Paco and the Magical Book (2008): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 2008, Paco and the Magical Book is a comedy, drama and family film directed by Tetsuya Nakashima, running about 105 minutes. “Great happiness from a little girl.” — that tagline sets the tone.

What it’s about. There once was a hospital where patients and even doctors & nurses were all weird. Above all, Onuki, a patient who built up his company all by himself from scratch, is a super cranky old man. One day, he meets up a girl called Paco, who cannot retain memory beyond one day due to a car accident. She is reading the same picture book everyday. Onuki starts bonding with Paco after some incident, and begins to doubt his way of living. He starts wanting to do something for Paco with his remaining life, and comes up with a brilliant idea. This pleases Paco, but their fate is?

Who’s in it. Paco and the Magical Book stars Ayaka Wilson as Paco, Koji Yakusho as Onuki, Ryo Kase as Koichi and Satoshi Tsumabuki as Muromachi, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 6.9/10, Paco and the Magical Book has drawn a solid, mixed-to-positive response.

Where to watch. Streaming options change often. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Paco and the Magical Book page.

If you liked it. Fans of Paco and the Magical Book tend to enjoy Forrest Gump, Parasite, Life Is Beautiful and Fight Club.