Muumindani no Suisei

i liked the guy drinking. it reminds me of the great man Jyrki Kajala.

the comet reminds me of the current finnish job market crashing down and even in 90s when my father got laid off and started drinking more. that was the comet for our family life. i havent talked to him in 10 years and i can finally understand why he did what he did because of the job market situation right now. good thing i dont have a family so i can focus my attention on what really matters, healing without having no nagging wife or some damn children asking me to ... stop drinking beer and to get a job. yeah how about no.

This movie is a prequel to the Tanoshii Muumin Ikka series, and is a good introduction for those who want to see more of Muumin. It doesn't matter if this movie is seen before or after the series, since it takes place before and, as I said, is a good introduction.

Here we see how Moomin met Snufkin, Floren and Snork, his brother. They go on an adventure to find out about the comet that is going to fall on Moominvalley.

Since I saw this movie before the series, I knew nothing about Moomin's world or the characters. Everyone is introduced in a natural way as they ... are going to find out about the comet.
We know that Snufkin is a wanderer who doesn't care much for material possessions; Snif is greedy for wealth but never gets anything; My lives a lot with the Moomins and so on. Of course, this was introduced in the series, but this for me, who saw the movie before, was a good introduction.

I liked the characters in the movie, and did not intend to see the series. I ended up watching the series and liked the characters even more.

The technical part of the movie is ok. It is on the same level as the series, when it comes to animation. What stands out most in this movie in terms of visuals is the extremely well-detailed scenery.

The end of the movie is pretty cool, and it can make you want to see the series.
In general it is a nice movie. It is very simple and functional to get to know the characters. I recommend it.

Sharpen your nostalgia goggles and be ready for earworms that won't leave you until the next day's hangover, because this movie literally is every finnish kids childhood, compressed in a less than 70 minutes!

Moomins, or Muumit, like we call them here in Finland, are these little gritter-like creatures - size-wised somewhere around a hedgehog - who live in a not-so-magical and almost-realistic-like world, called the Moomin valley, spending their days mostly just... well, pretty much in a same manner, like I used to spend my summers when I was a kid. Originally created by Tove Janson, Moomins weren't originally ment especially to be mainly ... for kid's entertainment, since the original strips contained pretty heavy adult themes, like drinking, life and death, our place in a world, loneliness, obsessions and fear. The original Moomins even looked pretty creepy, and the characters tended to be way more adult-like, than how I used to know them as a child! But, since Japan showed an interest to turn this dark, mysterious finnish creation into a slice of live- formula-based tv-show for kids, it's only natural, that in a prosess, the movie was also made! And, here it is! Moomins the Movie: the Armageddon!

So, what's the story then? The story begins on a events even earlier than the actual tv-show ever took place. Moomin family is settleing down in a peaceful Moomin valley - how it was called, before this little convenient naming, I wonder? - and building up their vairly marketable blue round house, when one stormy night, a shady character under a bridge tells them, that something bad is on it's way, and there's absolutely nothing they should, or could do about it. After a heavy rain of unexplainable soot, Moomin trollen, accompanied by couple of his friends, decide to travel all the way to the Lonely Mountains, in a search for a observatory, and on the way, they meet many friends and enemies, like Snuffking, the travelling but world-wise hermit, crystal-obsessed lizards, dangerous bug-eating Angostura-tree, Hemulen, Octopus, and of course, know-it-all Snorken and his sister Snorkfröken, who becomes Moomin trollens immiedate love-interest. Together they learn, that a dangerous Comet is on it's way to the Moomin valley, and it's only about two days time to evacuate, and save whatever there is to save - funny thing is, that the astrologists have absolutely no idea, what will hapen when the comet hits, and are actually excited about it!

The story is indeed exceptional, considering the sourcematerial, but oddly enough, it really actually works to it's favour! It's not overly complex, and it's thus easy to follow, but it gives constantly that odd yet curious vibe about something unknown approaching, not exactly knowing what it is or what'll does, and if the worst possible hapens, what's left after - rebuild, death, or search for a new home? Seeing how this steadily approaching threat from beyond the stars, with no name, personality or motive, simultaneously destroys everything on it's way and causes both panic, terrors and sadness to those, who're about to loose everything, but also exitement and joy for those, who won't understand the real danger and are just waiting in a amazed awe, is both terrifying and dark, that wouldn't so easily fly in many other franchises, especially aimed for kids. And, since this movie was partly made in Japan, the music is of course a top notch, since every single piece and note fits and plays perfectly in every scene, complimenting the beautiful landscapes and emotions, so that the overused exposition is almost completely left out. This movie doesn't hold any hands, or doesn't try to make something "less frightening" that it should be. It's a story about a world, that's about to end - how much sugar coating there really can even be?!

That all being said, I really can't say, whom I can recommend this to, other than all the fellow finns, and those rare individuals abroad, who know the original Moomins. You don't need to know all the characters, or their stories, since most of the characters are actually met first time in this movie, as their own debute to the viewer. This movie was Finland's seventh most watched movie in it's time, but still, it never saw a light of day in any country outside of Japan and Scandinavia, and sadly, it was never dubbed in english - not in my knowledge, anyway. If you even happen to find it from the ether, I'm pretty sure it's either on finnish, or swedish, and since not so many people actually really understand any of these two languages... yeah, good luck watching this movie, if you're at all interested. My condolences.

Overall, this movie is great. It starts of the whole premise for the tv-series, introducing many of our favourite characters and even some of the actual world and it's wonders and dangers, without being too overwhelming, and even tough it is mostly suitable for kids, even adults can still enjoy watching it with them. If I could, I would translate this whole movie into english subs, since I know Finland is gaining popularity on abroad, as a relatively interesting country and culture, but because I myself don't own this movie in DVD... yeah, I'm not that smart!

Enjoy this movie, those of you who can, and keep the spirit of Moomins burning bright! And that theme music... omg what a earworm that is!

Story: 9
Art: 9
Sound: 10
Character: 8
Enjoyment: 10
Overall: 10