The release of a Studio Ghibli film is always a celebration at home. We have followed their production closely for years and the visit to their museum in Japan was a real treat. For this house, Studio Ghibli is synonymous with good work, quality and care. That's why, although we weren't convinced by the digitalisation of their latest work, and the fact that the director was none other than Goro Miyazaki (author of the reviled Tales from Earthsea), we decided to give it a chance because it might surprise us.

And surprise it did, because it was even worse than we imagined.

There is nothing good or remarkable about Earwig and the Witch. The animation is typical of productions from ten years ago. The character design is horrendous. The story, what is it trying to teach, what is the moral, that it's OK for children to manipulate, lie and cheat, what values are those? Moreover, it's a story that ends in a rushed manner, as if there was no time - or desire - to tell all the gaps that remain after a mere 80 minutes. Soundtrack? Repeating the same song over and over again makes you end up hating it, and even more so when the dubbing prevents you from understanding the lyrics.

A horrendous blot on a wonderful CV, adding yet another failure to Goro Miyazaki's list.