--- title: "Porco Rosso: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/porco-rosso/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/porco-rosso" critics_score: 74 critics_reviews: 8 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Porco Rosso (1992): what the critics said Critics' score 74 from 8 reviews: 7 positive, 1 mixed, 0 negative. Most critics like Porco Rosso, and the praise clusters on the same things: the colour of the animation and the seaplane dogfights over the Adriatic, which several reviews call the reason to watch. A number are struck by how much Miyazaki fits around a pig in a cockpit: pre-fascist Italy, aviation history, the men who came home from war, and women who are consistently smarter and more capable than the men around them. Comparisons run to Tintin and to Casablanca, with the hero cast as a gruff, decent Bogart figure. The reservations are mild and land on the story. Radio Times finds the adult plot flimsy and underdeveloped and misses the director’s usual charm, and Empire, though approving, thinks Miyazaki has made stronger films. The spread is narrow, with no negative notices; the warmest reviews come from critics who take the anti-war material seriously rather than treating it as a backdrop to the flying. ## The Guardian Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 3 February 2006. Porco Rosso is an early Studio Ghibli film from Miyazaki about a pig who is an air ace turned bounty hunter in the Adriatic; the plot is secondary to the delightful, colourful animation and exhilarating seaplane flying sequences. The bizarre premise contrasts with the director's limpid style, akin to Tintin but with greater artistic depth that would later flower in films like Spirited Away. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2006/feb/03/dvdreviews.animation1) ## Time Out — David Jenkins Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 30 September 2009. The critic describes Miyazaki’s 1992 animation as wonderful, focusing on the pig pilot’s dogfights with air pirates in the Adriatic and its digressions into pre-fascist Italy, aviation history and gender equality. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/porco-rosso) ## Empire — William Thomas Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 11 January 2006. The critic calls it a solid Miyazaki film with an elegiac edge exploring disappointed masculinity through its pig-faced pilot protagonist and vintage plane action. It draws comparisons to The Quiet Man and The Incredibles but notes the director has made stronger films. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/porco-rosso-review/) ## Slant Magazine — Chris Cabin Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 24 February 2015. The critic praises the film's personal subtext on war survivors and Miyazaki's self-reflective themes, along with its vibrant animation, action sequences, and jovial yet contemplative tone. The disc's A/V transfer is excellent, though extras are skimpy. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/dvd/porco-rosso/) ## The New York Times — Jeannette Catsoulis Rating Critic’s Pick. 23 December 2011. The critic praises this re-release of Miyazaki’s 1992 adventure as an irresistible, pastel-pretty yarn that blends fantasy and history, muting adult concerns like fascism with whimsical elements. She singles out the director’s feminism, noting how female characters are smarter, braver and more resourceful than their male counterparts. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/23/movies/porco-rosso-directed-by-hayao-miyazaki-review.html) ## Radio Times — Sloan Freer Rating 3/5. The critic praises the rich, imaginative animation and its vibrancy that appeals to all ages while faulting the adult storyline as flimsy, underdeveloped and lacking the director’s usual charm. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-8rpb2l/porco-rosso/) ## Eye for Film — Anton Bitel Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 2 February 2006. The critic praises the film as an animated prequel to Casablanca set in interwar Europe, with Porco himself as a gruff yet decent hero in the Bogart mold. Miyazaki is singled out for grounding the fantasy in meticulous period detail and realistic aerial sequences while delivering anti-war themes with broad appeal. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/porco-rosso-film-review-by-anton-bitel) ## The Skinny — Zoe Crombie Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 9 June 2022. The critic hails Porco Rosso as an anti-war masterpiece and outlier in the Ghibli canon for its 1930s Italian setting and morally ambiguous pig-man protagonist. They single out its evolution from a simple in-flight entertainment project into a complex meditation on fighting against a cursed world. [Read the review](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/opinion/id-rather-be-a-pig-than-a-fascist-30-years-of-porco-rosso) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/porco-rosso.md