Redheaded Jill

I have seen this movie advertised many times over the years but I’d never sat down and watched it.

**SPOILERS AHEAD**

Kiki is a witch, and at the age of 13 she is sent out into the world to make her mark. She is to choose a town to live in (that doesn’t already have a resident witch) and decide on a specialty. She meets another young witch who reads fortunes. It starts to rain and Kiki and her black cat Gigi take shelter in the cattle car of a train.

The next day they wake up in a town that has not seen a witch in ages.

Kiki is clumsy and a little spastic. She’s lovable, but is immature and annoying. Especially at the start of the movie. Her cat provides some dry wit.

Kiki doesn’t know what to make her specialty and she has a hard time fitting in. She is not welcomed by most of the towns people. She helps a woman at a bakery with a quick delivery and in return for helping the woman run the shop she is able to live above the store and run her delivery service.

She slowly gains customers and meets some nice people. My favorite of her customers is a little old lady who bakes her granddaughter a special casserole for her birthday. When Kiki delivers it the girl has a tantrum and complains about her grandma’s gift. It is really sad.

Kiki is befriended by a nice boy in town who has some not so nice friends. She begins to doubt herself and thus her magic begins to fade.

Kiki’s friend is obsessed with flight. One day there is an accident with a blimp and the boy is in danger. Kiki regains her magic in time to save her friend, and the movie ends with her being accepted by his friend group.

The people who help Kiki are very kind. Especially the little old lady. When Kiki is feeling her worst the woman surprises her with a cake as a gift. There’s no real lesson learned by the bratty kids in the show. Several times I had to remind myself that Kiki is only 13 and so her immaturity wasn’t that big of a deal.

I like the movie overall. There was nothing scary about it, aside from Kiki’s teen angst there were some sweet moments.

3.5/5 stars