Tales from Earthsea(ゲド戦記)

Empire by

The set pieces make this well worth watching while director Goro Miyazaki shows he's truly his father's son.

Los Angeles Times by Gary Goldstein

It also features deaths by strangulation and immolation as well as a nasty bit with a flying severed limb.Kids may be less put off by all that, though, than by the film's uninspired hand-drawn animation, visual flatness and elongated running time.

Time Out by Keith Uhlich

The sights and sounds are splendid--a lovingly hand-detailed portside city, a touching musical interlude in a windswept field--though they're largely disconnected from the narrative proper.

The Hollywood Reporter by Kirk Honeycutt

An artistically arresting yet narratively lame and strangely unfocused cartoon aimed at older children and young adults.

New York Post by Kyle Smith

The Miyazaki legacy is in good hands.

Variety by Leslie Felperin

This dull and humorless production won't reap the same critical support as the work of Miyazaki Senior.

Village Voice by Michael Atkinson

Earthsea seems to be a stupendously dull place. It would try the patience of any kid.

Entertainment Weekly by Owen Gleiberman

He does an okay imitation of his father's languidly matter-of-fact dreamscapes, but it's hard to deny that a certain vitality is missing in Tales From Earthsea.

San Francisco Chronicle by Peter Hartlaub

This film is too scary for very young children, while older fans are likely to focus on the film not faring well in comparison to the elder Miyazaki's recent work.

The New York Times by Stephen Holden

Feels a little like a science-fiction Sunday school pageant.