Critics reviews

Lilting [and] piquant... The [film's rotoscope] mode not only enhances his closely observed psychological portraits of two overly imaginative middle-school misfits who become best friends, it also allows for the stars of his original, Anne Suzuki and Yû Aoi, to plausibly reprise their roles.

[The Case of Hana and Alice] is not only a fantastic story about lost love and what it can do to a person but it is also a charming, beautiful and oddly weird story about the beginning of a delightful friendship.

Gently comedic and all-around upbeat... [The Case of Hana and Alice] mixes elements of mystery and ghost story into its charmingly detailed account of the two girls’ blossoming friendship... Oddly enough, we forget that we’re watching animation swiftly enough, owing to the naturalism in both the technique and writing, but especially the latter.