Mary and The Witch's Flower
Mary Smith, a young girl who lives with her great-aunt in the countryside, follows a mysterious cat into the nearby forest where she finds a strange flower and an old broom, none of which is as ordinary as it seems.
The film earned $42.2M at the global box office.
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Mary and The Witch's Flower (2017) demonstrates precise story structure, characteristic of Hiromasa Yonebayashi's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 43 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.3, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes A young red-haired witch flees through the night sky on a broomstick, clutching magical seeds while being pursued. This prologue establishes the magical world and the importance of the fly-by-night flower seeds that will drive the story.. Notably, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 12 minutes when While chasing Peter's black cat Tib through the forest, Mary discovers the glowing fly-by-night flowers hidden in the woods. When she touches them, the magical essence absorbs into her, granting her temporary witch powers and transforming her hair.. At 12% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 26 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 25% of the runtime. This reveals the protagonist's commitment to Mary arrives at Endor College and chooses to enter, presenting herself as a witch. She meets Madam Mumblechook and is brought before the headmistress Doctor Dee, embracing this new identity and magical world despite knowing her powers are borrowed., moving from reaction to action.
At 52 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 50% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. The analysis reveals that this crucial beat Mary learns the dark truth: Doctor Dee and Madam Mumblechook want the fly-by-night seeds to perfect their transformation magic, and they kidnap Peter to use as a test subject. Mary realizes her deception has endangered an innocent person and that Endor College's magic is corrupt., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 77 minutes (75% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Mary's magic completely disappears, leaving her an ordinary girl again. Peter is transformed into a monstrous creature by Doctor Dee's experiments. Mary is expelled from Endor College and cast back to Earth, seemingly having lost everything and failed to save Peter., indicates the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 82 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 80% of the runtime. Armed with the remaining fly-by-night seeds and her Great-Aunt's old broomstick, Mary chooses to return to Endor College one final time. She decides to use the last of the magic not for herself, but to save Peter and end the college's experiments forever., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Mary and The Witch's Flower's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs systematic plot point analysis that identifies crucial turning points. By mapping Mary and The Witch's Flower against these established plot points, we can identify how Hiromasa Yonebayashi utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Mary and The Witch's Flower within the adventure genre.
Hiromasa Yonebayashi's Structural Approach
Among the 2 Hiromasa Yonebayashi films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 6.4, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. Mary and The Witch's Flower represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Hiromasa Yonebayashi filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional adventure films include Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, The Bad Guys and Zoom. For more Hiromasa Yonebayashi analyses, see The Secret World of Arrietty.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
A young red-haired witch flees through the night sky on a broomstick, clutching magical seeds while being pursued. This prologue establishes the magical world and the importance of the fly-by-night flower seeds that will drive the story.
Theme
Mary's Great-Aunt Charlotte remarks on Mary's troublesome red hair and her inability to do anything right. The theme of self-acceptance and discovering one's true worth without relying on external magic is introduced through Mary's feelings of inadequacy.
Worldbuilding
Mary arrives at her Great-Aunt Charlotte's countryside manor, feeling bored and useless. She meets the gardener Zebedee and his great-nephew Peter, toward whom she develops an antagonistic relationship. Mary's clumsiness and self-doubt are established as she fails at household tasks.
Disruption
While chasing Peter's black cat Tib through the forest, Mary discovers the glowing fly-by-night flowers hidden in the woods. When she touches them, the magical essence absorbs into her, granting her temporary witch powers and transforming her hair.
Resistance
Mary finds an old broomstick in the forest that responds to her new magical powers. She discovers she can fly and follows a mystical path through the sky. The broomstick guides her toward Endor College, a school for witches hidden above the clouds.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Mary arrives at Endor College and chooses to enter, presenting herself as a witch. She meets Madam Mumblechook and is brought before the headmistress Doctor Dee, embracing this new identity and magical world despite knowing her powers are borrowed.
Mirror World
Mary tours the magnificent Endor College and witnesses incredible magic. Doctor Dee and the science teacher Madam Mumblechook are impressed by her natural red hair and powerful abilities, unaware her magic comes from the fly-by-night flower. Mary revels in finally feeling special and capable.
Premise
Mary explores the wonders of Endor College, attending classes, seeing magical creatures, and experiencing the joy of being a witch. She discovers a laboratory filled with failed transformation experiments on animals. Her lie about being a true witch deepens as she accidentally mentions Peter, putting him in danger.
Midpoint
Mary learns the dark truth: Doctor Dee and Madam Mumblechook want the fly-by-night seeds to perfect their transformation magic, and they kidnap Peter to use as a test subject. Mary realizes her deception has endangered an innocent person and that Endor College's magic is corrupt.
Opposition
Mary attempts to rescue Peter but faces opposition from Doctor Dee and Madam Mumblechook. She discovers the extent of their cruel experiments on animals and their obsession with transformation magic. Her temporary powers begin to fade as the fly-by-night essence wears off, leaving her increasingly powerless.
Collapse
Mary's magic completely disappears, leaving her an ordinary girl again. Peter is transformed into a monstrous creature by Doctor Dee's experiments. Mary is expelled from Endor College and cast back to Earth, seemingly having lost everything and failed to save Peter.
Crisis
Mary returns home defeated and powerless. She confesses everything to Great-Aunt Charlotte, who reveals she was the young witch from the prologue who stole the original fly-by-night seeds from Endor. Charlotte warns that the magic of the flower corrupts, but Mary resolves to save Peter regardless.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Armed with the remaining fly-by-night seeds and her Great-Aunt's old broomstick, Mary chooses to return to Endor College one final time. She decides to use the last of the magic not for herself, but to save Peter and end the college's experiments forever.
Synthesis
Mary confronts Doctor Dee and Madam Mumblechook, using the fly-by-night seeds to overload the transformation spell. She frees the captured animals and reverses Peter's transformation. In the climax, Mary uses the last seed to wish all magic away, destroying Endor College and choosing to be ordinary.
Transformation
Mary returns home, now confident and at peace with being an ordinary girl. She befriends Peter properly, no longer defined by her inadequacies or borrowed magic. Her red hair, once a mark of her troubles, is now simply part of who she is. She has learned that true worth comes from within.