The Boy and the Heron.

Review #2156: The Boy and the Heron.

Cast: 

Soma Santoki (Mahito Maki), Masaki Suda (The Grey Heron), Aimyon (Lady Himi), Yoshino Kimura (Natsuko), Takuya Kimura (Shoichi Maki), Shōhei Hino (Granduncle), Ko Shibasaki (Kiriko), Kaoru Kobayashi (Noble Pelican), and Jun Kunimura (The Parakeet King) Written and Directed by Hayao Miyazaki (#1111 - Spirited Away, #1233 - Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, #1480 - Castle in the Sky, #1758 - My Neighbor Totoro, #1934 - Kiki's Delivery Service)

Review: 

“Being the work of a retiree, it’ll have to feel like it had to be made. I insisted no more was needed, after all. I don’t know, but it’ll be something new. A place I’d never been before.”

In 2013, upon the release of The Wind Rises, Hayao Miyazaki had announced that he would retire from feature filmmaking due to his age. The funny thing is this was not even the first time he said this, because he stated his intent to retire after the release of both Princess Mononoke (1997) and Spirited Away (2001). And yet, a man in his seventies retiring seemed ideal to believe. And yet, two years after his third attempt from retiring, he was approached by producer/co-creator of Studio Ghibli Toshio Suzuki) if he wanted to make a short film for exclusive screening at the Ghibli Museum (the result was Boro the Caterpillar in 2018). In 2016, he even brought plans to propose a feature film. The eventual result, done in the course of several years that had no deadlines (from the studio that used eight years to do The Tale of the Princess Kaguya) is this film, which apparently is one of the most expensive films made in Japan. On release there in July 2023, it was released with the name of a 1937 novel called How Do You Live? by Genzaburō Yoshino, which is referenced in the film (incidentally, the English translation of the book only came out in 2021); the film isn't really an adaptation of the book, and yet a good deal of folks went out in search of it online, go figure. One person Miyazaki has cited was the desire to leave something for his grandson. This is the first feature film for Studio Ghibli since Earwig and the Witch (2020), which had been directed by his son Goro (which, well, his father had thought about being behind that film, but instead here we are). This is the kind of film that was released in its native Japan with no usual marketing campaign, save for exactly one poster, as planned by Suzuki. The film was released in July in Japan, but only now in America can see the film in a theater, and for those who specialize in dubs, GKIDS spearheaded the distribution for American release.

So yes, for a good chunk of folks, you have the choice of what type of language to hear in a Ghibli film, and audiences gave it a pretty good first weekend in the States (after already making its round of impressions in Japan). Miyazaki apparently is in the middle of planning to do another film, which would be his 13th, and, well, who knows? The way to understanding the film is to see it as one where living for others is that key step in life, as opposed to just being adrift as oneself. It is a gradually paced film of 124 minutes that rewards those interested in a tale of self-discovery and absorbing animation. Ranking it among Miyazaki's previous eleven films would be a tight task for anyone, but I would say it would rank favorably among the ones I have actually seen, which is "pretty good". Wrapped in a deluge of wonderous animation and a winding road of growth within truths and lies is a film that ponders mortality and choices with seemingly semiautobiographical manners from Miyazaki (well, his mother did not die in the Pacific War, but spending eight years in treatment for spinal tuberculosis certainly does have an effect on oneself). Santoki carries this with the worthy journey required in someone that has to forge their own path with choices that have the facets of compelling drama. The struggle is transcendent while mattering more than just being familiar for the sake of it. Suda provides that spark of wily creature of mischief that is more than just the image one sees. The rest of the actors do well in the lines of making the line between fact and fiction work with general amusement and investment that goes beyond just having varying sizes of creatures (such as parakeets). The drama is in the decision to make more than anything. It is evident to see where the craft can go with dedication of time in terms of visual wonder, that much is certain. In short: the film (like Miyazaki) accepts the mortality that comes with deciding to make a place for themselves as grown people and sets forth to make something out of such things with a ready glance that isn't forced. Whenever one watches it, they will have found a pleasant experience yet again from Miyazaki in terms of engaging animation and boisterous storytelling for both youth and adult alike in ways that shouldn't be a surprise from the old master, and one should savor getting to see his particular vision on screen as long as one can.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

Kiki's Delivery Service.

Review #1934: Kiki's Delivery Service.

Cast: 

Minami Takayama (Kiki), Rei Sakuma (Jiji), Keiko Toda (Osono), Minami Takayama (Ursula), Kappei Yamaguchi (Tombo), Kōichi Yamadera (Fukuo), Mieko Nobusawa (Kokiri), Kōichi Miura (Okino), and Haruko Kato (Madame) Produced, Written and Directed by Hayao Miyazaki (#1111 - Spirited Away, #1233 - Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, #1480 - Castle in the Sky, and #1758 - My Neighbor Totoro)

Review: 

In 1985, Eiko Kadono wrote a children's fantasy novel called Kiki's Delivery Service. The resulting success of the book inspired a film and eight further novels from Kadono over the next 35 years. When it came time for a film adaptation, Studio Ghibli had intended either Hayao Miyazaki or Isao Takahata to direct it, but each were busy with their own features (1988's My Neighbor Totoro and Grave of the Fireflies) for what would be their fourth feature film as a studio. Miyazaki accepted the role of producer while the studio looked for a new director, which he ended up choosing. With Nobuyuki Isshiki as intended script writer and Sunao Katabuchi as the picked director, the film was meant to be the latter's feature debut. However, Miyazaki felt the resulting script was dry and not what he envisioned of the film, and the result is that he would end up taking over as both writer and director (while Katabuchi would work as an assistant director on this film, he did not get his own chance to direct a feature until 2001). So yes, the film that Miyazaki intended to only produce that was meant to be an hour-long special instead ballooned into his project for a 102-minute feature. A live-action adaptation of the book came in 2014 (interesting to consider that the 25-year-old voice actress utilized in this film apparently outclassed a teenager of 17 from what I heard about the remake). Incidentally, the movie is distinctly different from the film, as the book was a series of episodic events happening around the title character, with no sort of crises to deal with. This was done because Miyazaki felt that since "movies always create a more realistic feeling", one needs stronger setbacks and loneliness for said title character. Kadono wasn't too keen on the changes, but she was finally persuaded to give her consent to the film when invited to see the studio.

Several cities were inspirations for Koriko, such as Napoli, Lisbon, Stockholm, Paris, San Francisco, and Visby, with the intent to make a location that looked like Europe in the 1950s if there weren't any World Wars, albeit one that wasn't simply easy to peg a year in. With that in mind, one gets a coming-of-age story where growing up isn't as easy as being a 13-year-old witch. In order to grow up, sometimes you have to go through compromises and challenges to get a new step of what you think you want to be. At least, that's what I get from it, since coming-of-age movies are in the eye of the beholder, depending on how one feels about making friends only to suddenly not be able to bear being with any of them. At any rate, Miyazaki knows what he wants to tell in a story of growing youth going through growing pains without resorting to pandering or narrative rug-pulling. It's not like the movie needs to dwell much on the mythology of witches beyond just having teens go forth on their journey with a task in mind (it plays to that old trick that magic is just magic, man). It is a warm and snappy film with mostly impeccable timing to carry the importance of independence alongside friendship with endearing characters. Miyazki surely has an eye for making whatever animated adventure he wants to show look as cinematic as it has to be, and it carries the film just as well when it comes to light pacing and nice-looking scenery. Takayama actually plays two roles: the kid witch and an older friend, which actually fooled me - take it as a compliment that she makes a pretty good voice for the title character with no phony notes and going with all charm. The characters in general are fairly charming, such as a chatty cat (for a time) or the varying reaction to a witch, whether on delivery or not. There's a good chunk of little sequences before the eventual conflict comes to a head, with the most interesting one being a friendly case of helping someone make a cake with an oven. The climax is graceful and fitting to the experience, fulfilling the circle of growing as a person that leaves things as they are meant to be: ongoing and on one's general terms.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

My Neighbor Totoro.

Review #1758: My Neighbor Totoro.

Cast: 

Noriko Hidaka (Satsuki Kusakabe), Chika Sakamoto (Mei Kusakabe), Shigesato Itoi (Tatsuo Kusakabe), Sumi Shimamoto (Yasuko Kusakabe), Hitoshi Takagi (Totoro), Toshiyuki Amagasa (Kanta Ōgaki), Tanie Kitabayashi (Granny), Naoki Tatsuta (Catbus), and Chie Kōjiro (Michiko) Written and Directed by Hayao Miyazaki (#1111 - Spirited Away, #1233 - Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, and #1480 - Castle in the Sky)

Review: 

"We need a new method and sense of discovery to be up to the task. Rather than be sentimental, the film must be a joyful, entertaining film. The forgotten. The ignored. Those that are considered lost. Yet I made My Neighbor Totoro with the firm belief that these things still exist."

Sometimes one just has to step back and look at the landscape, whether to touch the grass or to look upon just what lies beneath the seen elements of the things around us. Or hell, sometimes one just wants to look upon the tranquility that comes from a place where the only thing worth worrying about is in the imagination in one's heart. In other words, breathtaking animation and mood can go a long way towards an engaging experience, even when it is a movie that is built on capturing the serenity of what it means to watch a movie that doesn't have to build great conflict to make one of the most curious animated features to come out of Japan. Of course, one would not be surprised to hear that it came from Hayao Miyazaki, who set out to make a heartwarming feature film that would not only stay with its viewers but would also encourage both parents and children. Over the course of a decade, he turned an initial idea of doing a picture book into a film, one that would show ordinary scenery of Japan; he rediscovered the beauty of the country in the time spent working on those ideas (as he moved to Tokorozawa in 1970), and he wanted to make a movie that got kids outside (of course, now a picture book of the movie actually exists, so I suppose if one really wants to they could also sift through that as well). At any rate, it should be noted that this was actually one of two features that Studio Ghibli would release in the year of 1988 in a most unique double feature, since Grave of the Fireflies was released on the same day (the films were funded by different publishers while having stark differences in tone); both features would receive attention for their qualities in later years, although this film only became more successful when it went to television the year after its release, while merchandise for the film (such as a toy of Totoro) later became quite popular.

Admittedly, a movie about two kids living in 1950s Japan that happen to encounter a furry monster could lend itself to a few interested eyes but not exactly the way you think, considering the fact that Miyazaki aimed for a film that looked as normal and as enchanting as one could make in tranquility (i.e. not about guns, action, or speed, as Miyazaki put it). As cliché as it might sound, sometimes one really does need a film kids and adults can like equally as well. The art of making a good film is to make a film worth looking into for the targeted audience, but a great film just tries to entertain everyone at hand without any sense of talking down to folks. In short, animated films obviously can be suited for everyone, and the Studio Ghibli films managed to do quite well with telling a worthy story with fluid animation that makes for a worthy follow up to the company's prior effort (Castle in the Sky, 1986). It manages to do well with its 86 minute run-time in capturing the beauty of its landscapes that balances nostalgia with modern sensibility for a refreshing result (i.e. it is a pretty movie but not merely just a pretty movie to doze by), one that is always alive no matter what happens to be on the screen. Of course, it takes its time for the title character to show itself, but the build-up to that is worth the time, no matter how much one hears about it (i.e. not just looking at the cover) because it manages to be a playful type of patience, much in the same way that one is if they simply walked across some grass to play in the park and wondered if something was on a big tree (or some other scenic view, take your pick). The voices are ideal for the characters present on screen with no distraction, with Hidaka and Sakamoto being a worthy pair to play off each other as a worthy film sibling tandem, while Itoi chimes in with warm charm from bit to bit. The parts spent with the actual creature are sweet and interesting without turning curiosities on one's head, and it helps make the closing sequences all the more worth where it needs to go. As a whole, the best that can be said for the film is that it cultivates a curious world of tranquility with magical charm that bucks the expectation one might see in other animated features as a feature for all ages. Without a dull moment in sight, Miyazaki proves to be one of the masters in crafting a useful story worth checking out with landscapes and rhythm to spare. 

Overall, I give it 10 out of 10 stars.

Castle in the Sky.

Review #1480: Castle in the Sky.

Cast:
Mayumi Tanaka (Pazu), Keiko Yokozawa (Princess Sheeta), Kotoe Hatsui (Captain Dola), Minori Terada (Colonel Muska), Ichirō Nagai (General Mouro), Fujio Tokita (Uncle Pom), Takuzō Kamiyama (Charles [Shalulu]), Yoshito Yasuhara (Louie [Lui]), Sukekiyo Kamiyama (Henri [Anli]), Hiroshi Ito (Mr. Duffi), Ryūji Saikachi (Old Engineer), Tomomichi Nishimura (Motro), and Machiko Washio (Okami) Written and Directed by Hayao Miyazaki (#1111 - Spirited Away and #1233 - Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind)

Review:
"I believe that children's souls are the inheritors of historical memory from previous generations. It's just that as they grow older and experience the everyday world that memory sinks lower and lower. I feel I need to make a film that reaches down to that level. If I could do that I would die happy."

Anyone who encounters enough animated films will likely approach the ones of Studio Ghibli at some point in time, with plenty of good reasons to do so. Studio Ghibli was a fresh company destined to deliver high quality tales involving traditional animation since its very first movie that was released in 1986. Four people founded the studio in 1985: Hayao Miyazaki (previously associated with Toei, A-Pro, Zuiyō Eizō, Nippon Animation, Tokyo Movie Shinsha, and Topcraft), Isao Takahata (who first collaborated with him on The Great Adventure of Horus, Prince of the Sun in 1968), Toshio Suzuki (who helped in getting the Nausicaa anime made in the first place), and Yasuyoshi Tokuma. The former two were directors while the latter two were producers, and the company had been formed after the success of Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, made by Miyazaki (his second ever directorial effort) under the production company of Topcraft (which had its dissolved assets turned into Ghibli). As is the case with numerous Miyazaki films (past and future), there is plenty to keep one's attention involving nature and technology, with elements inspired by mystic legends alongside Gulliver's Travels (in regards to the flying island of Laputa). One can't go wrong with our main duo in Tanaka and Yokozawa, each of which doing quite well in portraying innocence and care that go well with each other along with certain situations that demand capable characters for fascinating situations, even if that involves something as early as just meeting with each other. Hatsui makes a warm presence of amusement to go with the other spirited pirates, while Terada soothes with greed and arrogance for well effect.

It is a captivating film for all ages, capable of delivering a story worth getting involved in with careful execution and a fair cast to drive the movie with the right senses of charm and conviction. If we didn't care about this community and their inner strength that stands clear when compared to the other group depicted in the film, we wouldn't appreciate what it means to feel the ground on your feet. Sure, there are plenty of interesting things to look at when it comes to the vehicles or the grand castle in the sky, but the main core is a core of warmth. We aren't dragging our feet waiting for something to happen because we are instead being absorbed by what we see, feeling everything in the soil and in the air with enjoyment. With a 124 minute run-time, the movie sure builds itself with enough steam in its animation and foundation to make any scene feel diverting without any real slowing point, playing to the imaginations of its audience quite well. It surely isn't surprising to see the influence this has had over subsequent works in Japan and abroad, particularly in inspiring further steampunk depiction in anime and manga. On the whole, this ranks fairly high among animated films of its era in its strength of animation and adventure without any creative sacrifice to make an easy recommendation for one desiring an animated classic.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.

Review #1233: Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.

Cast: 
Sumi Shimamoto (Nausicaä), Gorô Naya (Yupa), Yôji Matsuda (Asbel), Yoshiko Sakakibara (Kushana), Iemasa Kayumi (Kurotowa), Ichirō Nagai (Mito), Hisako Kyōda (Obaba), Minoru Yada (Niga), Mahito Tsujimura (Muzu), Kōhei Miyauchi (Gol), Jōji Yanami (Gikkuri), Mahito Tsujimura (King Jihl), Miina Tominaga (Lastelle), Makoto Terada (Mayor of Pejite), Akiko Tsuboi (Lastelle's Mother), Rihoko Yoshida (Teto / Girl C) Directed by Hayao Miyazaki (#1111 - Spirited Away)

Review: 
Hayao Miyazaki had a great interest in animation ever since viewing a film named Panda and the Magic Serpent (1958); although he soon graduated from university in 1963 with degrees in political science and economics, he found work at Toei Animation. Over the next few years, he worked on a variety of projects such as chief animator for The Great Adventure of Horus, Prince of the Sun (1968), writing and illustrating numerous mangas before leaving Toei in 1971; he continued work with animation, contributing to anime series and shorts before moving to Tokyo Movie Shinsha, where he directed his first feature in The Castle of Cagliostro (1979). In the following five years, he kept busy, with one of his works being a manga named Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind that began in February of 1982. It proved to be a fair success, leading to him going an adaptation to film, writing the screenplay for a movie that had only sixteen chapters of manga to work with (with the manga running until 1994). Topcraft was the anime studio that helped in making the film; they went bankrupt the following year, with the buyers of the studio (Miyazaki, Toshio Suzuki and Isao Takahata) becoming founders of a new animation studio - Studio Ghibli.

With all of that in mind, it should prove no surprise that this is a wonderful entertaining film, worthy of viewing by anyone looking for a sensibly well-crafted tale that stands tall as a pillar of animation. It is a film that shines on its animation and story, having plenty of depth and moments to view and be entranced by, challenging the viewer and not letting them wander for any sort of time through its 117 minute run-time. The film's main focus is nature itself and how it flows throughout life - whether it is through clean air or toxic ones, as is the case with the latter, owing to Miyazaki and being inspired by mercury poisoning of Minamata Bay in Japan that had occurred in the late 1950s. It travels on story-types of the past when dealing with its nature and focus on life, but it never attempts to boil itself in cliche good-and-evil traps - it keeps itself in check with a focus on environment and maintaining oneself without having to resort to basic fear and greed and fighting over what one does not know or understand. The cast does not break with holding up such lofty ambition in storytelling, particularly with Shimamoto, wonderfully earthly and captivating to be around throughout this adventure, with a climax that helps seal her fate as a memorable heroine for film. The others made their moments on screen count, such as Naya and Sakakibara, with no true weak-link present here. On the whole, the movie cultivates a vision for itself that never seems blurred while playing its hand with the right kind of patience, letting its story play out with a sense of balance and subtlety that makes one appreciate how animation can let creativity play out on such a grand scale. The following year, New World Pictures released an edited version of the film in America named Warriors of the Wind - an English dub lasting 95 minutes that Miyazaki was not pleased with (there of course exists a 2003 English dub that makes no cuts to the original film). In the past 35 years since this film's release, Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli have thrived with showcasing numerous stories into film, with him directing nine features and the studio having released 21 features into theaters - and it isn't hard to see why that it is the case with this one, an adventure for the ages that captivates with its animation and an entertaining story that proves perfect for inquisitive viewers of all ages.

Overall, I give it 10 out of 10 stars.

Spirited Away.

Review #1111: Spirited Away.

Cast: 
Rumi Hiiragi (Chihiro Ogino / Sen), Miyu Irino (Haku), Mari Natsuki (Yubaba / Zeniba), Bunta Sugawara (Kamajî), Takashi Naitô (Akio Ogino), Yasuko Sawaguchi (Yûko Ogino), Akio Nakamura (No-Face), Tatsuya Gashûin (Aogaeru), Ryûnosuke Kamiki (Bô), Yumi Tamai (Rin), Yô Ôizumi (Bandai-gaeru), Koba Hayashi (Kawa no Kami), Tsunehiko Kamijô (Chichiyaku), and Takehiko Ono (Aniyaku) Directed by Hayao Miyazaki.

Review: 
It is amazing to note that this film was released only seventeen years ago - July 20, 2001, in fact. There is a certain pride that one can have when watching something as entertaining as this - especially when this is the first Japanese animated film you've seen, made by famed director Hayao Miyazaki, who had done seven other films prior to this such as Princess Mononoke (1997). There is a certain depth and magic one can see in each scene, a certain beauty to how things are drawn but also to how things are played out in its tone and movement. With world cinema, there can be a great enjoyment in seeing how a movie plays itself out through the eyes of people in countries different from one's own, with animation being an outlet for great imagination that anyone can enjoy when done with the right hands, as is the case here. It may interest you to know that the film was made without a finished script; Miyazaki described his process in an interview in 2002 in that the story develops when he starts drawing storyboards (with production starting soon after), adding that "We never know where the story will go but we just keep working on the film as it develops", which certainly makes for an interesting manner to showcase the vision of a creator on screen - which I can respect, obviously. There are numerous scenes I could highlight, but one that I particularly appreciate is the one involving a stink spirit, which has a few laughs but it also resonates well due to where it ultimately plays out - where it actually is a river spirit filled with a bunch of junk. Another interesting scene that I like is the one involving Hiiragi and Nakamura's characters are traveling by train near the end of the film, and there is just something the silent nature of how it plays out that makes it more absorbing than if it had been shown as frentic or with unnecessary noise. There is a Japansese word for such negative space depicted by Miyazaki that applies for this scene - ma, where the emptiness is done intentionally that this film uses to take a moment to absorb itself and the figures that encompass the vessel that the character inhabit to their respective destinations.

A movie as striking to watch play out on screen must have a good cast of voices to carry it through, and this one is successful with its row of actors, particularly from Hiiragi. She plays the main role with the kind of grace and care that you would expect from a young hero that is always watchable and always one to root for. Irino does a fine job as well, using his time on screen to make someone worth following without detracting from the experience the film wants to show with its main character. Natsuki stands out well in her role as twin sisters, conveying noticeable differences and quirks that make for a riveting showcase whenever either role is on screen. Other highlights include Sugawara and Nakamura, both of which being interesting people to follow with their time on screen in a film that basks in fantasy such as this. One year later, an North America release came out, under the supervision of John Lasseter for an English language translation, featuring voice actors such as Daveigh Chase in the lead role and others such as Suzanne Pleshette (in her last film appearance). Subsequently, the movie won an Academy Award (among several other awards) for Best Animated Feature. Whichever version you see, it is evident that Spirited Away is a great piece of cinema that I highly recommend for everyone. There really isn't anything like it, and the vision showcased on screen is one that proves to be great entertainment - whether for kids or adults. I'll end with a quote from Miyazaki about his intent for the film, and let you ponder if he succeeded with that goal: "I wanted to make a movie especially for the daughters of my friends. I opened all the drawers in my head they were all empty. So I realized I had to make a movie just for 10 year olds, and 'Spirited Away' is my answer."

Overall, I give it 10 out of 10 stars.