Vault Dweller 111
Member
Another thread, I've just been working my way through all of these. Likely spoilers ahead.
This was the Takahata movie that got to me. Holy shit, it was absolutely incredible. Just look at that art style! I just want to start by saying that this was one of the best dubs I've seen yet, Chloe Moretz was excellent as Kaguya and the rest of the cast performed very well too, the dubs have been hit and miss so far, but this was definitely one of the better ones. Anyway, excellent movie with a depressing message. The final 'what could have been' dream sequence is heartbreaking and the ending is depressing as hell. This definitely wasn't the most enjoyable, or most rewatchable of the Ghibli offerings, but I'm tempted to say that it was the most well made, Takahata is REALLY good. The fact that a team of 'experts' decided that Big Hero 6 was a better movie is an absolute travesty.
If I had to rank what I've seen so far, it'd be something like this:
1. Spirited Away
2. Castle in the Sky
3. Princess Kaguya
4. Whisper of the Heart
5. Mononoke
6. Totoro
7. Howl's Moving Castle
8. Nausicaa
8. Grave of the Fireflies
I consider Fireflies an excellent movie, but something has to be on the bottom. I have Arietty on the shelf, and Porco Rosso and Whisper of the Heart on the way. I really want to see Kiki, but Amazon doesn't carry it for some reason, so it will have to wait. After that I'll probably take a break from buying so many movies, Only Yesterday is on the list, but I can't think of any other must-sees at the moment (please correct me if I'm wrong).
So thank you for all the suggestions the last few weeks, it had been awesome to go through all these great movies for the first time, and I never would have found them without Gaf. I may make another thread if I feel like talking about Arriety, Rosso, or Wind Rises.
I don't think I did this movie any favors by watching it after Mononoke. Similar movies but this one definitely felt more dated and not as epic. For this one I kind of just enjoyed the really interesting world that Miyazaki built and another amazing sound track by Joe Hisaishi. The actual plot and characters were good not great. I enjoyed the movie, and it would fall in the average to below average rankings of the Ghibli movies I've seen already (very high bar). And yes, I know how great the manga is supposed to be. It's on my list.
Really good, well made movie. I think the emotional stuff was built up too much for me before seeing it. I expected to be in tears from beginning to end. My eyes actually stayed dry throughout. Not to say that it wasn't a very depressing movie, it just wasn't sad in a way that made me cry. I'm glad I saw it, not sure how much replay it will get in the future, but a good movie. Takahata is a really good director (more on that below).
I LOVED this movie. Yondo (RIP) added a great new dimension to Ghibli movies that I hadn't seen before. Shizuku was an absolutely charming lead, I liked her right from the start. The message was clear and very good, the lower stakes made the movie feel much more real. The scene with Seiji playing the violin with Shizuku singing is now one of my favorite Ghibli scenes, so good. The last scene was kind of awkward, but I won't focus too much on that, excellent movie.
This was the Takahata movie that got to me. Holy shit, it was absolutely incredible. Just look at that art style! I just want to start by saying that this was one of the best dubs I've seen yet, Chloe Moretz was excellent as Kaguya and the rest of the cast performed very well too, the dubs have been hit and miss so far, but this was definitely one of the better ones. Anyway, excellent movie with a depressing message. The final 'what could have been' dream sequence is heartbreaking and the ending is depressing as hell. This definitely wasn't the most enjoyable, or most rewatchable of the Ghibli offerings, but I'm tempted to say that it was the most well made, Takahata is REALLY good. The fact that a team of 'experts' decided that Big Hero 6 was a better movie is an absolute travesty.
If I had to rank what I've seen so far, it'd be something like this:
1. Spirited Away
2. Castle in the Sky
3. Princess Kaguya
4. Whisper of the Heart
5. Mononoke
6. Totoro
7. Howl's Moving Castle
8. Nausicaa
8. Grave of the Fireflies
I consider Fireflies an excellent movie, but something has to be on the bottom. I have Arietty on the shelf, and Porco Rosso and Whisper of the Heart on the way. I really want to see Kiki, but Amazon doesn't carry it for some reason, so it will have to wait. After that I'll probably take a break from buying so many movies, Only Yesterday is on the list, but I can't think of any other must-sees at the moment (please correct me if I'm wrong).
So thank you for all the suggestions the last few weeks, it had been awesome to go through all these great movies for the first time, and I never would have found them without Gaf. I may make another thread if I feel like talking about Arriety, Rosso, or Wind Rises.
Miyazaki understands kids so well. <3