FROM UP ON POPPY HILL (PG) Written by animation legend Hayao Miyazaki and directed by his son Goro Miyazaki, From Up on Poppy Hill is an openly nostalgic and sentimental story about a young high school student, Umi (Sarah Bolger), and her budding romance and friendship with a male student, the impetuous yet kind-hearted Shun (Anton Yelchin). After some initial comic road blocks in their friendship, Umi and Shun bond over restoring and saving a student clubhouse from demolition by the school administration. The clubhouse is an eyesore, but the rickety building also serves as a sanctuary for the students who've made it their home away from home. Meanwhile, every morning Umi diligently hoists signal flags from her home atop Poppy Hill to the boats below in the bay. The flags carry a message to her father, who never returned from the Korean War after his ship hit a mine, to come home safely. One day, someone responds to her in the daily paper, and Umi tries to find out who her mysterious admirer is.

 Although the animation in From Up on Poppy Hill is understated and realistic, the movie lacks the visual spark that the elder Miyazaki could have given this material. The best sequences matter-of-factly portray Umi's neighborhood with delightful detail, and a later sequence in Tokyo circa 1963—a year before the Summer Olympic Games that were held in the city—is lovingly evoked. Another fine scene is the moment when Umi and a friend venture into the clubhouse for the first time, beholding the controlled chaos within. The movie is touching at times—Umi's backstory about her father and Miyazaki's exploration of how the past is easily shunted aside for the new—but entire sequences also feel emotionally lukewarm—a late melodramatic twist to Umi and Shun's relationship and the movie's finale. One can't help but wonder that the elder Miyazaki would have handled things with far more depth, wisdom and genuine emotion.

Fans of Studio Ghibli, however, will find much to appreciate here. From Up on Poppy Hill is a minor work and never quite takes off into the sublime like so much of the studio's output does, but there are enough moments of gentle warmth here to whet your palate until Hayao's next film is released.