# Belle (2021 film)

Belle (竜とそばかすの姫, Ryū to Sobakasu no Hime, literally The Dragon and the Freckled Princess) is a 2021 Japanese animated science fantasy film written and directed by Mamoru Hosoda and produced by Studio Chizu. The story is inspired by the 1756 French fairytale Beauty and the Beast by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont as well as the 1991 Disney animated film.
Belle had an acclaimed premiere at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival. The film was additionally dubbed into foreign languages (English, Chinese, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, French, Greek, German and Polish). It was released theatrically in Japan on July 16, 2021. Belle is the third-highest-grossing Japanese film of 2021, accounting for ¥6.53 billion in box-office rankings as of December 12, 2021.

## Plot

Suzu Naito is a third-year high school student living in the rural Kōchi Prefecture of Japan, with a lost passion for singing and songwriting. As a child, Suzu witnessed her mother rescue a girl from a flooding river at the cost of her own life and thus resents her for "abandoning" her for a stranger's child. Suzu remains in contact with a group of older choir teachers who were her mother's friends but is alienated from most of her classmates, except her childhood crush and self-appointed protector Shinobu Hisatake, popular girl Ruka Watanabe, sportsman Shinjiro "Kamishin" Chikami, and her genius best friend Hiroka "Hiro" Betsuyaku.
At Hiro's insistence, Suzu signs into the popular virtual world "U" and is appointed a beautiful avatar with freckles (through the AI engine's biometric analysis), whom she names "Bell", the English translation of her own name. Upon logging in, she finds herself capable of singing again. With the assistance of Hiro, who appoints herself Bell's manager and producer, Bell becomes a hit on U's music charts, and people start referring to her as "Belle", meaning "beautiful" in French.
During one of Belle's concerts, an infamously strong and near-unbeatable user, "The Dragon" (or "The Beast"), arrives, fleeing from the Justices, a vigilante group led by the self-righteous Justin, who fight the Dragon and accuse him of disturbing the peace of U. Justin plans to unveil the Dragon's identity to the public using a specialized program mostly reserved for U's owners. Intrigued by the Dragon, Suzu begins to gather information about him. She discovers that he is popular amongst children, who consider him to be their hero. She meets the Dragon and his five guardians AIs. Belle and the Dragon grow close. In the real world, Ruka confides to Suzu that she has a crush on Kamishin. Suzu helps the two confess their feelings.
In U, Justin captures and interrogates Belle, threatening to unveil her identity to the world if she refuses to cooperate. The Dragon's AIs rescue Belle, but their intervention allows Justin and his group to locate the Dragon's castle and burn it down. The Dragon flees before Belle can find him. Suzu and Hiro work to find out the Dragon's real identity before Justin can and warn him. They find out the Dragon is a third-year junior high school student named Kei who is being physically and verbally abused by his father; Kei's protectiveness over his younger brother, Tomo is what gives the Dragon his unbeatable strength in U. Suzu contacts Kei offering help, but Kei does not believe that she is Belle, and generally distrusts everyone who offers him help, since nobody has ever followed through. Shinobu, Ruka, Kamishin, and the choir teachers reveal their knowledge of Belle's true identity and urge Suzu to sing to gain Kei's trust. Suzu unveils herself to the world in the U and sings. Tomo convinces Kei to trust her and they try to contact her again. When Kei's father sees that evidence of his abuse has been posted online, he terminates their internet connection before Kei can tell Suzu their address.
Using context clues, Ruka and Kamishin deduce that Kei's hometown is Kawasaki, Kanagawa, near Tokyo. Since authorities cannot intervene on abuse charges until 48 hours have passed, Suzu locates Kei and Tomo on her own and protects them from their father. The next day, she and her father warmly greet each other at the station. Shinobu praises Suzu for her bravery and deciding she no longer needs his protection, finally feels free to pursue the relationship he has always wanted with her. Finally understanding her mother's selfless actions, Suzu makes peace with her death.

## Voice cast

| Character | Cast | Cast | Summary |
| Character | Japanese | English | Summary |
| Suzu Naito / Belle | Kaho Nakamura | Kylie McNeill | A third-year high school student who lost the will to sing after the death of her mother. She is known as Belle in U. |
| Kei / Dragon | Takeru Satoh | Paul Castro Jr. | A third-year middle school student who is being abused by his father. He is known as the beast in U. |
| Tomo / Angel | HANA | Bentley Griffin | Kei's innocent and frail younger brother. He is known as the Angel in U. |
| Hiroka "Hiro-chan" Betsuyaku | Lilas Ikuta | Jessica DiCicco | Suzu's best friend and manager of her identity as Belle. |
| Suzu's father | Kōji Yakusho | Ben Lepley | Suzu's widowed father whom she feels distant from. |
| Shinobu Hisatake | Ryo Narita | Manny Jacinto | Suzu's crush since elementary school. |
| Shinjiro "Kamishin" Chikami | Shota Sometani | Brandon Engman | Suzu's friend who has a passion for canoeing. |
| Ruka Watanabe | Tina Tamashiro | Hunter Schafer | The popular girl in Suzu's class. |
| Justin | Toshiyuki Morikawa | Chace Crawford | The leader of the Justices, a group of corps that are proclaiming themselves the unofficial protectors of justice and order within the virtual online space of "U". |
| Okumoto | Fuyumi Sakamoto | Ellyn Stern | |
| Jellinek | Kenjiro Tsuda | Andrew Kishino | |
| Swan | Mami Koyama | Noelle McGrath | |
| Muitarō Hitokawa / Tokoraemaru | Mamoru Miyano | David Chen | |
| Kita | Michiko Shimizu | Jessica Gee George | |
| Yoshitani | Ryoko Moriyama | Barbara Goodson | |
| Hatanaka | Sachiyo Nakao | Martha Harms | |
| Nakai | Yoshimi Iwasaki | Wendee Lee | |
| Suzu's mother | Sumi Shimamoto | Julie Nathanson | |
| Kei and Tomo's Father/Kakeshi Kun | Ken Ishiguro | Kiff VandenHeuvel | |
| Peggie Sue | ermhoi | Cristina Vee | |

## Production

While Studio Chizu worked on the project, they had help from veteran Disney animator and character designer Jin Kim and Michael Camacho on the design of Belle and studio Cartoon Saloon for the background work of the world of U, which was designed and created by London-based up-and-coming architect/designer, Eric Wong.
Hosoda initially intended for Belle to be a musical, but considered the idea difficult due to Japan not having a culture of making musicals. However, he still wanted music to be central to the film, so he searched for a protagonist who could sing. He stated that he preferred the same person doing both speaking and singing voices to make it convincing and searched for a singer who could express their feelings through song and move people, even if they don't understand Japanese. He then found Kaho Nakamura, whom he considered relatively unknown, but a perfect choice for the role. Hosoda stated that Nakamura was also involved in writing lyrics, so she could feel the lyrics she was singing.

### Release

GKIDS acquired North American distribution rights in June 2021, and released the film theatrically with a nationwide release date of January 14, 2022, and previews in select IMAX theaters on January 12,
Sale rights to the film outside Japan were handled by French company Charades who pre-sold the rights internationally, including Kismet in Australia and New Zealand, Anime Limited in the UK, Ireland and France (with Wild Bunch), and Koch Media in Italy and German-speaking territories. The deal size was due to the popularity of Japanese anime and the international status of Mamoru Hosoda.

## Music

The music for the series was composed by Taisei Iwasaki, Ludvig Forssell, and Yuta Bandoh. The soundtrack album was released on August 18, 2021, by Ariola Japan.

## Reception
### Box office

Belle is the third-highest-grossing Japanese film of 2021, accounting for ¥6.53 billion in box-office rakings as of December 12, 2021.
In the film's U.S. opening weekend it made $1.6 million from 1,326 theaters, and a total of $1.8 million over the four-day Martin Luther King Day holiday frame. The film dropped out of the box office top ten in its second weekend with $570,213. The film was released on May 17, 2022, on DVD & Blu-ray by GKids (through its distribution partner Shout! Factory).

### Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 95% of 129 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.9/10. The website's consensus reads: "A remarkable story brought to life with dazzling animation, Belle finds writer-director Mamoru Hosoda setting a brilliant new benchmark." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 83 out of 100, based on 31 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". American audiences polled by PostTrak gave the film an 86% positive score, with 63% saying they would definitely recommend it.
At the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, the film received a 14-minute-standing ovation. Joe Morgenstern wrote for The Wall Street Journal that "There's too much plot for the film to manage, but its heart, and sumptuous art, are so firmly in the right place that its appeal comes through sweet and clear." Manohla Dargis of The New York Times praised the visual quality, character development, worldbuilding, and called the film "unfailingly touching." Justin Chang of the Los Angeles Times praised the visuals and story, writing "It’s a tale as old as time and as newfangled as TikTok, in which the virtual world, though packed with fantasy and artifice, can bring startling truths to the surface."

### Accolades

The film has received five Annie Award nominations, including one for Best Independent Animated Feature. Its total makes it the second most nominations for a Japanese anime film ever at the awards, tied with Ghost in the Shell (1995), and behind Suzume (2022) and The Boy and the Heron (2023).
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
| Sitges Film Festival | October 6, 2021 | Best Feature | Belle | Nominated | [36] [37] |
| Sitges Film Festival | October 6, 2021 | Grand Honorary Award | Mamoru Hosoda | Won | [36] [37] |
| Locarno Festival | August 9, 2021 | Locarno Festival Kids Award | Belle, Mamoru Hosoda | Won | [38] [39] |
| Animation Is Film Festival | October 26, 2021 | Special Jury Prize | Belle | Won | |
| Fancine | November 18, 2021 | Best Feature Film | Belle | Nominated | [41] [42] |
| Fancine | November 18, 2021 | Best Sound Design | Belle | Won | [41] [42] |
| Fancine | November 18, 2021 | Public's Choice Award For Best Feature Film | Belle | Won | [41] [42] |
| Fancine | November 18, 2021 | Gato Rabioso Award | Belle | Won | [41] [42] |
| Utopiales | November 30, 2021 | Cinema International Feature Film Competition Jury Prize | Belle | Won | |
| Detroit Film Critics Society | December 6, 2021 | Best Animated Feature | Belle | Nominated | |
| Chicago Film Critics Association | December 15, 2021 | Best Animated Feature | Belle | Nominated | |
| Chicago Film Critics Association | December 15, 2021 | Audience Award Best Feature | Belle | Won | |
| Hawaii International Film Festival | December 3, 2021 | Audience Award Best Feature | Belle | Won | |
| Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards | December 18, 2021 | Best Animated Film | Belle | Runner-up | |
| New Mexico Film Critics | December 21, 2021 | Best Animated Feature | Belle | Runner-up | |
| Florida Film Critics Circle | December 22, 2021 | Best Animated Feature | Belle | Nominated | |
| San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle | January 10, 2022 | Best Animated Feature | Belle | Nominated | |
| Austin Film Critics Association | January 11, 2022 | Best Animated Film | Belle | Nominated | |
| Austin Film Critics Association | January 11, 2022 | Best Voice Acting/Animated/Digital Performance | Kaho Nakamura | Nominated | |
| Crunchyroll Anime Awards | February 9, 2022 | Best Film | Belle | Nominated | |
| Gold Open | February 23, 2022 | Gold List Best Animation Feature | Belle | Honorable Mention | |
| VFX-Japan Awards | March 3, 2022 | Excellence Award - Animated Theatrical Film Category | Belle | Won | [55] [56] |
| Japan Academy Film Prize | March 11, 2022 | Animation of the Year | Belle | Nominated | |
| Japan Academy Film Prize | March 11, 2022 | Outstanding Achievement in Music | Taisei Iwasaki, Ludvig Forssell, Yuta Bandoh | Won | |
| Annie Awards | March 12, 2022 | Best Animated Feature — Independent | Belle | Nominated | |
| Annie Awards | March 12, 2022 | Outstanding Achievement for Animated Effects in an Animated Production | Ryo Horibe, Yohei Shimozawa | Nominated | |
| Annie Awards | March 12, 2022 | Outstanding Achievement for Directing in an Animated Feature Production | Mamoru Hosoda | Nominated | |
| Annie Awards | March 12, 2022 | Outstanding Achievement for Writing in an Animated Feature Production | Mamoru Hosoda | Nominated | |
| Annie Awards | March 12, 2022 | Outstanding Achievement for Production Design in an Animated Feature Production | Tomm Moore, Ross Stewart, Alice Dieudonné, Almu Redondo, Maria Pareja | Nominated | |
| Anifilm | May 18, 2022 | The Best Feature Film for Children | Belle | Won | |
| Cartoons on the Bay | June 4, 2022 | Best Writing Award | Belle | Won | |
| Animafest Zagreb | July 9, 2022 | Best Animated Feature | Belle | Nominated | |
| Uruguayan Film Critics Association | December 16, 2022 | Best Animated Feature | Belle | Won | |
| Golden Tomatoes Award 2022 | January 13, 2023 | Best Animated Movies | Belle | 6th place | |
| Golden Tomatoes Award 2022 | January 13, 2023 | Best Foreign-Language Movies | Belle | 9th place | |
| Golden Tomatoes Award 2022 | January 13, 2023 | Best Wide Release Movies | Belle | 13th place | |

### Cultural influence

After the release of the film, Ochi, Kōchi in Kōchi Prefecture, which served as the prototype for filming, was certified by the Anime Tourism Association as one of the "88 Japanese Anime Mecca I Want to Visit". The Kochi Prefectural Tourism Bureau plans movie sightseeing routes to attract tourists with movie locations.
Belle was included in a high school art textbook released in Japan as a teaching example of animation production, and passed the audit of Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in March 2023. This textbook will be used as a high school art textbook to be launched in 2024.

## Footnotes

* ↑ Tied with《Flee (film)》