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Movie review: The Promised Neverland

Movie review: The Promised Neverland
(From left) Rihito Itagaki, Minami Hamabe and Kairi Jyo hatch an escape plan in The Promised Neverland. PHOTO: ENCORE FILMS
Jeanmarie Tan
Entertainment Editor
Jan 06, 2021 06:00 am
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Based on the best-selling manga and anime series, what this live-action Japanese film adaptation promises indeed is pure escapist fun.

Grace Field House is a paradisiacal orphanage where the children - who happily live there with their beloved "Mother"/caretaker Isabella (Keiko Kitagawa) - all look forward to the day they are old enough to be adopted.

However, when a gifted trio (Minami Hamabe, Kairi Jyo and Rihito Itagaki) stumble upon the place's horrific secret, they concoct a dangerous and desperate prison break.

Aside from exaggerated performances and iffy CGI rendering of the monsters that inhabit their world, this dark fantasy wields a shocking premise that poses provocative questions and provides edge-of-seat twists and thrills.

Watching betrayed children young and old come together as a family to outsmart their adult oppressors is a treat, although antagonist Isabella's story arc leaves us wanting more.

Casting comedy superstar Naomi Watanabe, Japan's most followed person on Instagram, may seem like a sell-out, but she does bring comic relief as Isabella's eccentric recruit, Sister Krone. 

Jackson Yee (left) and Zhou Dongyu in Better Days.
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THE PROMISED NEVERLAND (PG)

SCORE: 4/5

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Jeanmarie Tan

Entertainment Editor
jeanm@sph.com.sg
Read articles by Jeanmarie Tan
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