This movie was pure magic. Beautiful. Amazing. Mythical and adventurous and oh so sad.

What happens when you mix together animation, Asian inspiration, and a simple myth-like Tale about a one-eyed boy whose other eye his Grandfather wants wants to steal, who his absent-minded mother is sheltering in a great cave, all the while he tells tale in the nearby village - his paper creatures magically enacting his Story as he plays his two-stringed instrument?

That's just the little of it, too. The story goes beyond a simple tale of family, or kindness, or the adventure that eventually leads him home. It's deep with symbolism and kindness. A little hero. A big world. A glimpse. It feels we've barely touched the surface, and yet there's no bounds to his world... as if it's all just a dream. A show of shadows that plays within our mind.

I don't want to hype it up too much, but it was unlike anything I've seen before. I recognize the ties. I feel the fears. I see the shield, and sword, and helmet that are strong in themselves, yet don't make the weiulder any stronger than he already is... and the strings that tie it all together. It's a beautiful story; well told. Don't you even blink.

 rated 4/5: fo shizzle