nick’s review published on Letterboxd:
Kiki’s Delivery Service is one of my least favorites from Hayao Miyazaki. It admittedly has striking visuals and endearing characters, but its lack of innovations and its rather formulaic storyline ultimately prevent me from falling in love with this one.
With a premise as simplistic as a teenage witch on her training journey, it never goes out of its way to produce a truly eventful, or emotionally resonant plot to elevate itself from the childish territory. Studio Ghibli has a good track record of catering to both its adult and child fans, by mixing both surface-level visual excellence as well as deeper, more complex metaphors that may be elusive to its younger viewers. In Kiki’s Delivery Service, it feels like an affair tailored made exclusively for children, as there are barely any nuances other than a straightforward, sometimes forced fantasy story that feels tasteless afterwards. It's still enjoyable but Hayao Miyazaki is just so much better than this.