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There is a big topic in SNS about movies with comments such as [Adults cry out loud] and [Nasu Kinoko seems to be involved in the production].

That movie is [Sumikko Gurashi the Movie: The Pop-Up Book and The Mystery Child].

[Sumikko Gurashi] is a character product sponsored by San-X and has developed a variety of products for those who [like Sumikko] such as goods and picture books.
When the movie was announced, [Sumikko Gurashi] has become a big topic among those who have heard the name but does not know any details yet.

Actually, I myself was not familiar with it but when I watched the movie, I got impressed [I see, this is a good one]. In this article, I want to present you the charm of this work.

Calm Sumikko and weak characters living in the center of society.

Every character in [Sumikko Gurashi] have a slightly negative and traditional looking personality. For those who like Sumikko, the characters may look a bit traditional looking but the character design is made to lack a bit of confidence.
[Sumikko Gurashi] depicts those characters with no confidence in themselves and comfortable in their traditional mindset together in a room or the corner cafe.

For example, Shirokuma who is born in the North Pole but is not good wit cold and also a shut-in. If you are not good with cold, you will not be able to live in a group of polar bears in the North Pole.
Other characters like the lizard, who is actually a dinosaur, was captured when his identity is revealed. Now, he pretends to live quietly in the corner.

Beside animals there are also [Food] characters. Tonkatsu is 1% meat 99% fat so it is uneatable and left over and feels sad because he is not eaten.
In the same way, when the milk tea was drunk and left behind, I feel painful when I think about the recent instagram tapioca boom.

My favorite character is Zassou. Despite being a weed, he dreams to be a bouquet of flowers in a flower shop.
Surely that wish will not come true but still I feel pain in my heart. But seeing his positive attitude, I do not feel any sadness.

The characters in [Sumikko Gurashi] has low confidence in themselves due to their origin but are also minorities. Cute design and traditional thinking mingling in society seems to be the secret to healing those who have a hard life in society.

Looking at the Sumikkos’ forms, not familiar with the classrooms in school, do not have a place in the company or feeling alienated, you will never think they are people.

Movie that makes use of the Sumikkos’ characteristics

The movie includes an introduction to all Sumikko characters so if you do not know [Sumikko Gurashi] at all, you will be fine.

The story is about a picture book that teleported the Sumikkos to other worlds such as Momotarou, Arabian Nights and the match stick girl and while they do not know the mechanism behind the teleportation, they meet a chick with strange colors.

Like nay other story, the characters have roles. But a chick who does not know her story does not have a role and place.
The pain of not having a place is similar to the Sumikkos who live in the corner.

In the story, the chick ask the Sumikkos a question, [What am I?] a question about identity directed at the audience too. The composition of the story leading up to the climax is also wonderfully crafted and the feelings are communicated simply by the narration and the character’s play without any lines.

After watching, I felt a very warm feeling. It is a wonderful work so please see it for yourself.