Pom Poko (1994)
Movie · 1994 · Adventure, Animation, Fantasy · 1h 59m · G · Japanese
Curator score: 7.2/10 (40K ratings)
Tagline: A Fantastic Tale Of Survival
The Raccoons of the Tama Hills are being forced from their homes by the rapid development of houses and shopping malls. As it becomes harder to find food and shelter, they decide to band together and fight back. The Raccoons practice and perfect the ancient art of transformation until they are even able to appear as humans in hilarious circumstances.
Ratings:
- Curator score: 7.2/10
- IMDb: 7.2/10
- Metacritic: 77
- TMDB: 7.2/10
Director: Isao Takahata
Production: Studio Ghibli
Cast: Makoto Nonomura, Nijiko Kiyokawa, Shigeru Izumiya, Norihei Miki, Yuriko Ishida, Megumi Hayashibara, Yumi Ichihara, Akira Kamiya, Takehiro Murata, Gannosuke Ashiya, Yanagiya Kosan, Shinchou Kokontei, Bunshi Katsura VI, Beichou Katsura, Akira Fukuzawa, Hayashiya Shōzō IX, Shiho Nagai, Osamu Kato
Where to watch: Max
Curator Review
Verdict: A wildly original, funny, and unexpectedly melancholy environmental fable. Its shape-shifting raccoon chaos can be outrageous, but the film’s real strength is how it turns ecological displacement into a bittersweet story about adaptation, loss, and the cost of modernization.
Best for: Studio Ghibli fans looking beyond the usual crowd-pleasers; Viewers who like ecological allegories and anti-development themes; People open to oddball, tonally adventurous animation; Fans of bittersweet ensemble stories with comic absurdity
Skip if: You want a straightforward family adventure with a simple plot; You’re put off by surreal body-humor and bawdy folklore; You prefer fast-paced action or constant narrative momentum; You want an emotionally easy, comforting animated movie
Overview: Pom Poko is one of the most distinctive films in Studio Ghibli’s catalog: a comic, mournful, and deeply strange story about raccoons resisting suburban sprawl. What starts as a mischievous fantasy gradually reveals itself as a serious environmental lament, with Takahata balancing slapstick folklore against the sadness of irreversible change.
Worth noting: The film’s humor is famously outrageous, but it never feels random. The transformation magic, the communal schemes, and the escalating desperation all serve a larger point about survival under modern development. It’s playful on the surface, yet the emotional current is about displacement, adaptation, and the limits of resistance.
Bottom line: It may be the least immediately accessible of the major Ghibli films, but it rewards viewers who like animation that takes risks. Beautifully observed, politically sharp, and tonally fearless, it’s a film that can make you laugh, then leave you unexpectedly reflective.
Top Letterboxd reviews:
- Paul Lister: If there is one thing in this world that I am sure of, it would be that 'Pom Poko' would hands down win the award for most bizarre use of testicles in film history!
- ksenija: studio ghibli is great because on the one hand you get harrowing films where you watch young children die of starvation and then you also get films where racoons perform magic with their nutsacks
- Michael Stuhlman: This movie is nuts.
- cookie: if id realized there was a ghibli movie about eco-terrorist racoons using their magical testicles to disuade the construction of golf courses and theme parks, i wouldve checked it out sooner
- James (Schaffrillas): Y'all gonna kill me for this but I liked Over the Hedge better
Recommended similar titles:
- My Neighbor Totoro (1988 · Fantasy, Animation, Family · 1h 26m · G · Curator 9.2/10 (2.3M ratings) · Where to watch: Max)
A gentler Ghibli companion piece that shares a reverence for nature, place, and the emotional texture of changing landscapes.
- Whisper of the Heart (1995 · Animation, Drama, Family · 1h 51m · G · Curator 8.9/10 (539.3K ratings) · Where to watch: Max)
Another intimate Ghibli film about everyday life under modern pressures, with a warm but quietly reflective tone.
- Princess Mononoke (1997 · Adventure, Fantasy, Animation · 2h 14m · PG-13 · Curator 9.5/10 (2M ratings) · Where to watch: Max)
A major environmental epic that pairs ecological conflict with mythic intensity and moral complexity.
- Only Yesterday (1991 · Animation, Drama, Romance · 1h 59m · PG · Curator 8.1/10 (175.4K ratings) · Where to watch: Max)
Takahata’s other great meditation on memory, rural life, and the passage of time, with a similarly humane sensibility.
- The Tale of The Princess Kaguya (2013 · Animation, Drama, Fantasy · 2h 17m · PG · Curator 9.4/10 (338.4K ratings) · Where to watch: Max)
For viewers drawn to Takahata’s lyrical, bittersweet approach to tradition, impermanence, and loss.
- The Wind Rises (2013 · Animation, Drama, History · 2h 6m · PG-13 · Curator 8.9/10 (644.2K ratings) · Where to watch: Max)
A contemplative Ghibli film about progress, beauty, and the human cost of ambition in a changing Japan.
- Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984 · Adventure, Animation, Fantasy · 1h 57m · PG · Curator 9.1/10 (631.1K ratings) · Where to watch: Max)
An influential ecological fantasy with a strong sense of moral urgency and environmental collapse.
- Castle in the Sky (1986 · Adventure, Fantasy, Animation · 2h 5m · PG · Curator 8.6/10 (726.2K ratings) · Where to watch: Max)
Adventure-driven but still rooted in the tension between wonder, technology, and exploitation of the natural world.
- The Red Turtle (2016 · Animation, Drama, Fantasy · 1h 21m · PG · Curator 8.0/10 (131.6K ratings))
A wordless, meditative animation about nature, isolation, and coexistence that appeals to viewers who like poetic storytelling.
- Over the Hedge (2006 · Adventure, Animation, Comedy · 1h 23m · PG · Curator 6.8/10 (4.8K ratings) · Where to watch: Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus)
A lighter, more overtly comic take on animals confronting suburban expansion and human consumption.
- Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009 · Adventure, Animation, Comedy · 1h 27m · PG · Curator 9.4/10 (2.8M ratings))
A stylish, mischievous animal ensemble with clever tactics, community dynamics, and a playful anti-authority spirit.
- The Iron Giant (1999 · Animation, Drama, Family · 1h 26m · PG · Curator 9.4/10 (886K ratings))
Shares the same tenderness toward outsiders and the same sadness about a world that crushes innocence and wonder.
Topics: ecological allegory, Japanese animation, fantasy comedy, satirical, bittersweet, folklore, urbanization, ensemble, surreal, 1990s
https://watchlist.tannermartz.com/apple/movie/pom-poko/15283
Pom Poko (1994)
Movie · 1994 · Adventure, Animation, Fantasy · 1h 59m · G · Japanese
Curator score: 7.2/10 (40K ratings)
A Fantastic Tale Of Survival
Overview The Raccoons of the Tama Hills are being forced from their homes by the rapid development of houses and shopping malls. As it becomes harder to find food and shelter, they decide to band together and fight back. The Raccoons practice and perfect the ancient art of transformation until they are even able to appear as humans in hilarious circumstances.
Ratings
Curator score: 7.2/10
IMDb: 7.2/10
Metacritic: 77
TMDB: 7.2/10
Cast Makoto Nonomura, Nijiko Kiyokawa, Shigeru Izumiya, Norihei Miki, Yuriko Ishida, Megumi Hayashibara, Yumi Ichihara, Akira Kamiya, Takehiro Murata, Gannosuke Ashiya, Yanagiya Kosan, Shinchou Kokontei, Bunshi Katsura VI, Beichou Katsura, Akira Fukuzawa, Hayashiya Shōzō IX, Shiho Nagai, Osamu Kato
Curator Review
Verdict
A wildly original, funny, and unexpectedly melancholy environmental fable. Its shape-shifting raccoon chaos can be outrageous, but the film’s real strength is how it turns ecological displacement into a bittersweet story about adaptation, loss, and the cost of modernization.
Best for
Studio Ghibli fans looking beyond the usual crowd-pleasers
Viewers who like ecological allegories and anti-development themes
People open to oddball, tonally adventurous animation
Fans of bittersweet ensemble stories with comic absurdity
Skip if
You want a straightforward family adventure with a simple plot
You’re put off by surreal body-humor and bawdy folklore
You prefer fast-paced action or constant narrative momentum
You want an emotionally easy, comforting animated movie
Overview
Pom Poko is one of the most distinctive films in Studio Ghibli’s catalog: a comic, mournful, and deeply strange story about raccoons resisting suburban sprawl. What starts as a mischievous fantasy gradually reveals itself as a serious environmental lament, with Takahata balancing slapstick folklore against the sadness of irreversible change.
Worth noting
The film’s humor is famously outrageous, but it never feels random. The transformation magic, the communal schemes, and the escalating desperation all serve a larger point about survival under modern development. It’s playful on the surface, yet the emotional current is about displacement, adaptation, and the limits of resistance.
Bottom line
It may be the least immediately accessible of the major Ghibli films, but it rewards viewers who like animation that takes risks. Beautifully observed, politically sharp, and tonally fearless, it’s a film that can make you laugh, then leave you unexpectedly reflective.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Paul Lister (4.5★) · 2846 likes
If there is one thing in this world that I am sure of, it would be that 'Pom Poko' would hands down win the award for most bizarre use of testicles in film history!
ksenija (4★) · 2625 likes
studio ghibli is great because on the one hand you get harrowing films where you watch young children die of starvation and then you also get films where racoons perform magic with their nutsacks
Michael Stuhlman (3.5★) · 1833 likes
This movie is nuts.
cookie (4.5★) · 1471 likes
if id realized there was a ghibli movie about eco-terrorist racoons using their magical testicles to disuade the construction of golf courses and theme parks, i wouldve checked it out sooner
James (Schaffrillas) (3★) · 1465 likes
Y'all gonna kill me for this but I liked Over the Hedge better
Recommended similar titles
1988 · Fantasy, Animation, Family · 1h 26m · G · Curator 9.2/10 (2.3M ratings) · Where to watch: Max
A gentler Ghibli companion piece that shares a reverence for nature, place, and the emotional texture of changing landscapes.
1995 · Animation, Drama, Family · 1h 51m · G · Curator 8.9/10 (539.3K ratings) · Where to watch: Max
Another intimate Ghibli film about everyday life under modern pressures, with a warm but quietly reflective tone.
1997 · Adventure, Fantasy, Animation · 2h 14m · PG-13 · Curator 9.5/10 (2M ratings) · Where to watch: Max
A major environmental epic that pairs ecological conflict with mythic intensity and moral complexity.
1991 · Animation, Drama, Romance · 1h 59m · PG · Curator 8.1/10 (175.4K ratings) · Where to watch: Max
Takahata’s other great meditation on memory, rural life, and the passage of time, with a similarly humane sensibility.
2013 · Animation, Drama, Fantasy · 2h 17m · PG · Curator 9.4/10 (338.4K ratings) · Where to watch: Max
For viewers drawn to Takahata’s lyrical, bittersweet approach to tradition, impermanence, and loss.
2013 · Animation, Drama, History · 2h 6m · PG-13 · Curator 8.9/10 (644.2K ratings) · Where to watch: Max
A contemplative Ghibli film about progress, beauty, and the human cost of ambition in a changing Japan.
1984 · Adventure, Animation, Fantasy · 1h 57m · PG · Curator 9.1/10 (631.1K ratings) · Where to watch: Max
An influential ecological fantasy with a strong sense of moral urgency and environmental collapse.
1986 · Adventure, Fantasy, Animation · 2h 5m · PG · Curator 8.6/10 (726.2K ratings) · Where to watch: Max
Adventure-driven but still rooted in the tension between wonder, technology, and exploitation of the natural world.
2016 · Animation, Drama, Fantasy · 1h 21m · PG · Curator 8.0/10 (131.6K ratings)
A wordless, meditative animation about nature, isolation, and coexistence that appeals to viewers who like poetic storytelling.
2006 · Adventure, Animation, Comedy · 1h 23m · PG · Curator 6.8/10 (4.8K ratings) · Where to watch: Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus
A lighter, more overtly comic take on animals confronting suburban expansion and human consumption.
2009 · Adventure, Animation, Comedy · 1h 27m · PG · Curator 9.4/10 (2.8M ratings)
A stylish, mischievous animal ensemble with clever tactics, community dynamics, and a playful anti-authority spirit.
1999 · Animation, Drama, Family · 1h 26m · PG · Curator 9.4/10 (886K ratings)
Shares the same tenderness toward outsiders and the same sadness about a world that crushes innocence and wonder.
Topics
ecological allegory, Japanese animation, fantasy comedy, satirical, bittersweet, folklore, urbanization, ensemble, surreal, 1990s
Open Pom Poko (1994) on Curator TV