A film by Masaaki Yuasa
Run Time: 112 min.
Release Date: 2017
Rating: PG
Animation, Kids & Family, Fantasy
Sunday, July 16, 2023
Time: 11:00 am (Dubbed in English) | 2:00 pm (In Japanese, subtitled in English)
Cost: $5 with paid museum admission
From visionary anime auteur, Masaaki Yuasa comes a joyously hallucinogenic but family-friendly take on the classic fairy tale about a little mermaid who comes ashore to join a middle-school rock band and propel them to fame. Kai is talented but adrift, spending his days sulking in a small fishing village after his family moves from Tokyo. His only joy is uploading songs he writes to the internet. When his classmates invite him to play the keyboard in their band, their practice sessions bring an unexpected guest: Lu, a young mermaid whose fins turn to feet when she hears the beats, and whose singing causes humans to compulsively dance – whether they want to or not.
As Kai spends more time with Lu, he finds he is able to tell her what he is really thinking, and a bond begins to form. But since ancient times, the people in the village have believed that mermaids bring disaster, and soon there is trouble between Lu and the townspeople, putting the town in grave danger. Winner of the Grand Prize at the prestigious Annecy Animation Festival and an official selection of Sundance 2018, Lu Over the Wall is a toe-tapping, feel-good demonstration of Yuasa’s genre-mixing mastery that will leave you humming long after you leave the theater.
“A surprisingly sweet and passionate story.”
– Tasha Robinson, Polygon
“The film is a classic take on a fairy tale.”
– Richard Propes, TheIndependentCritic.com
Our theater tends to be cold. You may want to bring with you a sweater or jacket.
