Poupelle of Chimney Town

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Poupelle of Chimney Town

PG

2021

1h 40m

Fantasy

Adventure

Anime

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83%

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18 Reviews

72%

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Fewer than 50 Ratings

Poupelle of Chimney Town is the story of young Lubicchi living among the thick smoke from the chimneys of his isolated town, yearning to see the "stars" -- to know the truth -- his father always told him about. One Halloween night he meets Poupelle, a man made of garbage, and together they look to the sky as their adventure begins.

Peter Debruge

Variety

A boy befriends a magical 'garbage man' in this visually dazzling, if oddly rendered cartoon about a city cut off from the outside world.

Jan 10, 2022

Full Review

Richard Whittaker

Austin Chronicle

Ultimately, it's an aspirational and inspirational tale of daring to reach for the stars even when authority figures tell you they don't exist - and the value of having a friend who believes in you, even if they have an umbrella handle for a nose.

Jan 6, 2022

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Randy Myers

San Jose Mercury News

Richly animated and surprisingly touching, "Poupelle" is a gem from Tokyo-based Studio4C.

Rated: 3/4

Jan 6, 2022

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Rachel Wagner

rachelsreviews.net

Don't miss your chance to check out this dazzlingly animated achievement!

Rated: 8/10

May 30, 2022

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Grace Han

Asian Movie Pulse

Poupelle in Chimneytown marks an ambitious attempt on Hirotas part to adapt Nishinos larger series. The movie presents an intriguing steampunk world that holds a lot of promise, but unfortunately does not have the time to explore it thoroughly.

Rated: 2.5/5

Feb 22, 2022

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Sandie Angulo Chen

Common Sense Media

Japanese animator Yusuke Hirota's steampunk directorial debut is a moving, accessible tribute to legacy, nature, and unexpected friendships.

Rated: 4/5

Jan 25, 2022

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Monte P

Beautiful animation and a touching and affirmative story about a little boy, his friendship with a garbageman, and a father's supportive love. Couldn't have been happier with the visual majesty and theme.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/09/22

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Stephen A

Somewhat derivative but still heartwarming and lovely steampunk fairy tale.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/07/22

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Mami

The picture was beautiful and the story telling was amazing!

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/07/22

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Logan D

Within Chimney Town there lives a boy who believes his father's stories of stars being beyond the clouds that obscure the sky. When he meets a man made of garbage, he becomes inspired to demonstrate his father wasn't a liar. Hidden Gem for kids! The narrative is pretty light fare for adults but the animation is brilliant, especially the color and texture. I also appreciated the world building in this whimsical film about curiosity, friendship, challenging authority, and finding wonder in a bleak world. If your kids or the young at heart haven't seen it, I highly recommend it.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

10/21/25

Full Review

Audience Member

Weird, all over the place movie starring Tony hale. Well I'm the English dubbed version I saw he starred. Anyway the idea of this movie is great but with cringe dance music video songs out of nowhere at the beginning of the movie started off horrible. The idea of Poupelle being the kids dad symbolically is very cool but with so many characters the movie doesn't really focus on the main two being Poupelle and the kid. For me a movie has to have 3 or 4 or less strong characters. Anyway what I'm trying to say is this movie is not for me. It should've focused on Poupelle and the kid against the world. And everyone besides them and the mom could be the good guys. To be honest the kids so called friends were legit mean to him. And then they magically believed the kid when they see the blue sky. Horrible and dumb. The best scene in the movie is when Poupelle and the kid are in the air seeing the blue sky for the first time then Poupelle legit "flys away." That scene was really sad and emotional but unfortunately for the rest of the movie it was a cringe fest. In the end the ending is the best part being emotional but the rest of the movie lacks anything of substance.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/19/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Great visuals with a good storyline.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/13/23

Full Review

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Yusuke Hirota

Director

Masataka Kubota

Poupelle

Mana Ashida

Lubicchi

Shinosuke Tatekawa

Bruno

Eiko Koike

Rola

Shingo Fujimori

Scoop

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Synopsis

Poupelle of Chimney Town is the story of young Lubicchi living among the thick smoke from the chimneys of his isolated town, yearning to see the "stars" -- to know the truth -- his father always told him about. One Halloween night he meets Poupelle, a man made of garbage, and together they look to the sky as their adventure begins.

Director: Yusuke Hirota
Producer: Yusuke Kitahashi, Ryoichi Fukuyama, Tanaka Eiko
Screenwriter: Akihiro Nishino, Akihiro Nishino
Distributor: Eleven Arts
Production Co: Studio 4 C
Rating: PG (Some Action|Violence|Thematic Elements)
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, Anime
Original Language: Japanese
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 30, 2021, Limited
Runtime: 1h 40m

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