Ghibli Blog - Studio Ghibli, Animation and the Movies

Side by Side (2012) - A Film vs. Digital Documentary

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 13:57:00 PDT

Currently playing on Netflix is this excellent 2012 documentary on the history of film, and our crossroads between photo-chemical film and digital technology. It is produced and narrated by Keanu Reeves and features discussions and insights by scores of filmmakers, including Martin Scorcese, David Lynch, James Cameron, George Lucas, Christopher Nolan, Richard Linklater, Robert Rodriguez, and many more.

I'm watching the movie and am entranced. On the analog vs digital debate, I tend to side with analog, at least when it comes to music. I do appreciate the many conveniences of modern digital technology, but analog has a special way of capturing reality, either images or music, that is warmer, more romantic. There's a ritual to the mechanics of placing a record on a platter, and moving a tonearm into position. Pressing the Play button isn't quite the same experience.

This is an exciting time for music, photography and the movies. Digital technology and the internet open doors of opportunity that we could barely imaging. I only hope we don't discard that analog magic in the process. I'd like to find a way for both mediums to exist peacefully.

Anyway, find the time to see this movie. It will certainly spark discussions and debates among your movie-loving friends.

Feeling Conflicted About Poppy Hill

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 13:25:00 PDT

Animator and writer Michael Sporn is feeling slightly conflicted about his critical review of From Up on Poppy Hill.

I think of Ponyo riding those waves of the Tsunami. My heart – my entire body lifted in exuberance with that scene. No matter how many times I’ve seen the film it always does it. I think of Spirited Away (so many moments) where Chihiro rides on that ghost train with “No Name” to the dark foreign and silent land of Yubaba, Zeniba’s twin sister. I think of Princess Mononoke when the god of the forest, dressed like a deer stands watching him from across the lake. It’s so glorious a moment. Or one of my all time favorite moments in the movies – standing at the bus stop with Totoro in the rain waiting for the bus to arrive. It doesn’t get better than that in film.

There are so many other Ghibli moments for me, I could keep going. Yet not even a hint of any of these in Poppy Hill. Maybe that’s why I felt I was so negative. I wanted something I shouldn’t have expected from a sophomore director without the proper experience to play out that very complex relationship between him and the girl. It becomes cliché when it should have torn at our hearts.

I completely understand and agree with your sentiments. My first viewing at the Uptown Theater was a frustrating disappointment. Perhaps I just wasn’t in the best mood, and like you, I feel a great desire to WANT to like this movie. Goro Miyazaki, after all, is the presumptive heir apparent to the studio. He’s being groomed to inherit the family business from his father, and despite his lack of experience, they’re working their hardest to help him grow into the director’s role.

But it always comes back to that simple fact – Goro Miyazaki has no experience as a filmmaker, a storyteller, or an animator. I will gladly agree that Poppy Hill is much better than Earthsea (a very low standard indeed), but the movie was still lacking passion, lacking vision. It was a dutiful son punching in his time card and doing a very respectable, if uninspiring, job.

I have a "copy" of the Japanese Blu-Ray (ahem), but I still haven’t summoned the energy to watch again. I feel as though I’m making excuses, trying to find a reason to like this movie and give it a favorable review. Sigh, it’s like I’m writing for GamePro Magazine all over again. When you're telling yourself that you must "like something," it becomes dishonest, to myself and to others. I want to see a good movie, despite all evidence, therefore a "good" movie appears before my eyes. Believing is Seeing.

It’s interesting to note that Ghibli’s best animators (including the great director Yoshiyuki Momose, the true heir apparent) were working on the animated “film” for Ni no Kuni, the Playstation 3 video game. I’d like to see those animated scenes compiled and shared online, if only to compare to Poppy Hill’s presentation. I also think this movie is very Japanese, and much of the nostalgia and reflections on their post-war generation won’t speak to us. This setting, in the looming shadow of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, was Hayao Miyazaki’s key change from the original source material (a 1980 girls’ romance comic); the role of Japan's post-war generation, caught between tradition and the modern world, is arguably the great theme of his directorial career. Younger Goro doesn’t have that life experience, and so we don’t get those key insights, those little details, that we cherish so much in Miyazaki’s and Takahata’s films. Compare Poppy Hill to Mimi/Whisper and Omohide Poro Poro, and you’ll see that difference all too clearly.

I have no idea if Goro has greatness within him; I’m not even sure he wants the job. He’s fulfilling the role of the dutiful son, hoping this will bring him closer to his estranged father, or at least understand the man. But he doesn’t have any of his father’s passions or obsessions. Father Miyazaki was traumatized by war, raised among the ruins of a destroyed nation, and dreamed of drawing comic books and flying.

What makes Goro-san tick? He appears to be highly intelligent, very thoughtful, a peaceful man who would rather cultivate gardens or design architecture. I don’t know how he turns those passions into storytelling. And I don’t think he knows, either. His voice has yet to emerge, and he must also emerge from the shadow of his famous father. And the clock is ticking. A daunting challenge, indeed.

Anyway, I’m sorry for rambling and taking up so much space. But I’m still shook up over Roger Ebert’s passing, and it’s good to talk about the movies with folks who understand.

From Up on Poppy Hill - Where is it Playing?

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 12:14:00 PDT

Where can you see Goro Miyazaki's From Up on Poppy Hill? GKids, the American distributor of the Studio Ghibli film, has updated their list of cities and theaters where it is playing. More venues may be added if popular demand is there.

In related news, Poppy Hill has grossed $341,793 as of April 4, according to Box Office Mojo. More theaters will open the film throughout the month of April, slowing down in the following months.

Here is the list of cities and theaters playing From Up on Poppy Hill:

NOW PLAYING
New York - IFC Center
New York - Film Society of Lincoln Center
New York - Kew Gardens
New York - Beekman Theater
New York - Williamsburg Cinemas
Malverne, NY - Malverne Cinema 4
Huntington, NY - Cinema Arts Centre
Los Angeles - The Landmark
Los Angeles - Regal Edwards University Town Center 6
Los Angeles - Laemmle Playhouse
Toronto - TIFF Bell Lightbox
San Francisco - Landmark Embarcadero Center
San Francisco - Sundance Kabuki Cinemas
San Rafael - Regency San Rafael
Berkeley - Landmark California Theater
Pleasant Hill - Cinemark Century 5
Palo Alto - Cinemark Palo Alto Square
San Jose - Cinemark Santana Row
San Jose - Camera 7 Cinemas
Chicago - Landmark Century 7
Evanston, IL - CinéArts at Evanston
Minneapolis - Landmark Uptown Cinema
Seattle - Egyptian Theater
San Diego - Landmark Hillcrest
Waterloo, Canada - Princess Cinemas

APRIL 5:
Sacramento, CA - Tower Theatre
Boston, MA - Landmark Kendall Square Cinema
Claremont, CA - Laemmle Claremont
Santa Cruz, CA - Nickelodeon Del Mar Theatre
Redwood City, CA - Cinemark Century 20 Downtown
Long Beach, CA - Art Long Beach
Lancaster, CA - BLVD Cinemas
Los Angeles, CA - Laemmle Monica 4
Los Angeles, CA - Laemmle Noho 7
Seattle, WA - Sundance Cinemas Seattle
Seattle, WA - Majestic Bay Theater
Denver, CO - Landmark Esquire
Boulder, CO - Cinemark 16
Portland, OR - Regal Fox Tower
Honolulu, HI - Kahala 8
Washington, DC - Regal Gallery Place
Fairfax, VA - Angelika Mosaic
Danvers, MA - Hollywood Hits Danvers
Amherst, MA - Amherst Cinema
Minneapolis, MN - Landmark Edina
Omaha, NE - Film Streams

APRIL 12:
Cleveland, OH - Capitol Theatre
Cincinatti, OH - Mariemont Theater
Roseville, CA - Cinemark Century 14
Point Arena, CA - Arena Point Theater
Tempe, AZ - Harkins Valley Art
Philadelphia, PA - Landmark Ritz at the Bourse
Gaithesburg, MD - AMC Rio Gaithesburg
Arlington, VA - AMC Shirlington
Silver Springs, MD - Regal Majestic Silver Springs
Houston, TX - Sundance Cinemas
Tucson, AZ - Loft Cinema

APRIL 19:
Austin, TX - Regal Arbor
Dallas, TX - Landmark Magnolia
Plano, TX - Cinemark West Plano
Atlanta, GA - Landmark Midtown Art
St. Louis, MO - Landmark Plaza Frontenac
Boca Raton, FL - Living Room Boca Raton
Gainesville, FL - Hippodrome Theater
Madison, WI - Sundance Cinemas
Mobile, AL - The Crescent Theater
Millerton, NY - The Moviehouse
Bar Harbor, ME - Reel Pizza & Cinerama
San Luis Obispo, CA - The Palm Theatre
Sebastopol, CA - Rialto Cinemas
Santa Rosa, CA - Summerfield Cinemas

APRIL 26:
Charlottesville, VA - Regal Downtown West
Charlotte, NC - Regal Manor
Salt Lake City, UT - Broadway
Ithaca, NY - Cinemapolis
Las Vegas, NV - Regal Village Square
Bellingham, WA - Pickford Film Center
Marthas Vineyard, MA - MV Film Center

MAY 3:
Knoxville, TN - Regal Downtown West
Waterville, ME - Railroad Square Cinema

MAY 10:
Nashville, TN - The Belcourt
Milwaukee, WI - Landmark Oriental

JULY 10:
Nyack, NY - Palisades Center / Rivertown Film

Roger Ebert on Grave of the Fireflies

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 21:44:00 PDT

In 2002, Roger Ebert gave an interview for Central Park Media's two-disc DVD of Grave of the Fireflies. It remains one of the most elegant and thoughtful discussions of Japanese animation.

Ten years ago, in the early weeks of 2003, I was assembling my own artist's website, DanielThomas.org, putting the finishing touches to the layout and design, and writing a number of essays and reviews. Grave of the Fireflies was my first movie review, written after weeks of blood, sweat and tears. I struggled over every line and every paragraph, trying to share the experience of this unique, revolutionary movie, trying to understand a work of art I never before imagined. I continue that struggle to this day.

I couldn't do any of this without Roger Ebert. Without his reviews and insights to guide and inspire me, none of this would be possible. Cliche or not, my essay writings and Ghibli Blog simply would not exist if not for this man. His Greatest Movies series was required reading (and memorization), my informal education in the movies, and continues so today, so many years later. Everything I write is judged, in my mind, against the writings of my greatest teacher.

Roger Ebert was the first major American movie critic to champion Japanese animation, and he was the first to champion the works of Studio Ghibli. At a time when "Japanimation" spawned confusion, disdain and fear, Ebert treated these movies with respect. He accepted the art form on its own terms, understood that it evolved differently from Mickey Mouse and Bugs Bunny. He hailed anime movies like My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Metropolis, Tokyo Godfathers. And Grave of the Fireflies was held in special esteem, above all.

Studio Ghibli "Fighting Game" and T-Shirt

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 21:45:00 PDT

Now this is a pretty cool discovery. These are a pair of artist renderings of an imagined "Studio Ghibli fighting game. The first one is the newer design, reminiscent of SNK's King of Fighters series, and looks pretty stylish. The second one is older, and more classically 8-bit (one could easily imagine such a game on Commodore 64).

This does raise an interesting question: which of the Miyazaki characters would win in a fair fight? Personally, I'd go with Nausicaa and Mononoke San, if only because they have a genuine psycho-killer streak. But a Totoro vs. No Face vs. Ohmu battle would be pretty impressive. Hmm...now that I think about it, a Ghibli fighting game could work. Maybe we should hire an indie video game studio to design it, snark.

Now here's the really cool part of this story: the 8-bit graphic is available as a $25 t-shirt, any size, front or back. Nice! The artist, Drewwise, has created a series of video game-related shirt designs. My favorite one, aside from this one, would have to be the Apollo shirt, obviously inspired by Stanley Kubrick's horror masterpiece, The Shining. I may have to order one myself. Who wants one of these?

BREAKING: Disney to Acquire Studio Ghibli in 2014, Takahata and Miyazaki to Retire

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 12:11:00 PDT

The Walt Disney Company is in preliminary talks with Studio Ghibli to buy the Japanese animation studio, acquiring the rights to the studio's movie catalog and its wealth of characters. This comes on the heels of Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm and the Star Wars franchise.

Furthermore, this transition is set to begin after completion of Ghibli's two major productions, Hayao Miyazaki's Kaze Tachinu and Isao Takahata's Kaguya Hime no Monogatari, in 2014. As is widely expected, both films are intended to be the final farewell by the famed directors, who wanted to pass the torch to the next generation.

Finally, both Isao Takahata and Hayao Miyazaki will retire once the transition into Disney's hands is complete. This should occur through the end of 2014. Goro Miyazaki will succeed his father as head of Studio Ghibli in Japan, and no major personnel changes are yet expected.

Details of the merger are not yet fully revealed, but it is expected that Studio Ghibli will retain its autonomy in Japan, and continue to produce their own films with Disney's help. In the United States, Disney will proceed with an aggressive, new push to bring Ghibli to mainstream audiences. This includes quick rollout of DVD and Blu-Ray, merchandising items (yes, kids, we're getting stuffed Totoros!), and, most of all, new direct-to-video spinoff movies featuring your favorite Ghibli characters.

Honestly, I'm stunned. I'll have more to say about this later tonight, once I can pull my jaw off the floor. Still, we probably should have seen this coming, right? Disney bought The Muppets, then Marvel, then Lucasfilm. Miyazaki and Takahata are nearing the end of their long and storied careers, and Ghibli has struggled to find suitable successors for the Ghibli studio.

Studio Ghibli's 2013 New Years Day Card

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 19:32:00 PDT

Every year, Studio Ghibli issues a New Years Day card, usually hand-drawn by Hayao Miyazaki. 2013 is the Year of the Snake, and serves as the mascot for this year's illustration.

Have you noticed how Miyazaki's drawing style has become more loose and free in recent years? It's become more prominent in his anime films like Ponyo and Mr. Dough and the Egg Princess, and continues (to a lesser degree) in Katsuya Kondo's character designs in From Up on Poppy Hill.

Finally, can I point out how masterful an artist Hayao Miyazaki continue to be? Observe how he can achieve character and movement with simple lines. His youthful ambition was to become a manga illustrator, and his work as design and layout artist on such productions as Peppi Longstockings, Panda Kopanda, and Heidi are legendary. It's fascinating to see the debt Japanese animation owes to comics. Perhaps this is something animators in the West could learn.

Let this be the art lesson for the week: Study This Illustration.

Apache Yakyuugun (Baseball Academy) Ep.2 - Isao Takahata Directs

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 09:40:00 PDT

"What, exactly, did Isao Takahata do between 1968 and 1971?" This has long been one of my great questions on the life of the great director. After Horus, Prince of the Sun failed at the Japanese box office in 1968, Takahata was sacked from the director's chair at Toei Doga, never to helm another feature at the studio. His period of exile wouldn't end until the early 1970s, with Lupin III and Panda Kopanda and, ultimately, to Heidi, Girl of the Alps. So what happened to him at Toei?

Now we have an answer: Takahata was moved back to television. His directorial career began as an assistant director on a few Toei features, but he really cut his teeth on the early TV anime series, Hustle Punch and Ken the Wolf Boy. After Horus, he was sent back to the small screen, as a "director-for-hire" on a number of series. Some work here, a little work there, nothing really steady, and no real creative input. One can understand why Paku-san would quickly grow tired, and begin to plot his revenge with his friends Hayao Miyazaki and Yoichi Kotabe.

One such television show was 1971's Apache Yakyuugun, or Apache Baseball Academy. This short-lived series (it ran for 26 episodes), about an athlete who rejects a professional baseball career to become a high school coach in a small village, has plenty of comic book action and melodrama to go around. In 2002, a DVD set was released in Japan, and it's currently out of print.

By sheer luck, I found a copy of Apache's second episode, which was directed by Isao Takahata. Subtitles are not included in these videos, but Japanese transcripts are included, so a fan translation is easily doable. I will admit that I haven't yet watched this episode, so I'll be enjoying it along with you. This may be a good opportunity to study the young Takahata's directorial style, his sense of timing and compositional skill. It's always thrilling to see a master at work, even if it's just a work-for-hire. Admit it, you'd pay good money to watch Martin Scorcese make sandwiches. So would I. Enjoy.

Michael Sporn Reviews From Up on Poppy Hill

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 00:18:00 PDT

I hope Michael Sporn will forgive me for posting his review on From Up on Poppy Hill here on Ghibli Blog, but I thought it was a terrific read and would help spark some discussions among the Ghibli faithful. As an animator and filmmaker, he brings a unique insight into these films, and whenever a new Ghibli movie arrives in the States, he's the first person who's opinions I seek.

As always, I highly recommending his Splog, which is a treasure trove of animation history and full of wit. I learn something every time I visit, and so should you.

Enjoy Mr. Sporn's review, and let the debates commence:

This week I saw The Croods (and reviewed it here) and From Up on Poppy Hill. I really wanted Poppy Hill to be a small masterpiece, but it wasn’t. It was just a trek. I wanted Goro Miyazaki to have a glimmer of the old man in him; it’ll be hard to let go of Hayao Miyazaki when he retires or decides to end his enormous career. This film was supposedly written by Hayao in collaboration with the son, Goro. I didn’t feel the spirituality of Goro in this movie; That’s what I love about Hayao’s films; there’s a spirituality. All those films (at least since Totoro) are about so much more than what’s on the surface. What’s on the surface is usually good, too. And lately the animation has been getting better. If there’s any spirituality in Goro, it didn’t make it to the big screen, and the animation was first class TV work. No magic there, either.

It’s the second film directed by Goro Miyazaki. Tales from Earthsea should have jump-started a new career. The film was just dull. I assume the artists at Studio Ghibli want things to go on, as well. Poppy Hill had some of the elements of a Ghibli production; it just lacked the magic. First rate styling, fine character design (they all do look a bit like, at times), and a human story.

Although the story had too little in it. It was quite subtle and for a sophomore director to pull it off was too much to ask. The animation rarely had a spark. The characters always did what they were asked to do, but they didn’t really have much of a lifetime within them. The director needed a LOT of experience within him to pull it off, needed a lot of animation experience to be able to pull stronger performances out of his animators and needed a stronger connection to the story to make us care about those characters. Zer0 for three.

Don’t get me wrong; I’d take this over The Croods any day, but I’d prefer to have something good rather than either of these movies.

My Neighbor Totoro, Howl's Moving Castle - Blu-Rays May 21

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 23:34:00 PDT

As many of you are aware, Disney has announced a release date for My Neighbor Totoro and Howl's Moving Castle on Blu-Ray in North America, May 21. Great news for Ghibli Freaks over here.

For everyone at home keeping score, Howl's Moving Castle BD was released in Japan on November 16, 2011, and My Neighbor Totoro BD was released on July 18, 2012. The American market woefully under-served, as Japan and the rest of the world see the Studio Ghibli films released in a timely fashion. Disney continues to do the absolute, contractually-obligated minimum. Hmm...my lawyer is exactly the same way, now that I think about it.

In any case, we're finally getting Totoro and Howl on Blu-Ray, both of which look and sound spectacular, and a considerable improvement over the DVD. Greater color saturation and uncompressed audio? Sign me up!

Meanwhile, we're waiting for news from Japan on Ghibli's next BD release, which would arrive in the summer to coincide with Hayao Miyazaki's Kaze Tachinu. I say it's going to be Porco Rosso, so put me down on the office pool.

Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind - Box Set

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 23:10:00 PDT

In late November, Viz Media released this spectacular Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind box set. It contains the entire 1,110+ page graphic novel in two volumes, includes numerous color illustrations, a full poster, and packages everything in a wonderfully-stylish case. For the true Miyazaki fan, this set is the crown jewel of your collection.

There's only one small problem: The Nausicaa box set may already be out of print. It's difficult to tell, because as much as I appreciate and applaud Viz for publishing Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli books, they do a lousy job selling them. Even their website is a dismal mess when you want to find something. For now, however, I must assume that the original print run has finished, and it's up to the publisher to decide whether to invest in another run.

Obviously, I will insist on more pressings of Nausicaa, a graphic novel masterwork that rivals Art Spiegelman's Maus for brilliance. It remains criminally overlooked by Miyazaki fans here in the US; I daresay that most folks don't even know these books exist, or that one could find them at the local bookstore...that is, if Viz could actually be bothered to stock them.

It's times like this when I wish I had the money to start a publishing company and just do it myself. I don't know about you, but I'd love to read Miyazaki's second volume of memoirs, Turning Point. I'd also like to read Isao Takahata's and Yasuo Otsuka's memoirs, Yoshifumi Kondo's posthumously-released art book, Michiyo Yasuda's book on color theory, and pretty much all of Miyazaki-san's comics. If I ever come into a large amount of money, I'll definitely give it a try.

In any case, Viz still has the seven-volume Nausicaa books, which are available separately. If you haven't discovered this novel, I strongly urge you to get your hands on some copies. And we'll cross our fingers and hope this terrific box set reemerges soon. Viz needs to get on the ball and start doing their damned jobs. There's no excuse for this.

Kokuriko Zaka Kara - The Manga

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 19:35:00 PDT

After seeing From Up on Poppy Hill last night, I wanted to secure a copy of the 1980 Takahashi Chizuru manga on which it was based. No luck, as no English-translated versions exist anywhere, legit or otherwise. Fortunately, Sgt. Tanuki wrote this very helpful blog post detailing the differences between the manga and the Studio Ghibli film.

Interestingly, it is Hayao Miyazaki's change of setting to 1963 Tokyo, the coming Tokyo Olympic Games looming as a marker of Japan's rebirth in the modern world, that is the largest change. A nation, and its people, caught in the fault line between history and modernity - this is the quintessential theme of the Studio Ghibli films.

Despite that, Sgt Tanuki highlights some criticisms that resonate with me:

Taken on its own terms, it's an utterly typical shōjo manga. Average. I guess I mean that as both a pejorative and a mere descriptor. That is, I don't find the manga really remarkable in any way; but there's a certain value in reading unremarkable works, too, because they help you appreciate the excellent ones.

The art: it's undistinguished. Very few compositions struck me as being memorable or arresting. At the same time it's obviously using the visual vocabulary of girls' comix circa 1980 in typical way: the flowers, the floating-in-space emotional moments, the dizzy-angle closeups of eyes, mouths, etc. It's kind of a primer on the genre.

The story: same. Puppy love presented with an accent on beautiful boys just out of reach, and the endless internal sufferings of a girl in love. Just enough complications to keep the plot going, and a resolution just in time to bring tears to your eyes. (Theoretically.)

Read in terms of the movie, however, it's fascinating, precisely because Ghibli was able to make such a deeply resonant movie out of such average source material. They kept the basic outlines of the story (Mer and Kazama's relationship, the boarding house, the school), but changed the setting from "contemporary" (in 1980 the manga was set in 1980) to "past," and thus the tone from up-to-the-minute (in the manga the boys all have Shaun Cassidy long hair) to nostalgic. Furthermore they drew out the emotional, almost mythic power of the dad-lost-at-sea motif.

I'm not yet sure where I stand on the movie. I'll have to watch again, this time with the Japanese soundtrack, before deciding where I stand. My feelings so far? Impressed by the art direction and design, but often frustrated, and surprisingly bored. Goro Miyazaki continues to improve and disappoint in equal measure. But perhaps I wasn't in the right frame of mind? I'll give it another go before making any formal declarations.

From Up on Poppy Hill Opens in Minneapolis

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 12:19:00 PDT

Update 4/1/13: In addition to the English-language version, a Japanese-language soundtrack should be included when Poppy Hill moves to the Lagoon Edina Theater on April 5. Thanks to GKids for sharing the news.

Goro Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli movie, From Up on Poppy Hill, arrives today at the Lagoon Cinema in Minneapolis. It's working its way through the indie circuit, courtesy of GKids, the fine folks responsible for the Studio Ghibli Film Festival last year. It is also playing in select cities in the coming weeks. I honestly don't know if or when the Blu-Ray (already available in Japan) will ever see an American release, so this is your only chance to see this movie in 2013.

As far as box office performance, it's probably best not to think about it too much. This movie will barely make a million or two during its (very limited) theatrical run in the US, far less than the average Hollywood studio cartoon will make on any given showing. It's fairly clear that our best chance for seeing Studio Ghibli reach mainstream success in our country has passed. Ponyo was about as good as it gets, and it's all niche from there.

Don't let that discourage you. Millions of people mindlessly slog through another season of American Idol, while ignoring the Miles Davis records on your shelf. The fun stuff, the truly interesting stuff, that's hidden away, harder to reach, off the beaten path. It has always been thus. And part of the joy of discovery lies in seeking out these hidden gems.

If you're able to see Poppy Hill, I strongly encourage you to do so. I'm looking forward to seeing how far Goro-san has progressed from Earthsea, if he is closer to finding his own unique voice, for seeing the latest chapter in the Miyazaki Family Saga. Personally, my favorite Ghibli movies are Omohide Poro Poro and Mimi wo Sumaseba, so I have high expectations for this film. I still find it astonishing that naturalist, neo-realist animation does not exist in the West. Why is that, I wonder? And what would have to happen to change that equation? Right now, I'm pretty much out of answers.

I always tell people to run to the theaters anytime a Ghibli movie plays there. We won't know when, or if, we'll have another chance. Hayao Miyazaki's Kaze Tachinu and Isao Takahata's Kaguya Hime open in Japan this year, but there's little to no chance that Disney will pick up either title for distribution. These aren't Disney cartoons, and there are no toys to sell. So don't take anything for granted, kids. Get to the theaters and see this movie while ya still can. Mozel tov!

Studio Ghibli Blu-Rays (Japan) - 2012 Holiday Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 22:14:00 PST

This month in Japan, the two latest Studio Ghibli feature film Blu-Rays arrived on store shelves: Kiki's Delivery Service and Omohide Poro Poro. This would be a good time to take stock at the total collection, what has been released, and what has yet to arrive.

First, here are the Ghibli movies available on Japanese Blu-Ray:

Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind
Laputa: Castle in the Sky
Grave of the Fireflies
My Neighbor Totoro
Kiki's Delivery Service
Omohide Poro Poro
Mimi wo Sumaseba
My Neighbors the Yamadas
Howl's Moving Castle
Gedo Senki (Tales From Earthsea)
Ponyo on a Cliff by the Sea
The Borrower Arrietty
From Up on Poppy Hill

Next, here are the remaining films for Japanese BD:

Porco Rosso
Umi ga Kikoeru
Heisei Tanuki Gassan Pom Poko
Princess Mononoke
The Spiriting Away of Sen and Chihiro
The Cat Returns the Favor (+ Ghiblies Episode 2)
Kaze Tachinu (theaters 2013)
Kaguya Hime no Monogatari (theaters 2013)

In Japan, three or four movies are released on BD every year, split between summer and winter. At this rate, the feature film catalog will be completed by 2014. Ghibli is also releasing its movies in chronological order, although their two biggest titles - Mononoke and Spirited Away - may be held for maximum impact. In addition, summer 2013 will see the release of the new Miyazaki and Takahata films. I'd expect to see one of their catalog titles arrive on BD. My money says the next round of Studio Ghibli BDs will be Porco Rosso and Pom Poko.

There's still the question of releasing the larger titles in the Studio Ghibli catalog, like the 2006 Short Short DVD. Will that be released on high-definition? What about Isao Takahata's 1987 documentary movie, The Story of Yanagawa Canals? Will we see the pre-Ghibli movies like Gauche the Cellist? Panda Kopanda? Will they ever get their hands on the Toei Doga classics? Questions, questions.

Oh, and for everyone keeping score, here's the complete list of Studio Ghibli Blu-Rays released by Disney here in the USA:

Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind
Castle in the Sky
Whisper of the Heart (Mimi wo Sumaseba)
Ponyo
The Secret World of Arrietty

Five. Freakin'. Movies. And Sentai Filmworks makes it six with Grave of the Fireflies. Impressive....not. The Disney people are just like my immigration attorney: do the absolute required minimum, and nothing else. It's an embarrassment, and it's time to put up or shut up. If Disney refuses to support Studio Ghibli, then let GKids handle the home video distribution rights.

Update: I added Howl's Moving Castle to the US Blu-Ray list by mistake. It's still not available here.)

Kaze Tachinu, Kaguya Hime no Monogatari - The 2013 Miyazaki and Takahata Films

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 12:30:00 PST

Today is the big day, everyone! At long last, Studio Ghibli's newest productions have been formally announced at Toho's press conference in Japan. Hayao Miyazaki's Kaze Tachinu ("The Wind Rises") and Isao Takahata's Kaguya Hime no Monogatari ("The Story of Princess Kaguya") will both be released in theaters across Japan this coming Summer 2013. Let's take a quick look at each of the films.

Hayao Miyazaki - Kaze Tachinu

First is Hayao Miyazaki's next feature film. Kaze Tachinu originally appeared as a lengthy color comic (manga) in Model Graphix Magazine in 2009. It was a biography (of sorts) of the Japanese engineer Jori Horikoshi, a designer of airplanes who was, tragically, instrumental in the building of the Zero Fighter used by the Japanese military in World War II. The story is also an adaptation of a novel (of the same name) by Tatsuo Hori; I haven't read the novel, but I have scanned through the untranslated comic (I have a copy on one of my hard drives), and I'm well aware of Miyazaki's style of loose adaptations.

If history is any judge, Kaze Tachinu will be as much a personal statement by Miyazaki as a biography or literary adaptation. One of the movie's key scenes will involve the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, which is intended to be a parallel to Japan's recent earthquake-tsunami-nuclear crisis. In the aftermath of the crisis, Miyazaki publicly declared that Studio Ghibli would eschew fantasy films, in favor of more realistic stories that speak to our times. This may seem strange to Westerners who look to Miya-san as Japan's Walt Disney, but if you know the studio's output, and the careers of the old masters, this is in keeping with many of their greatest works.

Note the poster's tagline: "We must try to live." It's taken from Hori's novel, but it also references the final lines from the Nausicaa manga. Princess Mononoke also used the same line ("Ikiro!") back in 1997. We have our first Ghibli Riff of 2013!

Kaze Tachinu promises to be Ghibli's grandest and most expensive spectacle to date. Miya-san famously stated that he be "bet the studio" on his film. It's his gung-ho, leave-nothing-behind gamble ever since Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind in 1984. We'll make one grand movie, and if it's a hit, we'll make more; if it fails, we'll close up and go home. And although he has never said so publicly, I do believe this movie may be Hayao Miyazaki's final directorial feature. This may be his Abbey Road. Stay tuned.

Isao Takahata - Kaguya Hime no Monogatari

Isao "Paku-San" Takahata: visionary,, revoltionary, godfather of the modern anime era, the greatest animation director who ever lived. None of these titles are mere hyperbole; he has earned his reputation as one of the world's greatest living filmmakers. In my mind, he is without peer. At the recent Studio Ghibli Film Festival in Minneapolis, I was fortunate enough to see Omohide Poro Poro and My Neighbors the Yamadas on the big screen. It was a miraculous experience.

If any artist suffers from the West's obsession with equating all animation with Walt Disney, it's Paku-San. His work bears no resemblance to Mickey or Donald, to Bambi or Pinocchio. Maybe there's a connection to Fantasia, with the love of classical music and daring visual variety. No, you'd best draw comparisons to the great live-action filmmakers like Yasujiro Ozu, Jean Renoir, Igmar Bergman, Orson Welles, to documentary neo-realism and the French New Wave. And, yes, to the great French and Russian animators like Lev Atamanov (The Snow Queen), Paul Grimault (Le Roi et l'oiseau), and Yuri Norstein (Hedgehog in the Fog, Tale of Tales).

And now Paku-San has returned, from semi-retirement, from self-imposed exile, however you wish to call it. My Neighbors the Yamadas was brilliantly funny, quiet and humane, but it was also a firm rebuke against the drive towards "blockbuster" status that Studio Ghibli was embracing, as Miyazaki's Mononoke became a global hit. Japan's audiences wanted big, epic movies, the kind Hollywood makes, and Miyazaki was all too happy to oblige and indulge. Takahata offered Yamada-kun as his counter-argument: "Don't overdo it." His 1999 film was savaged at the box office at the hands of a Pokemon toy commercial and Jar Jar Binks.

After serving as director for a 2001 puppet theater production, "Where Spirits and Fairies Dwell," Takahata contributed one short (60 second) segment for the 2003 anthology film, Winter Days, and then spent his time giving lectures, traveling, and working to build the Ghibli Museum's international film library. He worked on film projects, struggled to find funding (Miyazaki would no longer gamble the studio's money in the wake of Yamada-kun's collapse), searched for stories and worth collaborators.

I don't think it's ever been stated directly, but I think the death of Yoshifumi Kondo hurt Paku-San the most. As a writer-director, and not an animator, Takahata has always been dependent on a right-hand artist who could realize his visions. In the 1970s, his star student was Hayao Miyazaki. After that, it was Kondo, who proved invaluable on Anne of Green Gables, Grave of the Fireflies, Omohide Poro Poro, and Pom Poko. Now, with Kondo gone, and all his peers retired or deceased, finding skilled partners is Takahata's greatest challenge.

Kaguya-Hime no Monogatari is an adaptation (all of Takahata's works, other than Pom Poko, are adaptations) of the Japanese folk take, "Tale of the Bamboo Cutter." The legend was referenced briefly in My Neighbors the Yamadas, the scene where daughter Nonoko is born from a bamboo stalk. This 2013 movie will tell the larger story, presenting an historical, emotionally-charged family melodrama. It's Paku-San, after all.

The poster's tagline is interesting: "A princesses' crime and punishment." Is this a deliberate reference to Dostoyevski? Perhaps. I can see Takahata addressing the larger and deeper questions of humanity in his film. At age 77, he may not have an opportunity to create another feature film. I would expect another Abbey Road movie, a summary of a man's life and career, and a probing of what it all means. Mind you, I am only speculating. We shall discover soon enough.

I am happy to see the watercolor style of Yamada-kun return. I love that visual art style, and Studio Ghibli used it in a number of TV commercials, and their 2002 short film, Ghiblies Episode 2. I'm excited just to see something new, different in animation. I'm tired of all the CGI plastic dolls and noisy formulas. We're actually going to see something unique. We can say that of both films, Miyazaki's and Takahata's. After five decades in film and television, this may be their final triumph. We should savor the moment, and hold it as long as possible.

Minneapolis Studio Ghibli Film Festival - Closing Days

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 22:55:00 PST

The two-week Studio Ghibli Film Festival in Minneapolis closes out this Thursday, and we are playing the final four films: The Cat Returns and Mimi wo Sumaseba on Monday and Tuesday, Princess Mononoke and Omohide Poro Poro on Wednesday and Thursday. It's a terrific lineup and we wish we could be there every day this week. Sadly, we're down to our final two free passes, and we have to save our money for the move to a new apartment this weekend.

Marcee and I will be there on Thursday for the final showing of Omohide Poro Poro, Isao Takahata's 1991 masterpiece. I thought it would be right for Ghibli Blog to be there at the very end.

Of the final four movies, The Cat Returns is the weakest of the bunch, and it's a good example of Ghibli's struggles to find new directors to follow Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata. It does have its charms, but when you can also watch Yoshifumi Kondo's Mimi, why bother? One is a decent movie best served by home video (and best paired with the short film, Ghiblies Episode 2); the other is an animation masterpiece by a skilled veteran who built a long career with the Miya-san and Paku-san. I really wish I had money hidden under my couch cushions!

Princess Mononoke was Miyazaki's blockbuster smash that toppled E.T. from the Japanese all-time box office and brought international acclaim to Studio Ghibli. It also sparked a notorious battle between Miya-san and Disney, and especially the Weinsteins at Miramax. Now Lionsgate owns the home video rights, and it's questionable that we'll see Mononoke on US home video again. If you get a chance to see this movie in a theater...run. Don't walk, run. You may not get another chance for a long time.

Omohide Poro Poro is the perfect closer, a style and genre of filmmaking that literally does not exist in the West. Feature animation in the service of a weepy character melodrama? With a pop culture nostalgia that rivals Quentin Tarantino? And one that addresses contemporary Japan (ca.1991) as its vaunted bubble economy burst? Somewhere in the mix lies a popular Japanese manga about a woman's childhood in the 1960s, and a modern quasi-documentary about organic farming and cultivation of safflowers for dyes and cosmetics. Yes, this is a very deep movie. Yasujiro Ozu would have been amazed.

Much thanks to everyone who attended GKids' Studio Ghibli Film Festival here in Minneapolis. It's been terrific, and I really do wish it could have lasted longer. I needed more time to save up more money! Please come back!

Trailers - My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Porco Rosso

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 18:21:00 PST

This weekend, the Studio Ghibli Film Festival at the Minneapolis Lagoon Cinema kicks off its second week with the Hayao Miyazaki's classics: My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Porco Rosso. Totoro will appear in Japanese and English versions, while Kiki and Porco are both in Japanese, w/subtitles.

My Neighbor Totoro is easily the star of the show. It's the iconic Studio Ghibli movie, and if you've only come to the festival for one or two movies, Totoro is likely on your list. My advice? Buy your tickets early, because they're going to sell out fast. The English-language version will definitely be packed with the younger kids, but parents should feel fine bringing the family to the Japanese (English subtitled) version as well. The subtitles are large enough that it's easy to read. Besides, we've all seen Totoro a thousand times by now.

Kiki's Delivery Service gets less attention than Totoro, but I think it's an equally great movie, continuing its pastoral sense of daily life, and painted in wonderful shades of green. It's the rare coming-of-age story that focuses equally on what is lost (childhood) on the path to adolescence. Miyazaki is honest with his audience, and I really respect that. I don't know if the subtitles are true subtitles, or the dreaded "dub-titles" that we've been stuck with for years. The key will be whether there's a Hindenberg gag line ("Oh, the humanity"). That line's not in the Japanese script.

Porco Rosso is my personal favorite of the three; I've seen the others on the big screen before, so we'll probably see this one on Sunday. For a long time, this was my "go-to" movie for introducing newcomers to Hayao Miyazaki. Here is a film with action and adventure, romance and nostalgia, slapstick comedy and melodrama, and many peaceful, quiet moments. This is far closer to an animated Casablanca than Star Wars, and I do respect the film for not assaulting me with endless fight scenes. The characters and their internal dramas take center stage. It's Miyazaki's Mid-Life Crisis movie.

As always, here are the trailers for you to watch, so you can decide which movies to attend. Obviously, if you have the money, see them all, but remember that this week includes Princess Mononoke, Mimi wo Sumaseba and Omohide Poro Poro. Could we play all these movies for another few weeks, please?

Trailers - Ponyo, Castle in the Sky

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 22:03:00 PST

Wednesday and Thursday at the Minneapolis Studio Ghibli Film Festival is devoted to Hayao Miyazaki's 2008 movie, Ponyo on a Cliff by the Sea, and his 1986 adventure classic, Castle in the Sky. We're headed into the Thanksgiving holiday, and I wouldn't be at all surprised if Thursday's shows are packed.

I've written extensively about Ponyo when it arrived here in the States back in 2009, and there's not much left for me to say now. It's a terrific picture that stands as a stubbornly defiant defense of hand-drawn animation. After three years, I am willing to concede that the ending is a bit weak (Spirited Away was the last Miyazaki film to really score the landing), but it's such a terrific ride that it's worth every minute.

The Lagoon Cinema will be playing the Disney-dubbed version of Ponyo, which was pretty good. I still could do without that crummy auto-tuned pop song at the closing credits...yuck. Letting Disney try to cynically turn Ponyo into a star vehicle for yet another Jonas Brother didn't quite pan out, did it? Ah, well, the kids and parents will be happy.

For me, Castle in the Sky is the one to see. It's still the only Ghibli Blu-Ray from Japan in my collection, thanks to the horrific import price ($80 w/shipping). It's going to look fantastic in 35mm, projected on the big screen. Studio Ghibli's debut film has everything: adventure, romance, amazing action, dazzling visuals. Miyazaki swung for the fences just as he did with Nausicaa, leaving nothing behind. For many years, anime fans hailed Castle as a Miyazaki masterpiece. Come to the show and see if you agree.

Oh, and can somebody smuggle some extra pumpkin pie into the theater for me, please? Thanks in advance.

Photos - Grave of the Fireflies Blu-Ray (US vs Japan)

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 12:12:00 PST

Grave of the Fireflies Blu-Ray arrives on US store shelves today, courtesy of Sentai Filmworks. Copies are available for $15-$20, with (hopefully) some "Black Friday" deals to follow. This is a perfect opportunity to add a Studio Ghibli BD to your movie collection (and once again wonder why Disney fell asleep at the switch).

Now for a little good and bad news. The good news, obviously, is the low price, which is far more attractive than the $80 it costs to import Ghibli BDs from Japan (retailers either kill you on the price or the shipping). The bad news is the bitrate, which on the Sentai disc is one-half the rate of Ghibli's Japanese release. The picture seems to lose a little subtlety in the color and light, and although it's minor, the difference is there. That said, the US Blu-Ray trumps the previous DVD versions with ease.

I've included some photo comparisons, courtesy of DVD Beaver's review, so you can judge for yourselves. As expected, the many extras from Central Park Media's 2002 DVD is missing, but this was to be expected. The Ghibli BDs in Japan have few extras, in order to fit as much movie, as high a bitrate, as possible. So I think we'll survive, and collectors will have reason not to sell their older versions.

More photo comparisons after the jump; Sentai Filmworks (US) disc on top, Studio Ghibli (Japan) disc on bottom:

Trailers - Pom Poko, My Neighbors the Yamadas

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 17:34:00 PST

Fresh off a triumphant opening weekend, the Studio Ghibli Film Festival in Minneapolis devotes Monday and Tuesday to Isao Takahata's Heisei Tanuki Gassan Pom Poko (1994) and My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999). Both films are wildly different in subject matter, in tone, and in visual style. They showcase an animation director's mastery of the form, his skilled sense of tragicomic melodrama, just as they showcase the remarkable artistic brilliance of Studio Ghibli.

It's easy to imagine these Ghibli films as the sole work of one man - that Hayao Miyazaki himself drew every picture, painted every cel. This is only mythmaking, of course; the work of the studio's artists, painters and animators are critically important to bringing these movies to life. And it's doubly true for Takahata, who himself is not an animator. He depends upon his artists to realize his visions. These films are a testament to their skills.

Pom Poko and Yamadas can easily be overlooked in the Ghibli canon, but once you sit down and watch, you are mesmerized, awed. Why don't I watch this movie, or that movie, more often? Why am I not writing more, sharing more? You know the feeling. We are blessed with a bounty of riches. Every one of Takahata and Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli films (and I'll also include Yoshifumi Kondo's Mimi/Whisper) can be rightfully called a masterpiece. These two men are the world's greatest living movie directors, and they've earned their title.

Poster - Gauche the Cellist

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 22:44:00 PST

Continuing with another movie poster, here's one from Isao Takahata's 1982 classic, Gauche the Cellist. It's one of two different poster designs for the film, and has a colorful, children's book quality. It's very nice and focuses on the animals, while the other Gauche poster focuses on the orchestra.

To me, this movie is one of Takahata's triumphs. I know, that sounds like easy praise coming from one who hails Paku-San as a cinematic genius. I sound like a child with a free box of breakfast cereal. So, as always, Caveat emptor. That said, this is a masterful movie, one that weaves rural nostalgia with a love of nature, and the miraculous power of music - joining Beethoven's Pastorale to Kenji Miyazawa's famous children's story is a masterstroke. I've never heard the 6th Symphony sound better.

Gauche the Cellist is a peaceful, thoughtful. Takahata's Totoro? That's what I've always believed. That this film remains virtually unknown in the West (save a DVD release in France) is nothing short of criminal negligence. This movie deserves to be seen by the world.

In Defense of Spirited Away

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 22:25:00 PST

Reader Felix comes to the defense of Hayao Miyazaki's 2001 film, "The Spiriting Away of Sen and Chihiro," which I omitted from my 50 Greatest Movies list back in August. He makes many excellent points:

"Spirited Away is a terrific movie, visually spectacular and endlessly creative, but I don't believe it is Miyazaki's best film. It's an escapist picture at heart, one that lacks the more complex and serious themes of the director's work. A great movie, but a little light."

I can't agree with this, and it seems to be a disagreement about basic undercurrents of Miyazaki-movies. Nothing about this movie as far as I can see is escapist in any strict, negative sense of the word. Surely you can draw this logical conclusion, but it would be accidental, a mere "reservation" depending on the context of your viewing as far as I can see, but not a lasting judgement.

For one, the altering of Chihiro is certainly not the effect of an escape from her issues, but a "finding of herself". I think this is quintessential in judging the whole "positive" outlook of Miyazaki per se, or else it would be hard to distinguish him from any other "pretty" entertainment, or it becomes a pure intellectual argument of the ideology that his movies present.

Then, Chihiro is emotionally challenged throughout the movie, and it is mostly frightening and dangerous, and the ending is not "sweet" but kind of regretful, which is not a nod to the wish to escape again (as maybe could be seen in the Peter Pan "mythos"), but a major element of life - but Miyazaki would probably say (as I've seen him do) that she will come to deal with it.

Also there are aesthetic elements which I think make it unique among his movies. There is this almost overly lush bathing house, but also this Zen-like, minimalist trainride and water landscape.

The infinite imagination that some refer to, on the other hand, and that may be seen as one element of escapism, I do simply do not recognize. I don't think it is very inventive at all, if I would look only for this, I would be very bored and could point probably to an endless list of more "inventive" or "visually stunning" examples. The lush invention that I see serves merely to create a certain atmosphere of life and the overfilled environs, but not much to marvel at.

A couple more things could be said, but that should be the essence of my view.

Poster - Jarinko Chie

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 22:00:00 PST

Isao Takahata's 1981 comedy Jarinko Chie is a favorite of mine, and every once in a while, I post the entire movie if I can find it on YouTube. It's a terrific picture, full of wit and humor and that emotional family melodrama that is Paku-San's trademark.

For our new Ghibli Blog readers in the Twin Cities, Jarinko Chie is very similar in style to Takahata's 1999 Studio Ghibli movie, My Neighbors the Yamadas. Both are adaptations of popular Japanese comics, both follow an episodic structure with various overarching themes, both are wonderfully funny and goofy. If you're lucky enough to see one picture, you'll be sure to enjoy the other.

Chie was successful enough to spawn a popular TV series, which ran for two seasons. Takahata served as "General Director," which meant he oversaw everything, but without directing specific episodes. I'd love to see the anime fansub community tackle that series, but it's probably too obscure for most of them to notice. I would imagine, however, that there'd be greater interest in Chie, now that we have all those Seth MacFarlane shows. Ah, well, probably isn't likely to happen. We're still waiting for someone to take up that Heidi fansub project.

This rare movie poster is currently selling on eBay for a princely sum ($75, give or take). That's a little rich for my blood, but I'd be thrilled to have one in my personal collection. Studio Ghibli movie posters are fairly easy to buy these days; if you want to really impress your family and friends, you'll need to dig deeper.

Please, Discotek, pick up the rights to the Chie Blu-Ray! I'll do commentary! I'll write more essays! I'll buy everyone coffee and doughnuts!

MPR Discusses Studio Ghibli Film Festival in Minneapolis

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 16:42:00 PST

On Friday, Minnesota Public Radio devoted a portion of their weekly radio movie hour to the Studio Ghibli Film Festival, now playing at the Lagoon Theater in Minneapolis. Stephanie Curtis, known on MPR as "The Movie Maven," has been on my must-contact list for years, and one of these days, I'm going to send her a box of discs and movie files from the entire Takahata/Miyazaki canon.

You can play MPRs Friday program here. In addition to Studio Ghibli, Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" opens this week, and it promises to be a sensational picture. Daniel Day-Lewis is the greatest actor of our time, isn't he? He should be a lock for the Best Actor Oscar, if there's any justice in the world.

Warriors of the Wind - Cinematic Nutcase Reviews

noreply@blogger.com (Daniel Thomas MacInnes) — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 12:08:00 PST

Today marks the beginning of GKids' Studio Ghibli Film Retrospective here in Minneapolis, which launches with Hayao Miyazaki's 1984 landmark feature, Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind. I thought this would be a perfect time to revisit the first time Nausicaa was released in the United States, as the notorious hack-job, Warriors of the Wind.

For those not aware, Warriors of the Wind was the US theatrical and home video release of Nauscaa, with a poorly-acted dub, extensive script rewrites, and 30 minutes excised from the running time. This was a common practice at the time for foreign animation in the West, which the suits would deride as "cheap kiddie cartoons." That Nausicaa was created as a serious, and richly complex, adult animated movie was completely lost on the American producers. It was impossible to imagine animation beyond the shadow of Bugs Bunny or Mickey Mouse. It remains a challenge even today, although great strides have been made.

The cuts and changes made to Warriors of the Wind were made without Miyazaki's consent or knowledge; when he discovered what had happened, he all but renounced the American market for the next decade, only tentatively granting distribution rights for movies like My Neighbor Totoro (during this period, Streamline carried the Miyazaki flame). It wouldn't be until 2006 that Americans finally saw Nausicaa in its original, uncut form, with all its complex, probing, challenging themes restored.

I haven't watched this Cinematic Nutcase video review yet, so I'll be enjoying it along with you for the first time. I'm curious to hear what younger anime fans think of the Warriors debacle. I will agree on one point: the US movie poster is rediculously awesome. It absolutely begs for parody or Family Guy cameo.

I believe Warriors of the Wind stands as a historical document, an example of the struggles of Japanese animation to crack the American consciousness and work its way into our culture. It's also a solid example of the fracture in 1980s popular culture between "mainstream" and "underground," which would explode in the 1990s alternative revolution. Of course, I'm an aging Gen-Xer, so everything in my mind is filtered through the punk & hiphop revolution. I'm just goofy that way.