The Secret World of Arrietty

The Clock family are Borrowers, a diminutive race living secretly in peoples homes that survive by “borrowing” things that won’t be missed, like a cube of sugar or a single piece of tissue paper. When fourteen-year-old Borrower Arrietty is spotted by a human boy on her first borrowing expedition, the entire family is put in danger.

Despite being animated, and adapted from a children’s book, the lack of big action set pieces will bore many children, and that’s okay. This is animation for adults, or at least kids with discriminating taste. The lush, watercolor sets are relentlessly beautiful and the script’s focus on characterization over plot and explosions is a welcome change of pace.