Belle review: a familiar tale with a modern twist
When I see lists of the best anime movies, they consist of older (but still great) films that predate before 2010, with the exception of Your Name. While the movies are amazing, I struggle to quickly find movies that are recent without them being in my face on the Netflix home screen. News about newer films get buried in my spam folder, or get buried under the saturation of popular series releases on my Twitter feed. Thankfully my desire to explore the town of my new home in a new country won out and I saw a showing of Belle and decided to jump at the chance. I’m so glad I did, it’s one of the best anime films I’ve seen.
Belle was released during the summer of 2021 as an original motion picture. Directed by Mamoru Hosoda, who’s directed incredible moving animated films like The Boy and The Beast (Bakemono no Ko), Wolf Children (Okami Kodomo no Ame to Yuki), and Mirai, with a dazzling soundtrack by Taisei Iwasaki (Ghost In The Shell, Dragon Pilot) and Ludvig Forssell (Death Stranding, Metal Gear Solid V) – with such a lineup like this, it was no surprise that Belle quickly became of one the most anticipated anime movies of last year.
The story follows Suzu, a depressed high schooler who fights the feeling of being an outcast with U, a virtual reality game where anyone can be who they want. In U, avatars (also called AS) are created using a player’s biometrics – this helps amplify their inner gifts and wants. As Suzu steps into the world of U, her AS is created, and Suzu’s freckles get incorporated into her AS’s almost Sailor Moon-esque appearance. She completes registration, and names her pink-haired AS, Bell – an English play on her Japanese name.
In U, Bell is a global sensation. The AS pulls in other players with her hypnotic voice, gaining hundreds of thousands of fans during Suzu’s lunch break at school. Hiroka, Suzu’s best friend, appoints herself Bell’s manager, helping her friend set up concerts in U as her, now, millions of fans are always anticipating when Bell might sing again. However, when the time of her concert arrives, things don’t go as planned.
As the crowd is cheering Belle on as she belts a harmony like no other, the party is crashed when Dragon, a rogue player in U, and the ‘internet police’ crew disrupt the show. The police group is made up of players who, at face value, want to keep the U community safe. But with the group leader Justin flashing his sponsors every chance there is a big audience, it’s clear that these heroic actions are money motivated. And with Dragon being known as the world-famous ugly monster in the U, who’s defeated almost every single AS that has gotten in his way, it’s the perfect opportunity for Justin’s police group to rake in more money. Eventually, a fight occurs, and along the way, Suzu sees the bruises on Dragon’s back. She commits to finding out who this mysterious player is – and what pain is causing the ever-growing bruises his biometrics are registering.
Belle is an adaptation of the beloved Beauty and The Beast. It takes the classic tale, and makes it into its own. The giant gloomy castle in virtual reality (instead of France), the adorable AIs that work for Dragon (instead of anthropomorphic furniture), the beautiful roses bushes (instead of the single dying one in a vase), and the heartfelt bonding moments both Suzu and Dragon share on an outside balcony (similar to Belle and Beast’s talks, also on a balcony). Disney fans in particular will love comparing the similarities of the two films. However, while this is nice, I don’t think this is the most important theme to take away from this beautiful movie.
Trying to predict what will happen is very normal when watching a movie, but I was so wrong about where Belle was going. And in the end, made it so much more fascinating to watch. One pivotal moment is when Suzu looks back on when her mom died. She remembers crying and tugging at her late mother’s hands, begging to not cross a river with powerful currents to help a child stuck there. Suzu’s mom knew that if she wouldn’t help the child stuck, no one else would. Suzu, being a kid, didn’t understand that if it weren’t for her mom, the child would have died out there. Because of this event, Suzu develops a resentment that her mother ran to save a stranger without any thought of Suzu herself. Seeing this, I thought the movie would go into the direction of Suzu meeting the unknown child, seeing that the child feels painful responsibility for Suzu’s mom passing away that day, and they both go through something in the climax of Belle that brings them together.
I was dead wrong. We actually never get to know who this child is. Instead, Belle’s story turns into Suzu mimicking her mom’s actions, risking herself to save someone she barely knows. Suzu, with the help of her best friend Hiroka, pushes herself out of her comfort zone to find out who Dragon might be. She knows that excruciating pain comes from a dark place she’s all too familiar with, and she’s committed to seeing why Dragon is aggressive and developing bruises on his back all the time.
Suzu risks the dangers of confronting an abusive parent by traveling across Japan to find where Dragon and Angel (Dragon’s quieter brother) might be, to protect and help them get out of this terrifying cycle they’re in. She comes to understand that even though she might not know these children, knowing they’re helpless and in danger is enough reason to put herself in danger, just like her mom did before her.
The reason why people do such things that can result in them not seeing the next morning is a puzzling journey. Suzu and her mother both risk their lives for people. Both find themselves morally responsible for isolated children, who otherwise without their help, could have met a tragic end. Suzu, though so young, fought with thoughts of her mom’s ‘unnecessary actions’ for years, until she was put in a situation to do the same thing. We find out in Belle that in some experiences, the way to understand it fully is to only go through it ourselves. Suzu’s world becomes lighter, brighter, and more colorful as she relates back to what her mom did and understands why, and I think this is the best message one could take from this movie.
There are many more themes in this movie that would take a couple more rewatches for me to find, this movie is packed with so much that anyone can find anything to love and enjoy. You can experience the film yourself – watch Belle now in theaters (US | UK).
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