Little Amélie or the Character of Rain

Amélie is born in a vegetative state to a Belgian family living in Kobe, Japan. Amélie believes her condition makes her a god to everyone around her. On her second birthday, an earthquake occurs that causes Amélie to break free of her vegetative state and move around freely. She soon becomes frustrated and rejective of her family, causing her father Patrick to call for a nanny. At the suggestion of landlady Kashima-san, Nishio-san arrives to the household, alongside the family's grandmother Claude to stay for a while. Claude provides white chocolate to Amélie, calming her down. Amélie begins to bond with the family, except for her older brother, André.

After Amélie learns her first word, "vacuum cleaner", Claude goes back to Belgium, upsetting Amélie. Nishio later finds Amélie, and reads to her a book about yōkai, starting a friendship between the two, to Kashima's chagrin. During their time together, Nishio shows Amélie a school of koi near a garden, teaches her the kanji word for rain (雨, ame) through a fogged window, and explains how she had lost her family in World War II. Later, Patrick learns of Claude's death and has to go to Belgium for two months, with Amélie sad yet confused about the concept of death. Upon Patrick's return, the family sans Nishio goes out to play in the beach. Amélie is reluctant to leave, but Nishio encourages her by recounting the memories of when she had visited as a child. Once there, Amélie takes and opens a jar, hoping to fill her beach experiences for Nishio. While staring curiously at the sea creatures, Amélie is caught up in the waves and nearly drowns. André saves her, finally earning him her respect. Returning home, Amélie shares the jar with Nishio; she thanks Amélie.

On Amélie's third birthday, she finds Nishio at the home of Kashima, who scolds Nishio for bonding with Amélie and asks if she had forgotten her own family. Amélie is caught listening to their conversation. While bringing her back to her family, Nishio is denounced by Kashima in front of Amélie's family. Nishio resigns as their nanny, leaving Amélie to celebrate her third birthday alone. Amélie is given her birthday present; three koi. However, Patrick informs Amélie that the family will soon be moving back to Belgium, further upsetting her.

One day while feeding her koi, Amélie throws herself into the pond. She ends up meeting Claude, who informs her that her time is not over. Amélie sees an outside vision of her past memory of accompanying Nishio near the window, who tells her to wake up. Amélie finds herself in a hospital, having been saved by Kashima and Nishio. Much later, the family enjoys winter, and now knowing how precious her time is with Nishio, Amélie officially recognizes that she is not a god, but a human.

The film premiered at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.^[7]

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 98% of 88 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.2/10. The website's consensus reads: "Conveying complex emotions through a deceptively simple story and dynamic colors, Little Amélie is an enchanting animated feature that brims with wisdom."^[8] On Metacritic, the film holds a weighted average score of 82/100 based on 20 critics, indicating "universal acclaim" reviews.^[9]