The defence The Sentimental Softie
“Sincerity is not manipulation.”
The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.
Back to trending 
Ghost Cat Anzu
Animation · Fantasy · Comedy · 2024
Precocious tween Karin finds herself abandoned by her father in rural Japan. Living in a temple with her grandfather, she meets Anzu, a giant "ghost cat" and notorious layabout tasked with looking after her. Distrustful of her new guardian, Karin sabotages Anzu's odd jobs for the townsfolk and befriends the eccentric local forest spirits. In an effort to win Karin over, Anzu accidentally makes a deal with the devil, and all Hell breaks loose.
Movie details
Ghost Cat Anzu
2024 Animation · Fantasy · Comedy 1h 34m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.8 / 10
Community rating
Precocious tween Karin finds herself abandoned by her father in rural Japan. Living in a temple with her grandfather, she meets Anzu, a giant "ghost cat" and notorious layabout tasked with looking after her. Distrustful of her new guardian, Karin sabotages Anzu's odd jobs for the townsfolk and befriends the eccentric local forest spirits. In an effort to win Karin over, Anzu accidentally makes a deal with the devil, and all Hell breaks loose.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over Ghost Cat Anzu?
For the defence
The Sentimental Softie
“You came to feel something, and you will.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Cool Ironist
“Feeling things is a little embarrassing.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
Mary and The Witch's Flower
Animation · 2017
Mary Smith, a young girl who lives with her great-aunt in the countryside, follows a mysterious cat into the nearby forest where she finds a strange flower and an old broom, none of which is as ordinary as it seems.
The Secret World of Arrietty
Fantasy · 2010
14-year-old Arrietty and the rest of the Clock family live in peaceful anonymity as they make their own home from items "borrowed" from the house's human inhabitants. However, life changes for the Clocks when a human boy discovers Arrietty.
Kiki's Delivery Service
Animation · 1989
A young witch, on her mandatory year of independent life, finds fitting into a new community difficult while she supports herself by running an air courier service.
Monster High: Haunted
Animation · 2015
Lurk what's waiting for the Monster High ghouls when they bring their killer fashion to the howlways of the spooktacular Haunted High! When the ghouls of Monster High follow Spectra Vondergeist one day, they discover a creeperiffic Ghost World with an all-spirit school. But their scary-cute student bodies are hardly welcome with the very strict Principal Revenant, and she punishes Spectra with frightful detention chains that prevent her from re-joining Monster High. Now, it's up to the imperfectly perfect friends to take on ghostly forms in order to save one of their own from disappearing forever!
10 Lives
Animation · 2024
A pampered cat takes for granted the lucky hand he has been dealt after he is rescued and loved by Rose, a kind-hearted and passionate student. When he loses his ninth life, fate steps in to set him on a transformative journey.
The Loud House Movie
Animation · 2021
The Loud family travel to Scotland and discover they are descendants of Scottish royalty as they move into their giant ancestral castle.
Rudolf the Black Cat
Comedy · 2016
Rudolf, a black stray cat, is suddenly separated from his beloved master. He unexpectedly wakes up in a long-distance truck that takes him to metropolis Tokyo. There, he meets Ippai-attena, a big boss cat feared by everyone in town. Unable to return home, Rudolf starts a life as a stray with Ippai-attena, but Ippai-attena isn't all that he seems to be.
Crayon Shin-chan: My Moving Story! Cactus Large Attack!
Adventure · 2015
The Noharas must survive a hoard of man-eating killer cacti after Shin-chan's father relocates the family to Mexico for work.
Pooh's Heffalump Movie
Family · 2005
Who or what exactly is a Heffalump? The lovable residents of the Hundred Acre Wood -- Winnie the Pooh, Rabbit, Tigger, Eeyore, Kanga and the rest of the pack -- embark on a journey of discovery in search of the elusive Heffalump. But as is always the case, this unusual road trip opens their eyes to so much more than just the creature they're seeking.
My Little Pony: A New Generation
Animation · 2021
Equestria's divided. But a bright-eyed hero believes Earth Ponies, Pegasi and Unicorns should be pals — and, hoof to heart, she’s determined to prove it.
Where it lives
Watch in your region.
Cinema release signals and current streaming, rental, and purchase options for your region.
Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.
Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Yoko Kuno · Nobuhiro Yamashita
Written by
Shinji Imaoka
Mirai Moriyama
Anzu (voice)
Noa Goto
Karin (voice)
Munetaka Aoki
Tetsuya (voice)
Miwako Ichikawa
Yuzuki (voice)
Keiichi Suzuki
Oshō (voice)
Shingo Mizusawa
God of Poverty (voice)
Mutsuo Yoshioka
Kaeru-chan (voice)
Court is in session
Put Ghost Cat Anzu on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Cool Ironist
“The strings are showing.”
Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.