Miyazaki appreciation
mannybolone
Los Angeles, CA 15,025 Posts
Me and the missus are all f--- up today with food poisoning, luckily our daughter didn't get it too but b/c both are us are pretty laid out, we resorted to busting out some movies to keep the lil one occupied. We just got the English-dubbed version of
It's been years since I last watched the film and I was reminded what an amazing job Miyazaki does of creating these complete worlds that are at once fantastical yet totally believable. Hell, I want to live in the city by the sea where Kiki ends up. Beyond that, I was thinking about his entire catalog (which I celebrate) and I don't know if there's anything in there I wouldn't ride for:NausicaSpirited AwayLaputaCastle of CalgiostroI still need to see Porco Rosso and I have to say: I never did like Princess Mononoke as much as his others. That said, for consistency and quality, he's hard to beat. Studio Ghibli >>> Disney at the very least. Probably > than Pixar too.
It's been years since I last watched the film and I was reminded what an amazing job Miyazaki does of creating these complete worlds that are at once fantastical yet totally believable. Hell, I want to live in the city by the sea where Kiki ends up. Beyond that, I was thinking about his entire catalog (which I celebrate) and I don't know if there's anything in there I wouldn't ride for:NausicaSpirited AwayLaputaCastle of CalgiostroI still need to see Porco Rosso and I have to say: I never did like Princess Mononoke as much as his others. That said, for consistency and quality, he's hard to beat. Studio Ghibli >>> Disney at the very least. Probably > than Pixar too.
Comments
studio ghibli has done some line drawing type cartoon movies too. theyre not as spectacular as the full color nausicaa awesomeness but aparently the stories are much better and suited for adult audiences. i love how his themes can appeal to both children and adults without compromise on either's behalf.
but thats neither here nor there. what did you eat and where?
Random thoughts on Miyazaki/Ghibli
I do not ride for his son, Goro, who is a hack of the worst caliber. See "Earthsea" for proof.
Porco Rosso is my shit.
Totoro is his best work.
People still need to see The Castle of Cagliostro, which is neglected...
I love Phil Hartman (RIP), but his ad-libs essentially ruined Jiji for me.
I read that either Spielberg or Lucas was heavily influenced by Castle of Cagliostro in terms of thinking of narrative storytelling. It's not the most advanced animation but good god, it's a fun film.
And dude - thank you - I was trying to figure out who the fuck was voicing the cat...it sounded so familiar and now I realize: ah, Hartman. And yeah, the cat was way too sarcastic.
best chase scene EVER.
Howl's Moving Castle is crap.
Castle in the Sky is great! C'mon, clown-painted pirates, riding on mechanical insects, hijacking a zeppelin? AWESOME.
Disagree. I really enjoyed it even though it did feel too much like a sequel to "Spirited Away."
Teriyaki chicken. That my wife cooked.
Ever play the laserdisc arcade game Cliffhanger? You would dig that shit. In the same vein as Space Ace/Dragon's Lair.
This is the whole game played out an recorded. Good shit.
I don't think it was successful. I remember it being extremely difficult and having either 2 joysticks and 2 buttons (right hand, left hand, right foot, left foot) or 4 buttons with the same set up. Headz were NOT ready. The other laserdisc games all had just a single joystick and R&L buttons...
I bet you could find this ROM on the internet somewhere.
To each their own. I wouldn't say Laputa is my favorite of his - that'd probably be a tie between Spirited Away and Nausica (the latter straight up blew my mind - so epic) but it holds it down.
And yeah, the walking lamppost is exactly what makes Miyazaki that dude. That's when they go visit the twin witch sister in the woods, after taking the train out there.
Plaese to see the Satoshi Kon Appreciation thread.
All these movies are
Not to mention, it's funny as hell.
It's a Ghibli production. Produced in Japan, but the Asian Japanese Ghibli studio of Japan. I'm not sure I understand the question.
I think I'm only aware of the Ghibli movies hes written and Cat Returns is the first one I enjoyed a LOT on par with Spirited Away, so Im surprised to find out it wasn't his.
Here, a tanuki uses his giant nut sack to assault his opponent.
Of those, my faves are Nausicaa & Cagliostro (so good).
My 3 1/2 year old and I love to watch us some Miyazaki, she's become quite
the little authority on his work.
But I celebrate Miyazakis' entire catalogue. I would recommend that you watch the movies in thier original language though. As the subtleties of some of the more obscure characters can just get lost in translation. For instance Billy Crystal ruins Howls' for me.
Yeah we watched this recently and, while it was a bit uneven, there were many truly inspired moments in there (the moment where me and my other half realised that the furry sacks were, in fact, their balls made the film worth watching by itself) I'm biased though as I think Takahata's Grave Of The Fireflies is one of the great animated films of all time.
As for Miyazaki himself, would definitely recommend Porco Rosso - so beautifully animated and a storyline that surprises you by it's depth as it develops.
Personal favourites would have to be My Neighbour Totoro (the first Miyazaki film I saw), Spirited Away and Nausica?? (I just love the way this film unfolds slowly into such an epic story(. I will ride for Laputa though, for all the giant robots alone.
It's worth noting to Western viewers that prominent testicles are an integral part of the Tanuki folklore, and they are shown and referred to throughout the movie, and also used frequently in their shapeshifting. This remains unchanged in the DVD release, though the English dub (but not the subtitles) refers to them as "pouches". Also, in the English dub, the animals are never referred to as tanuki, but incorrectly as raccoons.
This goes for pretty much any film. I've seen some decent dubbing jobs but on the whole, stick with the OG and read the subtitles.
I take that one step further and suggest that if you can find them and deal with all the extra reading, that you get the fansubs instead. They're generally more meticulous in translation and often provide superscript that explains subtle contextual clues and what not...