4.5/5 Bones
Logline: A wolf faces the scorn of his pack when he befriends a little goat.
Language: Japanese (English Dub available)
My god, how does a film meant for preschoolers manage to play me like a pinball machine with no tilt sensitivity? One Stormy Night is a very simple story, yet somehow it wrings every emotional drop out of you. This does not have particularly stunning animation or script, but it knows what so many American children’s films get fundamentally wrong. It knows how to hold a moment instead of jingling movement in your face.
The lowdown: A goat named Mei is caught out during a thunderstorm. He loses his companions in the commotion and runs into a decrepit shack to wait out the weather. Later, he’s joined by a wolf named Gabu, but the darkness and mutual colds prevent them from identifying each other as an enemy. As the storm rages on, the two converse, and find themselves getting on. As the storm ends, they agree to meet the next day in the light. Even after discovering their physical differences, the two decide to continue meeting in secret and form a strong bond. Eventually it all goes wrong, of course.
