Leafie looks nothing like any American animated film. It carries out its story in a way unlike American animation as well. American animated movies are almost always kids' movies, and there's an implication that the story and characters should be similarly childish.
Leafie, hailing from South Korea and based on a South Korean novel called "The Hen Who Dreamed She Could Fly", doesn't seem interested in stooping to the six-year-old demographic. There's a lot in the movie for kids to love, but it's also a bit scary, and the story isn't as neat and orderly as one expects from a kids' movie. Leafie is bittersweet, like real life, which makes it both interesting and hard to watch. Tears were in my eyes at one point, although I never started sobbing.
Leafie the hen was born on a farm but wants to escape. Over time she has a child of her own who has different abilities than her. It's frustrating for mother and son that they are different enough for the other animals to make fun of them. Parenthood and belonging are major themes; "Leafie" is a blend of Animal Farm, Finding Nemo, and a little bit of The Lion King.
It's all a bit predictable. Some parts throw you for a loop but it's usually not that hard to guess correctly about what's going to happen next.
There are some brief jokes involving toilet humor, which weren't done in a clever enough way to make me appreciate them. They're more explicit than the toned-down toilet jokes you find in Finding Nemo or The Lion King, which is probably why I found them so distasteful.
I appreciate seeing an animated movie that doesn't look like the homogenized "Pixar / Dreamworks / Disney / Sony" style. Vibrant colors abound, and it seems like the movie was animated mostly using two- dimensional techniques. It never made me as happy as "Ernest & Celestine" did, and I liked the way that movie looked even more than this one, but "Ernest" was never as sad as "Leafie" either.
Although the movie always looks *different*, it doesn't always make the best use of its style. Very few scenes blew me away with their visual style: Frozen, The Lion King, Ernest & Celestine, and Wall-E have "Leafie" beat when it comes to beautiful artwork.
I'm glad I watched this; there are too many sequels and too little heart in American animated movies. Characters don't have the nuance they do in Finding Nemo, and there's not enough humor to hold together the passable, but touching plot.
I suggest watching it in HD - it was released on Blu-Ray in South Korea (Region A) and Germany (B). But once you're done, look up the original ending. It's a mandatory part of the experience, and it's a shame that they cut it from the film. You'll understand why it was cut once you watch it, but it contains major spoilers, so wait until you watch the movie first.
