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Fishylungs posted:I'm more worried that in the unlikely event the next 2 movies don't do well Ghibli is shutting its animation doors. Holy moley, I was always under the impression that Ghibli did well. Why did this come up in the article? Does anyone know?
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| # ? Aug 23, 2010 21:18 |
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| # ? May 25, 2013 20:23 |
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Pick posted:Holy moley, I was always under the impression that Ghibli did well. Why did this come up in the article? Does anyone know? Ghibli does well when Miyazaki or Takahata are directing. When someone else steps up... not so well (Tales From Earthsea). Miyazaki's 69 and Takahata's 74, so they're planning for what Ghibli's gonna do once they're gone. Worst case scenario, they quit producing new works and become a copyright management house.
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| # ? Aug 23, 2010 21:27 |
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I guess that's fair. I thought that the Borrowers movie, at least, was well-received though, and that was by Yonebayashi.
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| # ? Aug 23, 2010 21:38 |
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I thought Spirited Away was the last one that lived up to the standard. Since Howl's Moving Castle it's been downhill.
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| # ? Aug 23, 2010 21:40 |
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Croisquessein posted:I thought Spirited Away was the last one that lived up to the standard. Since Howl's Moving Castle it's been downhill. I'm with you. I hated Howl's Moving Castle because nothing happened, Ponyo was adorable and technically amazing but unless you're a 5 year-old it really has nothing to offer you.
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| # ? Aug 23, 2010 21:46 |
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Man, I'm always in the minority when it comes to Howl's Moving Castle. It's one of my favorites. It was Ponyo I didn't care for.
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| # ? Aug 23, 2010 22:32 |
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"This is not weed killer. It's fresh ocean water, and it keeps me from drying out on land!". Seriously, I was in love with Ponyo from the moment they did that incredible zoom-plankton-jellyfish thing, I'm probably going to have to revisit HMC (girlfriends favourite) and definitely Spirited Away (used to be mine), but Ponyo may well be my favourite Ghibli. Also: "I'd let a fish lick me if it got me out of this wheelchair" "Well, I don't know about all that licking". Hoooly poo poo I am glad I didn't see that in the cinema because I have no idea if you were supposed to laugh as loudly and as long as we did at the bits like that. That said, Earthsea was fascinating to me, as I really enjoyed the first three books, but you absolutely had to have read all of them to get  , which is a very novel (ah haaaa) technique for adapting a series of books: Take the best bits, mash them up and make Willem Defoe play a gay clown. Also it was probably the only film I've seen that consistently got better the longer it went on. Also also: Timothy Dalton!
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| # ? Aug 23, 2010 22:34 |
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Clumsy Card House posted:Man, I'm always in the minority when it comes to Howl's Moving Castle. It's one of my favorites. It was Ponyo I didn't care for. I liked Howl's Moving Castle okay until I read the book and realized how painfully incoherent the movie was, comparatively. The movie's kind of fun, but when you line it up to something like Porco Rosso, which has a pretty solid plot, it's really not very good.
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| # ? Aug 23, 2010 23:24 |
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It definitely looked nice. I thought the CG was jarring (not that other films haven't used it as well, but I thought it was less effective here). More than anything it just seemed aimless and none of it really made any sense. ^ I didn't like Ponyo either. It had one great sequence with the oceans going crazy and Ponyo running like a fiend on the tops of the waves, but the rest of it just didn't gel. I wanted to slap that kid and go, "Dude, it's a fish! Just let go already!" And again, none of it made any sense.
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| # ? Aug 23, 2010 23:35 |
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I have to admit, I'm not fond of the proportions that Studio Ghili uses on their old characters, so my enjoyment of HMC was significantly depressed. It's my only complaint about Spirited Away, too.
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| # ? Aug 23, 2010 23:36 |
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This is going to be a really dumb question about Ghibli movies so forgive me but no one has ever clarified for me what this is. Are Miyazaki's movies all just really weird adaptations of classic fairytales? I heard that Howl's Moving Castle was a reworking of the Wizard of Oz, and Ponyo was adapted from the Little Mermaid, or are they all just based off another original story?
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 00:57 |
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Howl's Moving Castle is an adaptation of a book of the same name, which just has some allusions to other stories but isn't based on any of them. Ponyo IS based on the Little Mermaid, though.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 01:16 |
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Nausicaä is certainly his own stuff, and I think Mononoke and Laputa are totally original as well as Porco Russo.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 01:20 |
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404GoonNotFound posted:Ghibli does well when Miyazaki or Takahata are directing. When someone else steps up... not so well (Tales From Earthsea). Miyazaki's 69 and Takahata's 74, so they're planning for what Ghibli's gonna do once they're gone. Worst case scenario, they quit producing new works and become a copyright management house. It has a lot more to do with cranky old Miyazaki not wanting anyone to play with his toys after he's dead. He's a genius but has become a very bitter old man; the direct reasoning here is "nobody's as good as me or Takahata and we don't want them staining the Ghibli name after we're gone". They have oodles and oodles and oodles of cash (Ghibli stores are about as common in Tokyo as Disney stores are around Orange County, and the Ghibli Museum is basically a license to print money), so it ain't about that. I mean, Miyazaki's also been quoted in interviews talking about how he doesn't like children today, has no interest in creating films to entertain them anymore and has thus lost his original inspiration. Dude's a crank, but he has the power to shutter Ghibli as a creative force before he croaks, which is kind of a shame; they could be a great place to foster and nurture new talent.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 01:52 |
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Barometer posted:Nausicaä is certainly his own stuff, and I think Mononoke and Laputa are totally original as well as Porco Russo. Don't forget Spirited Away and My Neighbour Totoro! Those are original as well.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 02:18 |
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TheSwami posted:I mean, Miyazaki's also been quoted in interviews talking about how he doesn't like children today, has no interest in creating films to entertain them anymore and has thus lost his original inspiration. Kojiro posted:Belle always came off as having Stockholm Syndrome to me to be quite honest. Actually, now that I think about it a little more, the convenience with which the Beast fell completely head over heels in love with Belle was a little too contrived to really work on purely romantic terms. There's a whiff of desperation in how quickly he latches onto the idea of being with her. Yeah, she's hot and all, but even when the enchanted furniture is lecturing him to stop screaming like a bell end all the time, he's just like, "she's so pretty, I want her to be the one that breaks this infernal curse, arrgh!" I'm starting to think that the entire story is just a parable for adolescent guys trying to lose their v-card, in spite of being moody, hairy monsters.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 02:56 |
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Welp, if anyone's interested in Miyazaki's personal views on things, Starting Point is required reading for all grade levels. And animation enthusiasts. Hell, anyone who is a human being with breath in their lungs should read it. Though you can pretty much sum up his view on filmmaking with these two passages:Hayao Miyazaki posted:"Being allowed to make films for young children is a wonderful gift that other generations haven’t been able to experience. This is priceless to me. I doubt that I would have wanted to make films for little children if I hadn’t become a parent. Most of all we want to make films to satisfy ourselves.” and quote:“It takes great effort to create significant work, given the current flood of animation. It is like pouring clear water drop by drop into muddy flood waters. I can’t help but feel lonely that, just because it is such an effort, some decide to settle for sending out mediocre work to be pushed along with the rest of the deluge. Having chosen animation as my occupation, I think it would be better if I risked my life for it – though that is an exaggeration – and continued to look for solutions.” His whole career has basically been a struggle between inspiration and cynicism, so there's probably moments where you can clearly seeing him swaying to one side or the other.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 13:49 |
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Clumsy Card House posted:Man, I'm always in the minority when it comes to Howl's Moving Castle. It's one of my favorites. It was Ponyo I didn't care for. I'll go one further. Spirited Away was visiually gorgeous but its was absolute poo poo everywhere else (writing, acting, voices, gags, etc) and can't hold a single candle to Howl's Moving Castle. But Ponyo was awesome and anyone who doesn't think so has a heart colder than pluto and probably thinks the Fox and the Hound is a comedy.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 14:39 |
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I originally didn't care for Ponyo, but getting that back story of it being a love/apology letter to his son really made the next few viewings much more enjoyable.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 14:52 |
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I think my only problem with Ponyo is the bullshit slap-dash ending, and otherwise, I think it's a lovely film--not my favorite, mind you, but still enjoyable. What I find amazing about Ponyo and My Neighbor Totoro (which IS one of my favorites) is how they manage to intrigue and entertain us, without the use of bells, whistles, explosions, or non-stop conflict. The scenes where Ponyo and Sosuke explore the backyard, or eat ramen, or where Satsuki and Mei explore their new home, are still just as interesting as the scenes where poo poo Actually Goes Down. I don't recall ever being bored or restless during any Miyazaki film. (Pom Poko on the other hand, needed to be snipped in a few places, if you ask me...) More cynical animators and directors clearly believe that you need Johnny Test, Transformers 2, or Speed Racer to keep the little fuckers (well, and even the big fuckers) happy. Miyazaki demonstrates that this just ain't necessarily so. Tartarus Sauce fucked around with this message at Aug 24, 2010 around 15:50 |
| # ? Aug 24, 2010 15:40 |
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So what does everyone think of Sita Sings the Blues? The AV Club seemed to really like it and the trailer is kinda blowing my mind. It looks like I can stream the whole thing for free but I'd rather get a DVD and watch it on my TV because watching things on my computer is awful.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 15:41 |
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Maybe it's because it's the first Miyazaki movie I've really seen as an "adult", but Ponyo is one of my favorites. Its aspirations are lower than those of Mononoke or Spirited Away, but it never misses a beat. For the most part it's extremely coherent and maintains a certain joyful simplicity all the way through. Howl's Moving Castle was the one that frustrated me. It just seemed like a big, pretty mess.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 15:49 |
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Mr Wind Up Bird posted:So what does everyone think of Sita Sings the Blues? The AV Club seemed to really like it and the trailer is kinda blowing my mind. It looks like I can stream the whole thing for free but I'd rather get a DVD and watch it on my TV because watching things on my computer is awful. Oh, it's pretty cool. But, I think it certainly helps to be a fan of jazz and blues, because there's a fair number of musical numbers. If you're not especially enamored of jazz or blues, then the movie is still funny and compelling, and it utilizes at least four (that I counted) animation styles. Sir Lemming posted:Howl's Moving Castle was the one that frustrated me. It just seemed like a big, pretty mess. I agree. No matter how many times I see it, the climax still confuses me, and I've never quite understood why Sophie's age and appearance subtly shifts back and forth throughout the film, though I assume it has something to do with her self-esteem or self-image. Also, how does Sophie's mom recognize her later, and why is she working for Suliman? Why does Sophie destroy the castle? I can tell you from personal experience that this is NOT a movie you watch without a sub or a dub. When I saw it in Spanish at a small film festival in Mexico, even the Mexicans were confused, and most of the English-speakers got up and left halfway through. I had to keep explaining what was going on to the trio of elderly people next to me--one of whom appeared to be half-deaf, and another of whom appeared to be either stone-cold-stupid, or slightly senile. Tartarus Sauce fucked around with this message at Aug 24, 2010 around 16:16 |
| # ? Aug 24, 2010 15:54 |
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Mr Wind Up Bird posted:So what does everyone think of Sita Sings the Blues? The AV Club seemed to really like it and the trailer is kinda blowing my mind. It looks like I can stream the whole thing for free but I'd rather get a DVD and watch it on my TV because watching things on my computer is awful. It's OK. It seems like one of those things where a lot of the praise it's getting is more to do with the distribution and the drama surrounding its release rather than the actual movie itself, there's a lot of things that rub me the wrong way (bits like the opening scene that just drag from showing off the animator's tricks rather than actually advancing the story, or the fact that a third of the movie is a self-insert story about her divorce and is by far the weakest part of the movie) but the stuff with the shadow puppets where they argue about the mythology and the underlying meaning thereof was pretty great.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 15:55 |
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Sir Lemming posted:Howl's Moving Castle was the one that frustrated me. It just seemed like a big, pretty mess. I'm actually surprised to find people here that do not like HMC. It seems the last time it was brought up there was some strange goon love for it. I loved it at first (as most teen girls did, because "omg Howl is so hot") but then got over it quickly after reading the book. The book is so charming and witty that I think the movie is absolutely terrible. He had to go and interject his whole "message on war" and it just doesn't belong in that story. Please, please, I beg you, pick up a Diana Wynne Jones novel. I don't think Ponyo was based on the Little Mermaid, I think there is a Japanese legend that is about a fish turning into a woman but off the top of my head I can't think of what it was called. Whisper of the Heart is my favorite non-Miyazaki directed movie (although he wrote the script and I think story boarded), but unfortunately the direcor Yoshifumi Kondō died shortly after the movie was made. Did Gedo Senki do that bad in Japan? I know it's doing horrible here, but haven't heard much about its release over seas. ----- Jumping topic, is the Beauty and the Beast singalong event at anyone else's local theater? I guess they play the movie but with words during the songs? I kind of want to go actually... but figure it'd be weird to have a 23-year-old woman sitting amongst a bunch of 5-year-olds. anaaki fucked around with this message at Aug 24, 2010 around 16:07 |
| # ? Aug 24, 2010 16:04 |
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anaaki posted:I'm actually surprised to find people here that do not like HMC. It seems the last time it was brought up there was some strange goon love for it. I loved it at first (as most teen girls did, because "omg Howl is so hot") but then got over it quickly after reading the book. The book is so charming and witty that I think the movie is absolutely terrible. He had to go and interject his whole "message on war" and it just doesn't belong in that story. Please, please, I beg you, pick up a Diana Wynne Jones novel. For the record, as a former teenage girl, I've never thought a cartoon character was "hot." quote:I don't think Ponyo was based on the Little Mermaid, I think there is a Japanese legend that is about a fish turning into a woman but off the top of my head I can't think of what it was called. Miyazaki has said it's inspired by Hans Christian Anderson's The Little Mermaid.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 16:19 |
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...of SCIENCE! posted:or the fact that a third of the movie is a self-insert story about her divorce and is by far the weakest part of the movie) but the stuff with the shadow puppets where they argue about the mythology and the underlying meaning thereof was pretty great. Well, and that was apparently a mostly-real conversation between real people, which is why it sounds so natural. I've always been on the fence about the divorce self-insert. I normally hate it when women use art as a platform for bitching about menstruation, menopause, or bad/dissolved relationships, BUT, in this case, the divorce sub-plot links the mythical and the ancient with the modern and everyday, and demonstrates how regular people (like the director) interpret and use ancient myths and stories, to help make sense of their own lives.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 16:34 |
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Barometer posted:Nausicaä is certainly his own stuff, and I think Mononoke and Laputa are totally original as well as Porco Russo. Laputa's original, but it's also a pastiche of stuff: the floating castle itself comes from Gulliver's Travels, the robots are from a Lupin III episode that Miyazaki directed, and the characters are all similar to those of Miyazaki's Future Boy Conan. On that note, I'd recommend that any fan of Miyazaki watch the Lupin III episodes Albatross: Wings of Death and Aloha, Lupin. You'll see a lot of things that Miyazaki later used in his movies. The "Greatest Capers" VHS release is pretty obscure, but the episodes aren't hard to find in the usual places.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 17:34 |
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Kid Fenris posted:Lupin III episode that Miyazaki directed That reminds me I haven't seen Castle of Cagliostro in a long time. I gotta do a Lupin III marathon soon.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 18:44 |
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You know how as a kid, you were able to watch that one movie over and over again every day and never get tired of it? I can do that with Castle of Cagliostro as an adult. Absolutely my favorite Miyazaki film.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 18:47 |
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Apparently Satoshi Kon has died, though the ony links I can find about it are on Twitter.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 18:54 |
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cloudchamber posted:Apparently Satoshi Kon has died, though the ony links I can find about it are on Twitter. Speaking of him, is Millennium Actress any good? They have it in the free kids' movie section at Family Video and was thinking about renting it. I didn't like Tokyo Godfathers very much though, so I wasn't sure.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 19:02 |
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cloudchamber posted:Apparently Satoshi Kon has died, though the ony links I can find about it are on Twitter. The Twitter update, which has already spread, was from a Gainax employee only a couple hours ago today. Babelfish gave me this translation: Now, the [tsu] to come you read Satoshi's 訃 information with mixi. 47 years old. There are no times when it meets already with Kitiziyouzi's bar? It is too sad. I'm hoping there was some kind of weird miscommunication. 47 is way young, and I loved his movies. Millenium Actress is more on the side of Paprika than Tokyo Godfathers, if I recall, and far lighter than Paranoia Agent or Perfect Blue.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 19:11 |
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It's a little bit more believable than just a twitter rumor, because the tweets that announced it were an animator from Madhouse and a Gainax employee. The Madhouse guy said that he'd gotten a call saying an influential director had died suddenly. I'm on tenterhooks waiting for better news, though. Better translation: I just read Mr. Satoshi Kon's obituary on mixi. He was 47. We won't be having good-luck parties at the bar anymore. I'm terribly sad. TheGreenAvenger fucked around with this message at Aug 24, 2010 around 19:14 |
| # ? Aug 24, 2010 19:11 |
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http://www.uk-anime.net/newsitem/Di...asses_away.html
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 19:15 |
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What the hell, came out of nowhere, was he sick or something? He was incredible, and his newest movie looked like it was going to be pretty great.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 19:25 |
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anaaki posted:Speaking of him, is Millennium Actress any good? They have it in the free kids' movie section at Family Video and was thinking about renting it. I didn't like Tokyo Godfathers very much though, so I wasn't sure.  and pleasant.Also this news is terrible beyond words.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 19:34 |
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Millennium Actress is Kon's best film as far as I'm concerned, so watch it if you haven't. This is really depressing news, and now the movie is going to take on a whole different context, especially the end.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 20:22 |
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cloudchamber posted:Apparently Satoshi Kon has died, though the ony links I can find about it are on Twitter. gently caress gently caress gently caress And I was having a good day, too!  47 is too young to go, and I feel like he had more of that amazing artistic psychosis left in him, too. Fuuuck.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 20:29 |
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| # ? May 25, 2013 20:23 |
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If it's any consolation supposedly he was working on another film. It will probably (?) be finished and released posthumously.
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| # ? Aug 24, 2010 20:34 |
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