History Anime / WhenMarnieWasThere

Anna is an introverted, alienated and [[IllGirl asthmatic]] twelve-year-old girl from Sapporo, who only finds solace in her talent for drawing. To aid her health, Anna's parents send her to a relatives living in a rural seaside part of Japan, where Anna soon becomes fascinated by a large Western-style manor looming at the borders of the marsh next to the village she stays in. The first time she goes there she finds it abandoned and run-down, but on her second visit the house is suddenly full of life and light. More importantly, it appears to be home to a blonde girl named Marnie, who looks exactly like the girl Anna had been seeing in her dreams.

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:After finding out Marnie was Anna's grandmother, she finally grows out of her abandonment issues and appreciates for her foster mother, however, we also find out that Marnie had a very tumultous and sad life: she lived a very abusive childhood and it didn't get better when she grew out after her husband's untimely death, getting committed to a psychiatric hospital for a time, being blamed by her daughter, Emily, of abandoning her which led to Emily running away and having Anna only to die with her husband on a car crash. Marnie tries to raise Anna herself but dies a year after the accident, leading Anna to be placed in foster care in the first place.]]

* DefinitelyJustACold: Anna falls unconscious a few times in the movie, but refuses to acknowledge she has a problem.

* HideYourLesbians: The beginning of the movie is virtually ''dripping'' with romantic tension between the two main characters, which led many viewers to believe that this would lead to a payoff by the end. Alas, [[spoiler: Marnie turns out to be Anna's grandmother, and as a girl she had feelings for Kazuhiko, a boy whom she later marries]].

* NeverTrustATrailer: The imagery used in promotional materials led many people to believe that the movie deals with the [[RomanticTwoGirlFriendship budding romance between the two female leads]]. [[spoiler:It doesn't.]]

* ChekhovsGunman: The elderly woman, Hisako, who Anna notices painting by the shore. [[spoiler:She is Manie's childhood friend, and provides Anna and Sayaka with the first half of the truth about Marnie's identity.]]

* BaitAndSwitchLesbians [=/=] NeverTrustATrailer: The imagery used in promotional materials led many people to believe that the movie deals with the [[RomanticTwoGirlFriendship budding romance between the two female leads]]. [[spoiler:It doesn't.]]

* LongLostRelative [=/=] TheReveal: [[spoiler: Marnie is Anna's grandmother.]]

* {{Mukokuseki}}: subverted [[spoiler: Anna's blue eyes attract notice and are an important clue to her heritage]]

* TimeTravel [=/=] LivingMemory: Both seem possible in the beginning and [[spoiler: the difference matters in the end]].

* BaitAndSwitchLesbians [=/=] NeverTrustATrailer: The imagery, which many fans interpreted as romantic, used in promotional materials led many people to believe that the movie deals with the [[RomanticTwoGirlFriendship budding romance between the two female leads]]. [[spoiler:It doesn't.]]

* HideYourLesbians: To many fans, the beginning of the movie is virtually ''dripping'' with romantic tension between the two main characters, which led those who hadn't read the novel to believe that this would be some kind of payoff by the end. Alas, [[spoiler: Marnie turns out to be Anna's grandmother, and as a girl she had feelings for Kazuhiko, a boy whom she later marries]].

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:After finding out Marnie was Anna's grandmother, she finally grows out of her abandonment issues and appreciates for her foster mother, however, we also find out that Marnie had a very tumultous and sad life: she lived a very abusive childhood and it didn't get better when she grew out after her husband's untimely death, getting committed to a psychiatric hospital for a time, being blamed by her daughter, Emily, of abandoning her which led to Emily running away and having Anna only to die with her husband on a car crash. Marnie tries to raise Anna herself but dies a year after the accident.]]

* RomanticTwoGirlFriendship: Anna and Marnie's relationship ''seems'' to veer in that direction at first. [[spoiler:[[BaitAndSwitchLesbians Things are not quite as they seem to be though]].]]

* BaitAndSwitchLesbians [=/=] NeverTrustATrailer: The romantic imagery used in promotional materials led many people to believe that the movie deals with the [[RomanticTwoGirlFriendship budding romance between the two female leads]]. [[spoiler:It doesn't.]]

* HideYourLesbians: The beginning of the movie is virtually ''dripping'' with romantic tension between the two main characters, which led those who hadn't read the novel to believe that this would lead to some kind of payoff. Alas, [[spoiler: Marnie turns out to be Anna's grandmother, and as a girl she was had feelings for Kazuhiko, a boy whom she later marries]].

* NeverTrustATrailer: The romantic imagery used in promotional materials led many people to believe that the movie deals with the [[RomanticTwoGirlFriendship budding romance between the two female leads]]. [[spoiler:It doesn't.]]

* HideYourLesbians: The beginning of the movie is virtually ''dripping'' with romantic tension between the two main characters, which led those who hadn't read the novel to believe that this would be some kind of payoff by the end. Alas, [[spoiler: Marnie turns out to be Anna's grandmother, and as a girl she was had feelings for Kazuhiko, a boy whom she later marries]].

* HideYourLesbians: The beginning of the movie is virtually ''dripping'' with romantic tension between the two main characters, which led those who didn't read the novel to believe that this would be some kind of payoff by the end. Alas, [[spoiler: Marnie turns out to be Anna's grandmother, and as a girl she was had feelings for Kazuhiko, a boy whom she later marries]].

* HideYourLesbians: The beginning of the movie is virtually ''dripping'' with romantic tension between the two main characters, which led many people to believe that there would be some kind of romantic payoff by the end. Alas, [[spoiler: Marnie turns out to be Anna's grandmother, and as a girl she was had feelings for Kazuhiko, a boy whom she later marries]].

* NeverTrustATrailer: The romantinc tenromantic imagery used in promotional materials led many people to believe that the movie deals with the [[RomanticTwoGirlFriendship budding romance between the two female leads]]. [[spoiler:It doesn't.]]

* BaitAndSwitchLesbians: The romantic imagery used in promotional materials led many people to believe that the movie deals with the [[RomanticTwoGirlFriendship budding romance between the two female leads]], which would have been quite a daring step for Creator/StudioGhibli, considering how it is often seen as Japan's equivalent to Creator/{{Disney}}. Alas, [[spoiler: Marnie turns out to be Anna's grandmother, and as a girl she was had feelings for Kazuhiko, a boy whom she later marries]].

* NeverTrustATrailer: See the entry on BaitAndSwitchLesbians above.

The two girls feel an immediate connection, which grows ever deeper each time they meet. Still, Marnie and the manor she is living in remain a mystery. Why does the place look abandoned when Marnie is not around? What is Marnie's true identity? And what are her ties her to Anna?

Anna is an introverted, alienated and [[IllGirl asthmatic]] twelve-year-old girl from Sapporo, who only finds solace in her talent for drawing. To aid her health, Anna's parents send her to a relatives living in a rural seaside part of Japan, where Anna soon becomes fascinated by a large Western-style manor looming at the borders of the marshlands next to the village she stays in. The first time she goes there she finds it abandoned and run-down, but on her second visit the house is suddenly full of life and light. More importantly, it appears to be home to a blonde girl named Marnie, who looks exactly like the girl Anna had been seeing in her dreams.

* TheFerryMan: Alluded to. The first time Anna visits the manor house she found herself stranded on the other side of the bay after the tide came in. A silent fisherman finds her and brings her back to the village.

Anna is an introverted, alienated and [[IllGirl asthmatic]] twelve-year-old girl from Sapporo, whose only finds solace in her talent for drawing. To aid her health, Anna's parents send her to a relatives living in a rural seaside part of Japan, where Anna soon becomes fascinated by a large Western-style manor looming at the borders of the marshlands next to the village she stays in. The first time she goes there she finds it abandoned and run-down, but on her second visit the house is suddenly full of life and light. More importantly, it appears to be home to a blonde girl named Marnie, who looks exactly like the girl Anna had been seeing in her dreams.

The two girls feel an immediate connection, which grows ever deeper each time they meet. Still, Marnie and the manor she is living in remain a mystery. Why does the place look abandoned when Marnie is not around? What is Marnie's true identity? And why did she appear in Anna's dreams?

The two girls feel an immediate connection, which grows ever deeper each time they meet. Still, Marnie and the manor she is living in remain a mystery. Why does the house look abandoned when Marnie is not around? What is Marnie's true identity? And why did she appear in Anna's dreams?

Anna is an introverted, alienated and [[IllGirl asthmatic]] 12-year-old girl from Sapporo, whose only finds solace in her talent for drawing. To aid her health, Anna's parents send her to a relatives living in a rural seaside part of Japan, where Anna soon becomes fascinated by a large Western-style manor looming at the borders of the marshlands next to the village she stays in. The first time she goes there she finds it abandoned and run-down, but on her second visit the house is suddenly full of life and light. More importantly, it appears to be home to a blonde girl named Marnie, who looks exactly like the girl Anna had been seeing in her dreams.

The two girls feel an immediate deep connection, which grows ever closer each time they meet. Still, there is an deep mystery surrounding Marnie and the manor she is living in. Why does it look abandoned when Marnie is not around? What is Marnie's true identity? And why did she appear in Anna's dreams?

Anna is an introverted, alienated and [[IllGirl asthmatic]] 12-year-old girl from Sapporo, whose only solace is her talent for drawing. To aid her health, Anna's parents send her to a relatives living in a rural seaside part of Japan, where Anna soon becomes fascinated by a large Western-style manor looming at the borders of the marshlands next to the village she stays in. The first time she goes there she finds it abandoned and run-down, but on her second visit the house is suddenly full of life and light. More importantly, it appears to be home to a blonde girl named Marnie, who looks exactly like the girl Anna had been seeing in her dreams.

In typical Creator/StudioGhibli style, with [[SceneryPorn gorgeous animation]] and music, the movie gradually unfolds the meaning of Anna and Marnie's encounters, with Anna meeting several other important people along the way who all help her on her [[ComingOfAgeStory journey of finding herself]].

In typical Creator/SudioGhibli style, with [[SceneryPorn gorgeous animation]] and music, the movie gradually unfolds the meaning of Anna and Marnie's encounters, with Anna meeting several other important people along the way who all help her on her [[ComingOfAgeStory journey of finding herself]].

The two girls feel an immediate deep connection, and the bond between them soon becomes ever closer each time they meet. Still, there is an deep mystery surrounding Marnie and the manor she is living in. Why does it look abandoned when Marnie is not around? What is Marnie's true identity? And why did she appear in Anna's dreams?

Anna is an introverted, alienated and [[IllGirl asthmatic]] 12-year-old girl from Sapporo, whose only solace is her talent for drawing. To aid her health, Anna's parents send her to a relatives living in a rural seaside part of Japan, where Anna soon becomes fascinated by a large Western-style manor looming at the borders of the marshlands next to the village. The first time she goes there she finds it abandoned and run-down, but on her second visit the house is suddenly full of life and light. More importantly, it appears to be home to a blonde girl named Marnie, who looks exactly like the girl Anna had been seeing in her dreams.

The two girls feel an immediate deep connection, and the bond between them soon becomes closer, with them opening up to each other more and more with each encounter. Still, there is an deep mystery surrounding Marnie and the manor she is living in. Why does it look abandoned when Marnie is not around? What is Marnie's true identity and why did she appear in Anna's dreams?

In typical Ghibli style, the movie gradually unfolds the meaning of Anna and Marnie's relationship.

Anna is an introverted, alienated, and artistic IllGirl from Sapporo. Sent to a rural seaside village for her health, she becomes fascinated by a large manor house looming on a nearby point. Investigating, she finds it abandoned. But the second time she visits the house is full of life and light, and home to a blonde girl named Marnie, who Anna has been seeing in her dreams. The two bond and start to open up to each other, until the day Anna visits and finds a new family has bought the house and there is a new girl in Marnie's window. This girl, Sayaka, startles Anna by asking if ''she'' is the Marnie who wrote the old diary she'd just found in her room. Anna and Sayaka decide that to get to the bottom of this mystery they have to learn all they can about Marnie and hopefully find the diary's missing pages. In the process Anna will learn her own place in the world and perhaps make her first real friend, for the courage she gained opening up to Marnie may allow Anna to open up to Sayaka too.