Studio Ghibli

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This animation company has the most amazing body of work. Disney has slapped their name on it, but the real genius is Hayao Miyazaki.

Princess Mononoke. Spirited Away. (Oscar for best animated film) Castle in the Sky.

Was walking through Best Buy yesterday and found two new releases. The Cat Returns and Nausicaä.

I fell in love with the Nausicaä stories back when I was a weekly comic book shopper.

Anyway, great stuff for old and young alike. Moving, imaginative stories, attention to detail that make you forget its animated, top-notch animation... I just can’t say enough to express the amount of enjoyment I’ve had from the works of Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli.

[peam]

Spirited Away was fantastic. I imagine it would've been fantasticer, had I been on drugs.

I really couldn't get into Princess Mononoke though. I found the filler between good parts too drawn out.

[Izalude]

I agree, Backlash Miyazaki is a genius. My favorite movie of all time of his is Nausicaa: Valley of the Wind. Spirited away was a second, and Mononoke was 3rd. I didn't enjoy Castles in the Sky all that much. My Neighbor Totoro was also good, but a bit too childish for me.

[StrayRogue]

Miyazaki's more recent works have been real commercial successes in Japan and abroad. Princess Mononoke is still the highest grossing movie in Japan, I think. While alot of his more recent work is based more around strange mysticism and fantasy, I much prefer his earlier works such as Grave of the Fireflies and Barefoot Gen.

Still, his work is great and has sort of taken over from Disney as being appealing to both an adult and young audience.

[Izalude]

Although, it is one of, if not the best animes out there... Miyazaki didn't do Grave of the Fireflies.

Isao Takahata wrote the script and directed it.

[Latrinsorm]

From what I've seen of the Nausicaa coming out, it's hugely retro. Is it like his classic work, or is he just oldschool?

[StrayRogue]

Good point. I think I was confusing Grave of the Fireflies with Barefoot Gen. Yeah, I thought it was a bit weird he'd done two films about WW2. Takahata does great work too though. Only Yesterday is fantastic and so far afield of the usual Anime cliches.

[StrayRogue]

Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind was released in 1984, though its had a popular manga following for years after and previous. Although, alot of Miyazaki work is getting the Western treatment with translations of older work being released all the time.