Josee, the Tiger and the Fish

Josee, the Tiger and the Fish is a Japanese animated drama about Kumiko, a young woman who uses a wheelchair and has spent most of her life inside her home with her grandmother. She reads constantly, draws, and is drawn to the sea, and she asks to be called Josee after a character in a novel. Tsuneo is a marine biology student who rescues her during a chance accident and is then hired by her grandmother to spend time with her and help prepare her for a more independent adult life. Josee is stubborn and used to being protected, while Tsuneo is patient and saving money for his own plans abroad. As they grow closer, their relationship pushes both of them to reconsider what they want from the future.

The film was directed by Kotaro Tamura from a screenplay by Sayaka Kuwamura, and it is based on a story by Seiko Tanabe. Taishi Nakagawa voices Tsuneo and Kaya Kiyohara voices Kumiko, with supporting performances from Yume Miyamoto, Kazuyuki Okitsu, Lynn and Chiemi Matsutera. It runs 98 minutes.

Released in December 2020, the film took about 2 million dollars worldwide, a modest return for a theatrical anime release. It holds a 7.6 rating on IMDb from around 12,000 votes and an 8.3 on TMDB from roughly 629 votes. A critics' rating of 7.9 from 15 reviews places it close to the audience scores, suggesting a broadly consistent reception.