‘Yokaipedia’: Fantasy flick takes a page out of ‘Harry Potter’

Parents planning a trip to the cinema over the school holidays in Japan can generally count on a new “Detective Conan” or “Doraemon” anime to keep the kids happy, but live-action family movies are a rare breed. Rarer still are ones with the lavish production values of Takashi Yamazaki’s “Yokaipedia,” which comes on like a homegrown answer to “Harry Potter.”

At multiple points during this fizzy fantasy romp, viewers may feel like they’ve been whisked back to Hogwarts: there are battles with supernatural creatures; a magical book in which words appear on empty pages; and a labyrinthine emporium that turns out to be much bigger than it looks from the outside.

Then there’s the film’s protagonist, Itsuki (Kairi Jyo), whose tousled hair and round spectacles give him a passing resemblance to a certain boy wizard. That said, Yamazaki is drawing on a wider range of inspirations here — from “The Goonies” and “Ghostbusters” to “Spirited Away” — while revisiting the retro aesthetic of his own “Destiny: The Tale of Kamakura” (2017).

“Yokaipedia” is based on the “Obakezukan” series by author Hiroshi Saito and illustrator Etsuyoshi Miyamoto, which depicts encounters between school kids and a menagerie of spirits and spooks. There’s no overarching narrative to the books, so Yamazaki has cobbled together one of his own with some wholesome messages about friendship and perseverance.

After making wishes at a local shrine, Itsuki and pals Taichi (Fuga Shibazaki) and Sonny (Sonny Mcclendon) are visited by a sprite who tells them of a mystical tome that can grant their requests. (Confusingly, it’s titled “Ghostbook” in the original Japanese.) However, when they seek it out at an antique bookshop, they get whisked off to a parallel dimension, together with their teacher, Yoko (Yui Aragaki).

This alternate reality looks almost like home except it’s all scrambled up: the street signs are gibberish, while the buildings jut out at improbable, M.C. Escher angles. The boys are surprised to find classmate Minato (Ayaka Yoshimura) has arrived there ahead of them — though they seem suspiciously eager not to reveal why she’s been absent from school recently.

It soon transpires that the trio’s wishes will only be granted if they capture a series of yōkai monsters within a fixed time limit, leading to stand-offs with various colorful CGI creations, voiced by the likes of Min Tanaka and Akio Otsuka.

Yamazaki’s young cast may not have as convincing a rapport as the kids from “Stranger Things,” but they’re an appealing bunch. Mcclendon, making his film debut, is a natural, while Jyo (“Shoplifters”) is clearly well on his way to leading-man status. They seem more at ease with the movie’s CGI characters than adult co-star Ryunosuke Kamiki, who plays the bookshop’s quirky owner.

However, it’s Aragaki who steals the show. Her comic timing and abundant energy suggest that producers may want to call her first before they speed-dial Haruka Ayase for their next project.

As is often the case with Yamazaki’s films, the director also penned the screenplay and took a hands-on role in the visual effects. In all honesty, his character designs are more memorable than his characters; aside from one beautiful moment during its final stretch, “Yokaipedia” doesn’t pack much emotional punch. But fans of the source material should go home happy. The creatures in this feature are up to scratch.