MY NEIGHBOURS THE YAMADAS - ****

Directed by Isao Takahata. Anime. Cert PG.

Released in the UK as a Blu-ray & DVD Double Play by Optimum on 9th May, £24.99.

No-one can say that Studio Ghibli co-head Isao Takahata isn’t versatile; having nailed ‘crushingly depressing’ in WWII tale GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES, the veteran director turns to family comedy with MY NEIGHBOURS THE YAMADAS. Based on a four panel gag manga by Hisaichi Ishii, the 1999 movie centres, as you might expect, on the Yamada family – dad Takashi; mum Matsuko; teen son Noboru; daughter Nonoko and sharp-tongued grandmother Shige. This is no FAMILY GUY, however – MY NEIGHBOURS THE YAMADAS’ series of loosely connected vignettes takes a gentle, ‘ain’t that just the way life is, folks’ approach to humour with the occasional spot of slapstick thrown in. In truth, it’s amiable rather than funny. No, the real appeal of MY NEIGHBOURS THE YAMADAS is in the virtuoso animation, with Takahata eschewing your standard anime designs in favour of a minimalist, watercolour look. It’s pleasingly ironic that the first Studio Ghibli feature to be animated entirely on computer is such a celebration of drawing – the movie looks like a comic strip that has suddenly, wonderfully sprung to life. MY NEIGHBOURS THE YAMADAS’ love affair with art also provides some of its most inventive visual jokes, as Takahata tips his hat to Hokusai's ‘The Wave’ and a bevy of other famous paintings. Purely as a comedy, I couldn’t in all honesty recommend MY NEIGHBOURS THE YAMADAS, but taken as a whole the film is well worth checking out; especially as Optimum’s Double Play release marks its high definition debut.

David Axbey.