The Acorns and the Wildcat is a unique short film in picture-book format from the creator of Night on the Galactic Railroad and Gauche the Cellist. Unusually for an anime, a narrator reads Kenjis story aloud while the action is played out on the screen by a succession of warm and evocative illustrations brought to life by subtle touches of animation. If the film feels somehow familiar yet you cant put your finger on the reason why, its probably the sumptuously minimalist animation by Yasuhiro Nagura, who was the animation director of Mamoru Oshiis artsy 1986 feature Angels Egg. That, and Kenjis wildcat is said to have been the inspiration for Miyazakis Panda/Totoro creature. The idea of reading Kenjis story aloud instead of playing it out as a drama is quite refreshing, and Kenjis magical language and narrative style are entirely sufficient to sustain interest. Combined with the spacey music and breathtaking art, the result is a pleasantly unassuming little gem of a film.

(Source: pelleas.net)