Marnie is a Horcrux? | When Marnie Was There/Studio Ghibli Theory (The Fangirl) 

I think it was like an out of body experience, so connected to her grandmother and being in a place that her grandmother lived triggered something like a paranormal activity. Id say after her gran died Marnie went back to her childhood home and decided to connect to Anna cuz she felt her troubles and connected to her. In which this helps the grandmother move on from the house.

When a studio ghibli fan calls they will come.

Omg I thought it was a movie about to female lovers too lol. Trailers aren't always clear on the subject of the movie. Love this video

Here's my own theory about Marnie, based on my researches into the Japanese-ness of the Studio Ghibli version (couldn't find a copy of the novel). We have to start with the elephant in the room: the summer festival Anna takes part in. It's not a random fest; it's Tanabata, which is supposed to happen on the seventh day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar (early August in our Gregorian). It's a re-enactment of the one day a year when two ill-fated gods who had fallen in love were transfigured into stars, that always seem to be on opposite sides of the Milky Way--except for the one day each year. That is why the girls are supposed to write their heart's deepest desires on a paper and hang them on the tree: this is the one day in the year when your deepest desire can come true. Anna had no record of her family, so her deepest desire was to be "normal", like everyone else--everyone who knew who they were and where they come from. In this movie, the difference is highlighted as a racial trait: her blue eyes. This causes her to snap, run to the marsh, and take the boat... Of course Marnie resembles the blonde doll Anna got to console her after her grandmother Marnie died, but she was only three years old at the time, and at that age information processing is still being learned. There are other hints, like the relatives Anna goes to stay with: Mister and Missus Oiwa. This is no coincidence that it alludes to one of the best known ghost story kabuki plays: "Yotsuya no Kaidan" (Ghost Story from the Yotsuya District). Oiwa was the tragic heroine in the story who becomes a vengeful ghost when murdered by her philandering husband. Just the name sets the anime audience up for spooky happenings. And the stone tower, called the Silo, recalls yet another kabuki ghost story: "Tenshu Monogatari" (Story of the Stone Tower)--which of course is where Anna "sees" Marnie with her beloved Kazuhiko. The original was about a nobleman's servant who falls in love with a regal ghost haunting a stone tower; again, you'd know the name if you were Japanese.

(Made it to the end.~) Tell your grandparents you love them guys... :'(

I cried like a baby when I found out that she’s truly her grandmother. My mom is adopted. And she doesn’t know who her REAL parents are. So of course, I don’t know who my real grand parents are. I know the story could be confusing but I found love to spend, even just a day with my REAL grandmother!!! I just finished watching this movie on HBOMAX and I’m soo happy that I FINALLY seen this full movie. I’m still alittle sad that I may never meet my grandmother but this gave me some type of hope and wonder that maybe one day- I will finally get to meet my grandmother and grandfather in person or even in death. Either way I’m excited! And can’t wait to see who they really are. ❤️

You're right to observe that all of the meetings that Marnie has is based on her diary entries. By the end of the film if you pay attention to how everything seems to be working you can kind of gather that that's almost like a conditional thing of her last chance to make a lasting Bond with what remains of her family. For the main character of the story everything that she did with her grandma was a distant and repressed memory tied to everything negative that she felt about losing her family and feeling alone, and for some reason blaming herself for all of those complex emotions. All of those memories were shared with marnie's best friend, the painter on the shoreline. I find it really fascinating that they chose the villa to be the setting for how Marni would connect with her granddaughter. When you think about it, if she have been there waiting for her the whole time then she'd be in purgatory. Marnie love that house as it was explicitly stated a couple different times throughout the film. But Marnie experienced Grievous pain in most of the time that she spent in it. Her husband was the one who saved her from that but was also the one who started her on the life path that made her lose everyone. She regrets nothing and she's happy about things but she doesn't ignore the fact that everything that she's loved has hurt her and the only thing she couldn't stand hurting her before she left was her granddaughter not remembering her. The film is showing marnie's very last chance, the very last time she can ever do anything for her granddaughter and all she's capable of doing is sharing experiences as documented in material form in a diary on the property of the villa. it seems almost like the only reason that this got to happen for Marni and her granddaughter at all is because everything is so closely tied to why Marnie would even still be lingering on this plane in the first place. Also, did you not notice that the people the main character are staying with are the main characters grandfather's family? From what I gathered looking at the scenery in the film it seems like a portion of marnie's husband's family stayed behind in the small Seaside town. as you can tell they're all Woodworkers, and if you look at things like the fences or any of the other would worked items around the town they're clearly built by the same person and are very close to the style of the house that we see the main character staying in all summer. the whole reason I analyze this film is because I saw the way that you analyzed Coraline and I realize that it when Marnie was there gave me the exact same unfulfilled feeling of secrets that were just beneath my eyes. I hunted for an answer and I got one. another thing that I'd like to add is that in the book marnie's intentions are never stated and there is no house in the book either. there's only a silo and a pond close by that Marnie seems to almost manifest from implying that that could have been how she died. a big thing about the book is that Marni only ever wants to play with the main character in for the main character to never leave so, marnie's intentions are left intentionally ambiguous. the book leaves it up to you whether or not Marnie was just the lonely soul of a girl who died unfortunately or a malevolent Spirit adopting the form of a tragic character involved with the land that it called its home. a big thing that happens in the book is that when the main character makes a friend for the first time she's been unable to interact with Marnie the way that she was before that in the book. It's almost as if the main character gaming hope is what signals Marnie to leave. As if because the main character is finding Solace and who they are as a person and hope for the future that they're no longer a rightful candidate for friendship with Marni because Marni is lonely and needs other Lonely People. even though the diary entries stop with the last time that the main character ever spoke with Marni as Marnie is implied to move on because she is inspired by the fact that she knows her granddaughter will be okay because she saw her make friends and she made contact with her. We know she moved on to a better place because of all the imagery. a big thing about Marni intentionally leaving her granddaughter in the silo is also to symbolize how Marni feels guilty for dying so early in her granddaughter's life when all she had was her grandmother. it's like morning wasn't able to explicitly say who she was to her granddaughter because during the time that the events in the diary were based on, Marnie was too young to know her future and couldn't act like she knew Knowledge from the future but seem to only be allowed to know who the main character was but still only allowed to show affection that she showed affection to her friend growing up. Marnie needed a reason to ask for forgiveness because of what was holding her back leaving her granddaughter. I have to stop now I'm shaking and crying thinking about the end of the movie and now I need to watch it but if you have questions leave comments and we can talk it out

Yuuup, I thought they were lesbians the first time around and then I oop

i can hear your sobbing at the end of this movie from there XD

Great movie, i was in awe when i first watched it. I sort of interpreted what was going on to be a "Time Slip" of sorts. That is to say Anna, through methods unknown visited Marnie in the past.

”It really helped Anna to not feel like utwanted trash” I know the film is emotional and I always cry but this part got me cracked up 😂

Marnie exists through Anna's genetic memory. As an infant adoptee myself, who has been haunted by genetic memory through dreams and surreal actualizing experiences involving ancestors, this movie makes a LOT more sense to those with separation trauma. The intensity of meeting your genetic other for the first time is also why the two seem so suddenly intimate upon first meeting. To those who've never been "in reunion" with genetic family for the first time, it can be scary how intimate it feels.

I love your theory. Before I comment, just a comment on the trailer: I agree: I think it is entirely reasonable for people watching the trailer to think that the two girls are in love. But I would go a bit further: I think that Anna, at least, is in love with Marnie. She has no reason not to be, at least until she realizes that Marnie was her grandmother. Whether or not Marnie knows this from the start is not clear to me, but she definitely does at the end, when she is begging Anna to forgive her for leaving. Anna thinks Marnie is referring to the silo and the fact that she cannot see Anna anymore. But Marnie is actually referring to her dying and leaving Anna when Anna needed her the most. Re: your theory: I also believe that something "real" is happening and it centers on the diary. Your idea that removing the diary breaks whatever spell allows Marnie to travel is a great one; note that, in the end, the little girl makes a point of telling Anna that she put the diary and the pages back, implying that Marnie really is waving from the window when Anna sees her for the last time. The question of whether Marnie is a ghost, a time traveler, or a time traveling ghost is a great one. Note that Marnie's last meeting with Anna is definitely in Anna's dream (even if it is "real" in a sense), adding some weight to the idea that Marnie and Anna are meeting in Anna's dreams -but their meetings are more than just Anna's imagination. The scene where Marnie fades away when Anna is trying to remember the Oiwas and then comes back later, telling Anna that she (Anna) disappeared is particularly puzzling. The same thing seems to happen in the silo - Marnie leaves with her boyfriend, in part because Anna has vanished (at least to her), implying that the two girls are somehow moving back and forth through each other's time. Anna is visiting Marnie and Marnie is also visiting Anna -though I suspect it is more Anna who is being drawn to Marnie's time more often than the reverse. Thus, Anna may be traveling in spirit and time as she dreams. One point: Marnie's encounters with Anna do not necessarily happen in her diary. Some of the stories are in the diary, but their first meeting at the dock may not be and neither is their picnic. At least, Anna never says (after reading the diary) that these are events depicted there. The party and the silo are, but I suspect that Marnie's interactions with Anna were not just limited to what was in the book. Anyway, thanks for analyzing this great movie.

I only just finished watching the movie like 10 minutes ago but it feels like I've been crying for an hour

I'm glad someone got to do a theory on this movie! This is my favorite anime movie of all time and honestly I sobbed at the end of the movie especially when I was going through a rough patch myself when I first watched the movie and so the twist got me even harder than most people did lol

Here's a theory that I had in regards to Marnie's apology to Anna at the end of the movie. I think that there were three apologies going on at once in that scene from Marnie. *SPOILERS BELOW* - - - - - - - - - - - 1. The obvious one: Child!Marnie apologizing to Anna for leaving her behind in the silo. 2. Grandma Marnie apologizing to Anna for dying and leaving her alone in the world at such a young age. 3. (and this one may be a bit of a reach) Marnie apologizing to Emily (her daughter/Anna's mother) for essentially abandoning her when she (Emily) needed her most (after Kazuhiko's death) by sending her to boarding school. In this instance, Anna is yet again a stand-in for someone else, in this case Emily.

omfg the way I just finished harry potter marathon and when marnie was there recently. Seeing the sentence "Marnie is a Horcrux?" in my home page is kinda terrified me a bit lmao

I wish that I was a bigger part of your community and interacted more because my input on this particular topic I feel would have really helped this video. I'm surprised that you didn't hear about the influences that sparked changed the source material. Hayao Miyazaki grew up loving the book when Marnie was there. After he graduated high school before he went off to college, he decided to pursue a childhood dream of his to visit the marsh depicted in when Marnie was there. He slowly found out as he closed in on Norfolk that Norfolk didn't even exist. He began asking locals and they slowly became the key to him finding the real location which was named something else, I can't remember what the actual name of the seaside town was but it was real it just wasn't Norfolk. When he got into the town from the bus station and started walking along the shoreline the sidewalk began to end in the shoreline began to bend. Off in the distance he could see a beautiful Marsh Villa and he began to walk into the low tide Marsh to get a closer look. On the patio he saw a very elderly Japanese woman sitting and enjoying the view with a younger woman clearly related to her. He gets invited to have a conversation and as he is asked and tells them why he's there they reciprocate the fact that that's very similar to why they are too. You see, the reason the elderly grandmother and the younger granddaughter were living together was to make up for old time that they had lost due to the tragic past that they shared. They both connected over a book called when Marnie was there that the grandma used to read to her when she was young before she got separated. Her granddaughter was more than half non-asian. The grandmother had lost not only her daughter, but her son-in-law and the majority of the family that went along with them, save her granddaughter. The reason why the story of Marnie seems convoluted and contrary to the book, especially since in the book Marnie disappears never to be seen again after the main character makes the friend with the girl who moves into the villa, is because he based his experience of when he went to fulfill a childhood dream with the Fulfillment of the dreams of two women that he met in the marsh. spending whatever time that they had left together with each other because so much time with so many other people were now lost. You should look this up! I hunted this down on the internet because I just couldn't make sense of why it was there and after I got my answer I was very satisfied. Finding out that story and that it's based on a true story that Hayao Miyazaki himself had as a teenager when he went to go solve a mystery of his past just because he could before his life move forward uncontrollably as it seems to do for all of us. this was also one of the first films that was ever worked on without any interference by Hayao Miyazaki outside of inspiration. this film was not only meant to be the cruise Testament to Hayao Miyazaki and their dedication to the longevity of his message in life but to prove that they would be okay without him. Of course, he did end up coming back into the scene shortly after this movie was filmed and released... I'm sure he'd argue that he just missed his team and wouldn't feel comfortable sitting still as he died in retirement, but he didn't stay in retirement like he said he would so I guess actions speak louder than words!

*makes loud squealing noises* OMG OMG you made a When Marnie Was There Theory (All time Favourite Studio Gibli movie tied only with Ariette)!!! Have I ever said you spoil us? No really you do! Omg yes, please and thank you!!

Maybe Anna was the flower girl in a past life and maybe the original flower girl died near where Anna is staying causing all of these da ja vu memories to appear and morph with her childhood memories of these stories her grandmother told her.

I think Marnie asking Anna for forgiveness for leaving her isn’t only for the silo but for leaving her as a baby after she died

This was really interesting. Thank-you for making it. I love this movie, it touched me deeply. I feel strongly when watching this, and afterwards, that the gentle, soft, unconditional kindness and acceptance Marnie showed Anna, who so needed it, is why we are here. To love.

I loved this movie, it’s absolutely amazing and I cried so hard! And i could feel their emotions it was so amazingly made

This needs to be put on netflix so i can finally see it!

guys marnie was literally just a stress induced hallucination/dream which was manifested from annas old memories of her grandmother telling her about all that stuff

Anna invented Marnie. She made her just the way she wanted a "girlfriend" to be. The image of Marnie was taken from her doll and some of the story was from her grandmother. But mostly it is a story about a girl imagining the sort of friend she would like to have. Anna is masculine. Marnie is feminine. One cannot avoid that aspect of the story. That's part of the reason this story is so compelling. I love this story but I can't understand why they made Anna happy in the end. She has no reason to be happy. Maybe that's why they chose the song they did. She's smiling on the outside just to please people but she's crying on the inside because Marnie was only a dream.

Wow love it Megan keep it up this is Beautiful. It really means a lot to me that you took on my request thank you~ ❤️✨

Honestly, i dont think its just the trailer. The whole movie was gay. But it sucks that they had to burn bridges by making them related at the infodump in the end

I love this video, and this movie. I have a little bit of a theory as well. I think that the story was originally written to be about girls finding their love for each other, but perhaps that is too unconventional so they had to do it in a way that is socially acceptable, and spin it so it isn't about any sort of budding romance between two girls. I hope someday there can be love stories in this sort of fashion without studios and directors worrying about offending people.

Is she ana's imaginary grandmother? As i watched the movie i think ana remember everything what her grandma's told in the past, and when she saw the marsh house she begin to potrayed her grandma. like she read the blue diary from sayaka's room suddenly she look back and remembered all her grandma's story.

Made it to the end. I saw this when you first posted it, I just never commented on it because as soon as I finished I had to go take care of my horse and forgot about it when I came back in. I actually loved this movie so much I named my at the time rescued kitten Marnie (my mom saved her from one of our neighbors who had said if no one took her in he was going to stuff her in a bag and throw her off a bridge to drown or suffocate, pretty sure my mom threatened to arrest him for animal abuse if he ever threatened something like that again) and while I don’t have any pets named Anna, my horse that I mentioned earlier is named Annie so I found it funny that in the same year the movie came out I had a kitten named after one of the main characters and a horse with a similar name to the other. Marnie and Annie actually were surprisingly close for a while since when I first got Marnie she could fit in my jackets pockets so I’d bring her out to the barn with me and she’d get to see the horses. She actually used to climb into my jacket pockets and take naps in them until she got too big to fit in them.

great theory, i think it was a timeline crossover- and they also had a happy co-insdence, with marnie knowing that anna would find her so they could resolve their lives. life is greater than the sum of its parts.........

Hisoco was the flower girl in the diary, wich is why in her retelling there was no flower girl.

Made it to the end. It’s so great to see a Studio Ghibli theory! You made me day. It would be awesome to see some more theories on popular Studio Ghibli work if you are interested in doing them. Always enjoy your content! 😁👍🌺💐🌸j

I Really love how the comments really explain everything.. And those things that explain also in the video help me to understand the movie thank you for this

WAIT A MINUTE! The English dub of Marnie lifted whole huge chunks of dialogue VERBATIM from Robinson's book! That's because this book is genuinely beloved in Japan for a variety of reasons. That's a different lecture...

I noticed in the movie that marnie only shows up every high tide

0:18 yup yup i can agree i thought the same.

Okay so I know I’m late but hear me out. My theory is that there is no time travelling. We see in the scene when Anna is a baby and marnie is sitting next to her, she’s telling her all about her life (I think it’s mentioned later in the film as well that marnie told Anna about everything that had happened to her). So when she grew up and went to that place. Some part of her memory was triggered. As a result all the stuff that had happened in the past, Anna began to imagine it and put herself in the picture instead of the people marnie was actually with. We see this in the silo scene when marnie tells Anna that she (Anna) was never there. But this is just my theory 😅

I love coming to the same conclusions as you, it makes me feel so smart! Hahah, well, almost the same conclusions. This was very touching, I love it. Cheers!

Hisako maybe didn't know about the flower girl, because she was probably not there that night; or maybe Hisako was the flower girl??? Anyway, wehn Hisako told Anna about Marnie's life, she didnt really give many delaits, she said they were friends, Marnie was bullied, Marnie married Kazuhiko, they had a child, Kazuhiko died etc. She didnt like, mentioned all of Marnie's interractions with other people

I saw when Marnie Was There when I was sick once and ended up sobbing

Ok but to be honest?? "Promise we'll be a secret.. forever" that is something you say to your girlfriend. Not your friend lol

I LOVE When Marnie Was There. I've cried all 10000 times.

Your theory is worth every second to see

for a moment i thought it’s some sort of horro movie about Anna’s previous life......

This theory is amazing! This movie really hit hard but it was amazing!

Awesome theory. I loved this movie so much.

So if I say I love you you are thinking I’m in love with you. I love you is an over used phase. I love your work and opinions and conclusions.

Please do the theory on 'Where Elsa's and Anna's parents going? '

I actually read the book,and the film is very similar to the source material, only difference is that it's set in Japan. So Anna is most likely 1/4 Brittish.

Thank you for this analysis

well I made it to the end. I was wondering if you could do a Total Drama Island therory or more anime stuff. Anyway... love your vids

Have not seen this film but it sounds really touching. Your theory is well layered and thought-provoking, I really enjoyed every second. Thank you for working so hard to both entertain and inform your viewers. Hugs and kisses!

I love this movie so much, cry every time

3:03 six fingers Marnie is confirmed Stanford pines

You can compare the movie to the book. The movie is the book. they condensed and rearranged things to fit in the important scenes and condensed the Marsh House family to Ayaka and one scene with her brother, but for the most part it was a direct adaptation. In the book there was one off-hand comment where someone observed that she was an odd child, who once popped up out of nowhere and then ran away, and she had been seen talking to herself like she was talking to someone else. Apparently she had reached a personal crisis and gone into a breakdown and was hallucinating. There's nothing surprising about the doll looking like Marnie. Her family was very well off and could easily afford a custom doll that looked like their daughter. As fr the yuri aspects; no that wouldn't work. That would be both incest and necrophilia. But the wild emotional outbursts were very much part of the original story. Anna and Marnie were always declaring their love. I think Ana was reaching for anyone to love her so she was flashing back to the last person she could remember who loved her unconditionally. She forgot again for a time after she was welcomed so openly by the Lindsays, who had nothing to gain from befriending her other than her friendship.

I know we (and Anna) find out that they're related in the end, but let's not kid ourselves in thinking there weren't some serious romantic feelings happening between them before they knew that detail.

Cool theory, but I think that "When Marnie Was There" didn't involve horcruxes as much as a plot device that popped up in "From Up On Poppy Hill" directed by Miyazaki Goro. In "From Up On Poppy Hill," Umi mentions that she thinks her father sent Shun from the afterlife to help her find someone that could in turn help her recover from her loss. Similarly, Marnie--who dearly loved Anna like Umi's father loved her--only shows up when Anna goes through that period of self doubt and self loathing. Marnie helps Anna become more confident in herself, and move on with her life. I'm not an expert on Japanese reincarnation or even Ghibli films in general, but that was just my thought.

GREAT VIDEO

also, in the diary there is mention of a flower girl too, so that kinda changes a bit of the theory (this is in the film btw)

I prefer the ambiguity of the story. It really gives it a sense of mystery and mysticality.

Had to wait to view this video as not yet seen the 🎥. Loved ur theory.

TY for making a video its one of my favorite movie and someone making a video after a long time of release is a good thing such emotional movie

the other sketching woman when she told events it was that she was at the party alone but then next bit she said she was outside dancing wit the flower girl.. so maybe that flower girl was someone else from the party the one with th basket of flowers . and Anna thought it was her

For the trailer I think it was just a group of people like "guys, guys, should we play like a prank and make people feel like creeps?" because there is no way they didn't think people would get gay vibes

Amazing video, like always! I Love You! ❤️

OMG I love this movie!

Do a theory on cabin in the woods and I got an idea Halloween is a prequel to the cabin in the woods

Marnie was very pretty girl

Super sad movie!; Love it!! 💗😊❤️

Y'all forget the "thing" when Anna got angry because Marnie leave her (and y'all know that Anna did see in that event in silo his grandfather fvck I forgot his name it's start with K. appeared and save Marnie) SO YEAH ANNA GOT ANGRY AND MARNIE SAID [WHILE SHE'S IN THE WINDOW] SHE SHOUTED "CAUSE YOUR NOT THE ONE BACK THEN" she actually saying that the one who save him his future husband and not Anna because Anna didn't exist back then. And yeah im just curious why did she said that as if she prefer Anna to be the one who'll be there by her side when she needs help.

Or maybe Marnie just time traveled

I have friends who I tell them I love them all the time, and they’re my internet friends who I’m going to meet soon! Yet, I do see how people would think that they are lovers. I thought that too 😂

Yes yes yes YES I love this movie!!!!

How the hell did the older sketching woman know Anna met Marnie.'so you met Marnie, too' (). She only drew a picture of Marnie as a little girl.. If she met her as an adult Anna would be about 2-3yrs old and not known what she looked like as a kid

I watched it today and really loved it (a bit late i know).. .can you suggest some movies with imaginary friends oru ghost friends ...you know the person only finds out the truth in the end kind of movies👀

thank u for doing this i loved this movie it was beautiful ,would you do a theory for puppycat or voltron

I think I watched this before and it is so sad. And it is kind of weird that it’s her grandma

theres a guy that does a theory too May be more a spiritual connection to the grandma

THANK YOU

I think marine wasn't reincarnated. And it was her spirit

I didnt even know what lesbian is when i watch this movie

I got this movie yesterday and I love it

Please do a theory on the Percy Jackson books and its connected universe.

Bt if it was time travel and she wrote about a flower girl then she named Anna after Anna,, bit of a paradox there

When Marnie was there was made in Japan! An entirely different country and culture from us!

I cried a lot at the end of the movie😢😢💔💔

Omg thank you so much !

This movie confused the living shit outta me

So.... Anna being sent to the town where the Marnie's house is located was coincidental or intentional? If it was coincidental, the story is too far fetched. and if it was intentional, how does the foster mom have a relative living right near that mansion?

I thought they were lesbians too, like who writes a trailer like that, when the story isn't even about that. I'm not particularly supportive of the lgbt community, for religious reasons, but I thought hey, this will be good for people. But nope. It's still an amazing movie.

i made it to the end of the video if possible could u do a video on the wolf children. or even not a theory just watch please its honestly a favorite of mine especially with past creations the director has made comparing this movie to his other projects

0:34 same😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

Can you make a connection between tangled and hunchback of notre dame

Hey I am rewatching this video after getting to the end, and I am working on some fangirl fanart! So, yeah.

Am still sure marnie was a Ghost I mean when she died she cloud have Deaged herself , back too her 12 year old self ( ????? ) . Even though she was locked in and hurt in that house, she could have chosen to go back to the Marsh House. Because she may had connected it with Kazuhiko Kazuhiko yes, I agree with the diary

How I can watch Marnie was there?

Have you ever done a theory on Harry Potter?

Awesome