could be considered controversial. It constantly drove home the point that a story shouldn't tell everything that happened. It should tell everything IMPORTANT that happened. The movie itself listens to its own advice, as its runtime is 1.5 hours. Some may disagree with Pompo's aggressive "scorched earth" method of film editing, that there is inherent value in savoring every bit of the story. There are many fans of long-running epics such as One Piece. Even live-action movies are trending towards ultra-long runtimes, such as Avengers Endgame at 3 hours. Fans who prefer grand world-building shows with a cornucopia of characters and side stories will hesitate to accept Pompo's film editing method as a proper and correct way to tell a story. However, as a fan who prefers all stories to wrap up in 2 cours (26 episodes) or less, Pompo's message resonated with me. Many directors who love to pad their stories could learn a thing or two from this. Despite Pompo's tight runtime, not once did it ever felt rushed, and every scene felt like it lasted for just the right amount of time. It certainly had more substantial content than Belle, which ran 32 minutes longer, and had sluggish scenes that I wished would end already. Could Pompo have been longer? Certainly. But even at 1.5 hours, it gives every character their moment in the limelight, and makes you care. At the two-thirds point in the movie, the film editing for the movie being created is complete. Had the movie concluded like that, it would've still been a great watch. But there's a powerful final act, and this final act was what put Pompo over the top as an all-time great. It recognized the sweat, devotion, and sacrifices needed to be the very best, whether it's for a hobby or a profession. As a content creator, I understood this all too well. Sometimes "good enough" isn't what you really desire. You want to leave it all on the floor and have no regrets. Pompo had spent significant time developing the lead character's backstory, in which he had absorbed film knowledge and wrote his own ideas in his notebook since childhood. Even then, he wasn't a miracle worker; he had to put in a backbreaking amount of time and effort to create the final product, affecting his overall health. The supporting characters were also developed enough that you could believe they all got to where they are through hard work and effort. Even the stereotypical attractive actress introduced at the beginning of the movie, whom I thought was a throwaway character, showed another side of herself. The final act of Pompo did what other "work creation" shows could not: convince me that the work being created was actually fantastic. With the critically acclaimed Shirobako, there was no illusion that the three anime the studio produced would be classics. The one-shot anime in Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken, another well-regarded show, was an admirable attempt by amateurs, but ultimately wasn't all that special. Remake Our Life skipped showing whatever the main characters created, probably because the author couldn't write anything of that level. But the movie made in Pompo, called Meister, looked like a legitimate award-winning work, and I'd watch a full version of it. Pompo is an absolute gem. With its rapid direction and loveable cast, this was the movie at Anime NYC that should've received all the attention. There's enough in its playful, colorful appearance to appeal to a wide audience. But it's the thought-provoking ideas, such as its "scorched earth" method of film editing, and unconventional cinematography, that will leave a long-lasting impression on viewers.

I don't wanna sound rude, but this film is exactly the same quality as Pompo's films lol It feels like the entire movie was made for portraying an irony The story is so shallow, the characters are so bland even the Pompo herself, and i couldn't find what's so interesting about this movie other than the visualization, just like Pompo's films. Visual wise, they're good but not that great, the animation, the design, and the colors in this movie. I really love the transitions they use. I love how they try to put movie-like effects in an animation which is kinda tricky, but they made it work. That makes me think, maybe this movie is just an experiment project. But Clap makes great animation, so if this being an experiment project, it's very underwhelming compared to other Clap's anime. It's like this anime was a task for their interns lol I only recommend this to people who watch anime for finding a desktop wallpaper.

Pompo the Cinephile is a film about everything a manic, starry-eyed filmmaker may imagine a film to be while actually being just about none of those things. From the soulless delivery of film techniques and inspirational advice, to the rose colored depiction of damaging aspects of the creative industry, my eyes slowly glazed over watching this ironic tragedy. I often say that if a work surrounding an interest or philosophy lacks heart, then I might as well be reading a wiki page. This film is wiki content at its finest, introducing and narrating everything like a documentary, yet even a legitimate documentary would more likely grant greater depth and humanity in its education. The meta filmmaking techniques read out over vaguely related animation could be legitimately useful for an amateur, aspiring filmmaker, and yet I would understand and be intrigued simply reading them on paper. It's almost laughable how much is dryly told to the audience rather than shown. The enthusiasm Gene, the character who serves as director, does show for his craft comes across through dramatic visuals and music, yet bombasticity is not a replacement for real character depth. He carries about a notebook filled with his notes from watching films and being on set, yet the love and dedication never leaves those pages. Here we have yet another bland Shirobako, with the energy of Eizouken, yet none of its passion. It helped a lot that the latter surrounded kids making something all on their own. Here we have a full-blown production, so the sardoodledom of both the movie and its movie within the movie is unfortunate. Especially as the film approached its climax, the campy asspulls continued one after another. The film gets caught up in blindly glorifying certain harmful aspects of the industry rather than making any witty criticisms. Even in a man’s world, the women could have been treated a little more seriously rather than only a pretty face for the male gaze. More central to the movie’s message though, is the endorsement of the artist’s necessary sacrifice. Ironically this film feels as if it were a self insert piece, crafted by a cinephile themself, who doesn't know how to apply their knowledge with tact. The entire thing comes across as an artist’s fever dream in how nicely everything goes for this supposed heroic and selfless outcast. I could swear I've already seen this movie before in my daydreams as a child, only able to think in extremes. Especially romantic is the discipline to trim away all else in life for the purpose of channeling everything towards the creation of a masterpiece—that you must live a life of hardship and loneliness to create real beauty in your art. The world is not painted in blacks and whites, and only by experiencing everything in moderation can you find all the colors it has to offer. I can’t bring myself to appreciate a film which encourages those who are isolated and have extreme tendencies to damage themselves further. All that being said, Gene's directing journey paralleling his own work is a nice touch if a tad too campy. Perhaps more focus on how movies helped him understand himself could have saved the film from blatant mistreatment of its subjects. I will say though, Pompo (the character) is incredibly based in her opinion on one thing. The shorter a story, the better. Trim away the fluff, and get to the point. A truly great storyteller knows how to use the bare minimum to allow the audience to fill in the gaps with their own imagination. However, the beauty in minimalism is the impressionistic quality. Simple emotions given the time on screen to sink into you can create entire stories in your mind. However, in its execution of these ideas, the film doesn’t give itself the space to breath and instead regurgitates Gene's unpolished notebooks verbatim onto the screen. Rather than even a B movie with a beautiful actress to sell it, we just have an offensive movie and a man with constant bags under his eyes. At least it was an hour and thirty minutes.

So in the end what is the point of this anime story? Who exactly are the characters we should highlight? Pompo, Nathalie, Martin, or Gene? Judging from the title, I think this is a story about Pompo. Then in the story Pompo said that the script she wrote was especially for Nathalie, so I thought that the film they were producing was for Nathalie's sake. But apparently the film highlights Martin as a musician. But apparently again in the end the film they made was for Gene's sake, if I'm not mistaken. But apparently again if I'm not mistaken in the end the film they made was for Gene, and his old friend from high school who worked at the bank. I just don't get it. This anime film shows how to make a film, teaches us what we need to pay attention to when making a film. But the film itself is a complete failure in that aspect. I even wonder what's the point of having Mystia in the first place? But I don't hate it, writing this is proof that I have an interest in this anime. The animation is great, the team did a great job, but what is the story really about? Can you explain it on my profile?

“Just like I was saved by movies, I want my movie to be seen and able to save someone.” - Gene Fini Pompo: The Cinéphile is a 90-minute show about striving in the movie industry, filled with a great proportion balance between comedy and drama, as well as giving audiences a glimpse of how the movie industry and the filmmaking process works. The story is mainly focused on Gene Fini, who has been entrusted by Pompo in directing a new movie project. Being his first time directing something, he must build up his confidence, overcome his anxiety, and face the upcoming challenges along his journey in order to bring the project to success. While it is not just Gene, each character also has their own story, background, and goals to achieve. Each of them will be affecting or influencing Gene in some way or another. The art style and its color usage fit with the atmosphere of the show. The animation is something that really made the show much better, simply adding the dimension, which creates epicness in some scenes. Insert songs of this show are also something, I love how they are played, which really brings excitement to audiences. I personally love the characterization of this show. The design of each character are being a bit different in style, which some kind of reflects their personality. One more thing you may notice is the fact that they use well-known or experienced voice actors on experienced characters and new voice actors on inexperienced characters. Despite all of that, they all did a great performance. Lastly, despite not being an action genre show, I feel the excitement during the watch. The show does not dig too deep into every character’s background while being able to not leaving out a single necessary element or scene, making the perfect 90-minute length. This is probably the reason the show is able to keep the concentration of the audiences during the whole watch thanks to the smooth and continuous editing. The only downside is that I wish for somewhat more of Pompo’s screentime as the show title suggests. Overall, Pompo: The Cinéphile gave me a great watching experience. The filmmaking in this show is what defines the greatness of this show. I truly recommend this show to anyone who wishes to experience something art-like or just wants to watch a show related to the movie industry.

Pompo: The Cinéphile asks what the gap is between a fun, wacky B-movie and a serious, critical masterpiece. Gene Fini, aspiring director, must realize what a master leaves behind to leap over that gap. Pompo: The Cinéphile isn't a masterpiece. But it's charming, fast-paced, and in my eyes, a great film. It's aware that reasonable chunks of character development, several really beautiful cinematic shots, and good-looking characters, keep the audience at the edge of their seat without getting fatigued by the length of a masterpiece. Whenever Gene sees a fantastic scene, we as the audience can't help but agree. If you want to watch a film about how old classic cinema and modern cinema still push film directors to make difficult decisions, this movie may be something very special. If not, this is still a film with great sound direction and voice casting. Kohara as Pompo and Ootsuka as Martin were really fun to hear with some great monologues. The sounds the characters make in different rooms and environments convey the changing sceneries. A potential shortcoming of the movie, which at the same time also keeps it light-hearted, is that rather than strong antagonists, the story is more about fighting against the difficult situations a professional life throws at you. Pompo shows off some wonderful shots of the film-inside-a-film, whether it involves a surfing beach babe or an overworked Gene summoning lightning from his keyboard. While it doesn't carry itself as a completely serious game-changer, you'll hopefully walk away with a smile and maybe a couple insightful thoughts about your own careers or future careers.

Pompo the Cinefile is a movie that attempts to dispense meaningful messages, but didn’t hit the mark for me. First off, there are a few scenes that embody the idea that projects are a group endeavor where everyone’s input is important. Second, the most impactful part of the movie involves not settling for “good enough” and fully realizing your visions. Finally, it highlights the importance of letting go of things despite how difficult it is. For what it’s worth, I think that these are very good messages that the plot of making a movie facilitates very well. However, I think the movie ends up completely shooting itself in the foot and disqualifying them. The whole third act of the film weirdly starts glorifying crunch. Of course we live in a depressing time where that’s how industries are, but this is definitely no satire of it. As a result, the whole feel-good team effort disappears immediately once the sole protagonist starts editing the film AND “don’t settle for less” unintentionally goes from inspiring to perverse. Despite Pompo being the name of the film, the movie focuses on her subordinate Gene being the director of the film. I did not care for Gene. He’s a film-buff who has the know-how to direct a movie, but he’s a spineless wimp who needs help getting the confidence to do so. The potential was there to make him a character I’d root for. Instead, the movie paints him as pathetic in a way that I found obnoxious instead of cute. The gratuitous amount of the “dark eye bags” always present on his design certainly didn’t help. I think he was designed for a specific demographic to relate to and feel good about — a demographic I’m not in. Pompo, the girl featured in the title of the film, was much more of a side character than you would expect. I feel like she was supposed to act as a mentor for Gene (and her design was meant to be a silly juxtaposition of that), but I think her grandfather fulfilled that role more. It certainly didn’t help that her first piece of advice as a mentor was “Only people who have suffered are creative”. I think this had the intention of giving a boost to viewers saddled with hardships, but it’s such an extreme take to start off on that it made her hard to take seriously. Mostly she was there to be cute, which I think they succeeded in doing at least. As an aside, the movie spends a bit of time pointing out that you have to make a movie trailer with the idea of misdirection to get the audience interested. I think they were trying to be clever by doing that with Pompo the Cinefile itself and making the cute girl the title of it while giving her the most prominence on the poster. If the movie was actually about being satirical about the movie industry then I would consider this move to be a stroke of comedic genius. But since the movie is actually about propping movies up, pulling this move feels so discordant. This and the aforementioned “Gene demographic” idea make the movie feel somewhat fabricated. Anyway, to get back to the characters, Nathalie was my favorite. Unfortunately, her whole buildup of wanting to be in movie and her cute, endearing personality barely got highlighted. Obviously this is Gene’s story, but it’s disappointing that they made a character with so much more charm and a even main-character-worthy backstory, then made her merely a side character. It’s especially odd when Mystia fulfills the exact same role of “side character actress” but with the appropriate amount of screen time for the role. Alan was such a weird character because he basically shows up halfway through. Furthermore, his one big scene of needing to get investors for the movie could’ve been an interesting glance into what goes into that, but it instead devolves into cartoonish absurdity. I cannot see that scene being taken seriously, which is especially damning because by that point the movie swaps its mood from lighthearted to solemn. A part of me feels bad because the reason I was interested in this movie was hearing that it was inspiring and emotional. I don't want to be punching down on people who might've genuinely been lifted up by it. However, I don’t think the movie did a good job of portraying its messages. Instead it came off as either boring, asinine, or tone-deaf to me. Perhaps if you’re a movie buff then the subject matter might be interesting enough, but otherwise I can’t reliably recommend it.

Boasting brilliant practicalities and procedural of the industry, Pompo The Cinephile is an exercise of technical mastery that overwhelmed its own weight, suspension, and story. It is impressive how beaming with passion this movie is to the craft. It's an anomaly that an anime movie is even allowed to be this practically effective. Shirobako and Bakuman came to mind when thinking about the show in the same vein, but even they are still confined to its medium and hard to break the meta. Pompo on the other hand, will explicitly morph its own narrative if that means they can show you in the most literal sense possible, what an editing room feels like. You'll be ushered into the process of the industry from the perspective of an efficient director on a very well-organized production, so all seems neat and effective. Everything is so effective in fact, that you'll forget things supposed to be artistic.. I assume, just like me, many others got introduced to this movie by reels online showing the struggle of the female protagonist, Natalie. Then we learned the premise is about the cinema industry, and all of a sudden, this movie feels exactly catered to us cinema enthusiasts. Almost like an obligation. Hell, they even put "Cinephile" in the title, so it can't be more obvious than that, right?! But watching it will make you realize, it is nothing more than an obligation. For a movie about artistic vision of a director, the director feels like the most faded figure in the background. This movie will beat you in the head with every lavish transition, subtle exposition, artistic montage, and formulaic catharsis, but vision is the last of their concerns. We got jebaited by the dramatic prospect of a struggling actress trying to get into the industry (it's not their fault, honestly), but in reality, the movie is nowhere that intimate. They like to think it was personal, but the profound struggle of the protagonist is so basic to the craft; it's 101 instructions on how to be. It's superficial! Not exactly style over substance; more like, the style is the substance, which makes it worse in my opinion. If you want to witness something with a vision, that also function as, the substance is the style, watch Eizouken!!

NOTE: THIS REVIEW HAS SPOILERS SO PLEASE AVOID READING THIS IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE ANIME I hate that I’ll dig into Pompo The Cinephile (or Eiga Daisuki Pompo-san in Japanese) as much as I will for the rest of the review because you can clearly tell the people making this movie were truly passionate about it, but ultimately the movie simply has a lot of problems that cannot be simply ignored. Pompo the Cinephile is a movie that can be best described as full of ambitions and ideas, but ultimately fails in fully fleshing out those ideas because of how aggressively underwhelming it is in regards to its execution. The movie is about Gene Fini, the assistant of Joelle Davidovich Pomponette (Pompo-san), a film producer at the movie capital "Nyallywood'' who is given the task to direct a film based on a script written by her. There are some interesting stylistic choices under its toolbelt, like scene transitions, echoing the way the late Satoshi Kon would bleed different scenes together with an amazing sense of flow. The way it visualizes the main character Gene Fini’s inner thoughts whenever he’s in his creative zone was a particular treat. The visual parallels created between Gene’s personal struggles with finding his own voice in the film and the protagonist of Meister, the film Gene is Directing and Editing were interesting at some times but at other times didn’t have the connective tissue to connect the struggles of the two together, but it trying to do that was admirable. (Disclaimer: The following is something that’s a personal pet peeve of mine, and because of that I’m not deducting any points for it but I do want to address it)The movie does this one thing that I don't really like in some modern anime where they have these long sweeping one-shots that move around the 3D Background without any sort of motivated movement in mind. It's fine when something like AOT does it because they use that to emphasize the momentum and the speed of the characters when they're using it for their 3D Maneuvering gear, it does not fit when it's just a shot of an opera performing, there are so many ways to capture the grandiosity of the opera without doing this showy camera move that does nothing but distract the viewer. Popo the Cinephile’s character work is generally lackluster, Gene is the only character that is actually somewhat fleshed out. They introduce him as a person with problems regarding his voice as an artist and ambitions as a filmmaker, and how he finds solace in films due to being an outcast. The parts that showed his inner thought process whenever he’s editing are easily the best parts of the movie because those are the only parts in which Gene really shines through as a living breathing character. Pompo, the titular character (though not the main one, funnily enough) is only really there to serve as a catalyst to all of the other characters’ arcs in the story. This movie has a weird problem with characters wherein it introduces someone, establishes an arc for them and then: A. just never doing anything with it B.rushing it so quickly that you never really see said character progress throughout. For example, the character Natalie's introduced early into the movie. Her arc is about having the confidence to perform and actually landing a role, and they resolve all of that in the first act by way of montage after which she gets the lead role in Pompo’s new film. Alan Gardner is easily the weakest of the core cast. He is introduced as someone having a history with Gene who happens to conveniently work at Nyallywood Bank, the bank that ultimately helped fund Gene’s movie after a very contrived conflict introduced at the end of the second act. It feels like they introduce this character purely to be someone who helps solve said conflict regarding the funding of Gene’s film (who also receives a Deus ex machina too in the form of Nyallywood Bank’s CEO). They try to flesh out Alan by explaining his conflicts in a single throwaway line but it does little to help. The movie’s core theme is about trying to ultimately live to one’s own ambitions. The problem is that it does little to really delve into its core theme and everything surrounding it. A lot of the core problems of the movie exist because the length of the movie that they (the filmmakers) set for themselves to serve what they thought would be a cool trick (a topic that is discussed inside the movie and is also one of the conflicts presented in a conversation with Gene and Popo), but what it ends up doing is that it leaves the movie no room to really truly get into the themes and ideas it wants to discuss, leading to it rushing through everything and never focusing on anything. The movie also pretty much forgets to have a conflict in the main story so they shove a few just before the third act and resolve them almost immediately. I also personally feel like this haphazard way of immediately resolving conflicts leads to it having a very problematic message at the end. Gene, due to overworking himself during the editing phase which leads to him suffering from anemia. Personally speaking, they could have taken it to an interesting direction and have an interesting message regarding overworking in relation to one’s passion. What the movie does instead is that it lets Gene’s reckless behavior be ultimately rewarded at the end by him escaping the hospital he’s been sent to rest and him finishing the film to great critical and commercial praise. This sends the message to the viewer that one’s ambitions serve greater precedence than their own health and wellbeing which is problematic and irresponsible to promote. Overall, Pompo the Cinephile had the potential to be a really interesting and possibly introspective movie about personal ambitions and filmmaking, but the runtime ultimately works to its detriment by delivering a very shallow final product. Imagining what it could have been is ultimately more infuriating and disappointing than the actual movie. It’s not the worst thing you will ever see, because the few virtues it has are the only things carrying the movie, but there are definitely much better movies and anime out there tackling similar themes.

At AnimeNYC, Pompo was billed with Belle (Hosoda's latest film) and boy did Pompo outshine the latest film from one of the best directors in the business. For Studio Clap's first work, this is incredible. I want to avoid spoilers, but they fully experimented with the animation style, music, and narrative. The variation in those aspects kept the viewing experience fresh throughout the film. I also love the efficiency in story telling. There are no meaningless characters because everyone has an important and justified role in the story. Despite not being a long movie, Pompo manages to pack a lot of content in. The tasteful use of comedy interspersed in a more serious narrative was done with what I can best describe as "good charm". It hits that hard to describe goldilocks zone. One where it isn't a meaningless joke or something overly dramatic. I love the irony that a movie in pursuit of making a masterpiece is itself a masterpiece.

This movie was just heartwarming front to back - created by somebody with an absolute admiration of the craft. A feature length directorial debut about a young man directing his first feature length and all the trials and tribulations that come with that. With character designs that wouldn’t feel out of place in a Gainax/Trigger production, the animators use it to their full advantage and make every scene nearly pop out of the frame with exaggerated movements and expressions - and every single cut in the movie felt like a moment of magic as they were all so intent, so creative, and all blended seamlessly from scene to scene. This was a love letter to film making as a whole, and the amount of dedication and passion you have to have for this medium, but rather than take it in a dark direction like films before it have done (Whiplash, Black Swan, etc.), it painted it in a positive light - the sacrifices you have to make in your life in order to get your passion in the world and see your dreams come to life are a necessary part of the process, and through that process you will meet and influence those on the same path as you.

This movie was just straight up dopamine. The pacing makes every scene go by at just the right speed, the soundtrack makes the moments emotional and exciting, the transitions are some of the most creative cuts I have ever seen, and the side characters steal the show everytime they are on screen. This movie is just 90 minutes long, and is the perfect film to watch on a rainy day where it seems like time slows to a standstill. It's a movie about making movies, and it did not disappoint! Made by the same studio who brought summer tunnel: the exit of goodbyes.

In personal reflection, "Pompo: The Cinéphile" left a lasting impression. The characters' journeys, coupled with the film's visual and thematic brilliance, make it a must-watch for anyone passionate about storytelling and filmmaking. The movie strikes a balance between entertainment and thought-provoking storytelling, making it a memorable cinematic experience. In conclusion, "Pompo: The Cinéphile" stands as a testament to the power of storytelling within the realm of cinema. With its well-crafted narrative, compelling characters, and visual prowess, the film delivers a memorable and enjoyable experience for audiences of all kinds. It is a celebration of the art of filmmaking and a reminder of the magic that unfolds when passion meets the silver screen.

Advantages: the direction, the characters, the atmosphere, the drawing Weaknesses: the simplicity of the concept Read more: The movie is very fast-paced, tense, I would even say, and that's a good thing, because that's what the story is about - a little kid trying to do something that's not very superficial. I'm not saying it's a thriller, but it's really cool. I really liked how colorful and sunny and childlike everything is. I can think of TV adaptations of "Pokemon," the Doraemon movies and "Your Name," for that matter. That's what keeps me from giving it a 10 right now, and that's where the simplicity of the whole movie comes in. Don't forget that this is a review, and I'm not objectively reviewing anything here, I'm just explaining my feelings about the film. Well, I'm not much of a fan of simple feature films, they do impress me, but not as much as other genres and other approaches to anime. The script is really well written, considering that the whole movie is, I repeat, tense, but the last act does feel like a climax, albeit very bombastic and naive. Result: The movie is very good, if you want purely inspirational stuff ala spokon - you'll give it at least a 7, that I guarantee you.

10/10 from me. I'm not a reviewer but I'd say this movie is a must-watch and I'm surprised it's not talked about more. The scene switches and cuts were instantly noticeable in a good way and really stands out from other anime movies. This movie is good if you want a touching story without it being too overwhelming. Animation is smooth, all characters are funny and you just want all of them to succeed; no bad guys in this film. The last 10 to 20 minutes made my eyes watery, truly wonderful dialogue. I'd even go as far as to say this is one of the best and underrated anime movies at the moment. Edit: Funnily enough, the person voicing Nathalie, Otani Rinka, was a first-time voice actress herself!

I was lucky enough to be picked at animenyc to see a prescreening of Pompo: The Cinéphile, so here I am. Warning: spoilers ahead Pompo: The Cinéphile is by no means a masterpiece, but it set out to be what it wanted to be and executed exactly what it wanted to do perfectly. It is about Gene, a random souless movie studio employee who got the change to direct a movie thanks to the help of the greatest director of all time, loli who for some reason only works on b movies despite her prowess as a director. throughout the movie, we watch him utilize his op directing skills that came out of nowhere in order to make a movie that is proclaimed to "be a critical success" the moment it hits theatres. Yes. the summary so far seems like the most generic stuff ever, and having an op main character can never be a good sign, and the movie itself realizes it. it is one of the most self aware movies out there, as it draws many parallels between the movie itself, the characters, and the movie that is being produced within it, although hte former is a bit less direct. yes, very meta i know. just as a few examples, Gene is paralleled with the mc of the movie that he is producing, and many things in the movie such as the run time even match up perfectly with the run time of the actual movie itself. heck, even the movie centers around a b movie director! as one may expect, having an op protagonist and whatnot other crazy stuff the movie uses at the beginning really weights down the story a lot. some of the weakest scenes in this movie are ones where it is trying to explain the backstory of the characters and how in the world they could possibly end up in the extremely unprobeable situations they are in, and this is especially prevalent in in the 15-25 min mark of the movie. luckily, the loli comes in to save the day(or at least salvage as much as she can). you see, pompo is honestly one of the strongest assets this movie can have, even if she has no assets of her own. she is extremely cheerful, and her almost comical attitude towards things make her very fun to watch. and because she herself stretches the boundaries of what is acceptable, she is also under the burden of explaining all which is unacceptable. all of the improbabilities of this anime are all explained through her and written off as one of her antics, even is the consequences that they create are way too strong in order to even remotely thought of for someone in her position. as mentioned before, the director getting his role was completely due to the loli acting of a whim and saying stuff like "hmm yes lets let this souless lump of flesh of a human be the director of a giant movie even though he's basically done nothing before cuz i see potential in him". and get this, this doesn't happen just once, but twice! same thing happens with the country girl whose character design seems like it was ripped out of fire force of a main female lead! as one final thing that I want to say about the failings of this movie, the ending sucks ass. deus ex machina all the way. sure, it tries to stop the power of ex machina a bit, but it still powers thru everything in the end because it wanted to have one final struggle for the main cast that was honestly way above their pay grade and ended up failing miserably. but hey at least the subplot about the blonde guy that led up to it was half decent, and made for a good parallel between the mc and what he could have been. oh yea as some more detail about the ending, the deus ex machina involved was absolutely absurd, and destroyed everything that the movie had built up inside of both the directing part of it along with the actual movie part of it. and it gets even worse. the final conflict that Gene has was paralleled with his counterpart from inside of the movie, and although the final part of their arc isn't technically the climax of the movie (even though its pretty gosh darn close to it) i still want to say some stuff about it. like both the mc and his counterpart go full out edgelord and start emitting black fumes and have shining eyes even tho all they are doing are mundane things like playing the piano and editing a script. its honestly so bad that it even ends up coming off as a bit comical, and ruins all of the emotional impact of the movie. yall might have given up on this anime by now due to how much I've been slamming down on it, but hear me out, it actually has some pretty good parts to it too. first of all, this movie is actually pretty funny. it has a really good running gag and has funny character reactions to things, but its nothing earth shattering. just pretty darn above average is all. second of all, this movie has a lot of great transition shots, and the ones used have to be some of the most unique that I've seen in a while. they can come in the form of the good old cut through a character covering a part of the screen and merging two unique but similar backgrounds together while they move through it to cutting the screen into many separate parts and going from there. its honestly really interesting, and fun to watch. Finally, the parts where this anime shines the most are the parts where one can forget how improbable the situation of the mcs are in and just enjoy the movie making process with them. the beautiful art and sound perfectly compliment the ups and downs of the movie making process, and watching the characters grow throughout the movie is honestly really exciting. the calm parts of both the movie and the meta movie are all very soothing, and one can really get invested into seeing everything to the end. this part of the movie encompasses most of the movie, as it is basically everything except for the aforementioned 15-25 min min mark and the ending. if this movie had fixed its ending along with fleshing out better backstories for the characters, it could have no doubt easily gotten into the 8 range on mal. Final thoughts: the bad parts of this movie were pretty bad, but it also had quite a lot of good scenes, and honestly got pretty emotionally invested. low 8 cuz of the pretty bad stuff and if you rly care about having a rly good plot then this movie isn't the movie for you. I kinda tried to ignore the bad parts of the movie, and that ended up helping me appreciate the movie for what it is. honestly just your run of the mill b movie but would watch cuz of its good parts. and finally heres a collection of random tidbits that i jotted down while taking notes for this review that didn't exactly fit into anything: i think that i might have seen this wrong because of how absurd it sounds but apparently at one point in the movie Nathalie started doing a fortnite dance??? small detail but Gene doesn't use a mousepad loli's poncho has a ridiculous hood that covers her bangs and goes to maid cafes the movie isn't actually 1:30:00 long if you include the credits and stuff

Yo, fellow weebs and movie lovers! I just gotta shout out POMPO THE CINEPHILE, cuz damn, this flick hit me right in the feels. It's like a rollercoaster ride through the world of filmmaking, packed with enough laughs, drama, and eye candy to fill a whole film festival. First off, the animation is fire. Seriously, those scenes where Gene battles giant film strips in the editing room? Mind-blown. And Pompo herself, with her big eyes and crazy energy, she's like a kawaii hurricane that takes the whole story with her. The rest of the characters, from the shy Gene to the stuck-up Narcis, they're all so colorful and real, you wanna hang out with them (except maybe Narcis, dude's kinda intense). The story itself might not be the deepest Oscar contender, but who needs that when you got passion, humor, and a killer chase sequence on a giant fish?! It's about chasing your dreams, facing your fears, and learning that even the biggest screw-ups can turn into golden moments. Plus, it throws in some cool movie references that made me geek out like a total dork. Sure, there might be some clichés here and there, and maybe the ending isn't as mind-bending as Inception (trust me, I tried inception-ing while watching, didn't work). But honestly, who cares? POMPO is pure fun, a celebration of cinema that made me wanna grab my camera and yell "Action!" louder than Pompo herself. So, if you're looking for a movie that's beautiful, hilarious, and leaves you with a warm fuzzy feeling (and maybe a sudden urge to edit a masterpiece), check out POMPO THE CINEPHILE. It's like a giant bag of popcorn, bursting with flavor and guaranteed to leave you satisfied. Just trust this weeb, your next watchlist just got one film brighter.

Eiga Daisuki Ponpon-san does not belittle hard work as some shows do. There are makes valid arguments as to why the main characters is qualified to occupy his position, and he works hard to get there. The movie also doesn't shy away from subtly exposing Hollywood flaws. (While simultaneously being blind to others) The art direction and transitions are fantastic. This is where the benefits of the show start to run short. Many characters are forced into pointlessness due to clumsy introduction and follow through, and this problem inflates and affects the main beats of the story itself. These flaws are not egregious but make the show is disorganized and directionless, which is painfully ironic for a show about a new movie director. Story 5, Art 8, Sound 7, Character 5, Enjoyment 6.

Whoa a movie about cinephiles. Cinema Paradiso! Really need to watch it. As an anime, the animation was amazing as expected. The transitions were smooth and cool. The part where Gene edited the movie was pretty dope, and it was the most exciting part of the story. As a story tho, although I get the passion, I did not agree with all the messages. There’s a discussion on the length of a movie between Gene and Pompo that I for sure do not agree. This point became significant later, and it annoyed be a bit. I also found the message pretty surface-level. It’s not a whole lot different from other movies about passion for something. This made the plot fairly predictable. Overall, it’s an okay and easy to digest anime. 6/10

Something bad might've happened, You abandoned your hope and dreams, You sat, waiting for your inevitable end. This is where this show hits you the most, When you felt like you've given up and you've nowhere to go. It tells you to keep going, you are doing just fine, you can do it. You are reminded that you're not alone in this world. It lits the fire within you, your burning passion. So make not just a small step in life but a huge one! What I find a bit meh is that the ending lacks the excitement of having a miraculous moment or some sort of good note. thanks for reading this bad review of mine, have a happy new year