Channel Awesome I hope the MCU movies from 2016-2018 (from Captain America Civil War up to Ant Man and the Wasp) will be part of this upcoming Disneycember. I'd also love to see a Disneycember review of Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, and maybe also The Clone Wars pilot movie that was released in theaters in 2008.
Disneycember Ghibli 1:00 - Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind 8:44 - Castle in the Sky 12:47 - Grave of the Fireflies 19:08 - My Neighbor Totoro 25:11 - Kiki's Delivery Service 31:54 - Porco Rosso 36:19 - Pom Poko 41:16 - Whisper of the Heart 46:38 - Princess Mononoke 53:20 - Spirited Away 59:35 - The Cat Returns 1:03:16 - Howl's Moving Castle 1:08:32 - Tales from Earthsea 1:15:36 - Ponyo 1:19:48 - The Secret World of Arrietty 1:23:14 - From Up on Poppy Hill 1:27:24 - The Wind Rises 1:33:44 - The Tale of Princess Kaguya
Me and my brother were actually rewatching howls moving castle a few days ago. and our conclusion of the theme was that howl is a child in an adults body, he's immature and childish, while sophie is an old woman in a young womans body, she is insecure, boring, thinks of herself as ugly that literally gets cursed to be an old woman. and when she is learning to be adventurous, energetic and when she is in love, she gets younger. while howl is growing into a man that takes responsibility. also war is bad i guess but thats kind of a theme in every movie of miyazakis
Just got to the Howl's moving castle review: I don't really know what to say other than you might not have liked it just because you didn't understand the curse. The film makes it clear during the scene when she's with Howl in the field that it's tied to her feelings of self worth--when she feels bad about herself she turns older but when she feels good about herself (or even just forgets TO think about herself, like when she's asleep) she looks younger. It really has nothing to do with the Witch of the Waste losing her powers at all because that doesn't even happen until the palace scene with Sulliman about 3/4ths of the way through the film, it all has to do with Sophie and how she perceives herself. The point of the film is that Sophie was CONTENT with the curse, she was almost happy being old because it "finally suits her." Her story arc is coming to grips with her feelings about herself and realizing her own worth, which is finally resolved once and for all at the end when Howl compliments her hair at the end. Instead of looking downcast and feeling bad about herself like she would have before she joyfully jumps into his arms accepting the compliment. Howl's story arc (while admittedly less developed since less time was spent on it) is about thinking of other people instead of himself. He's vain, he's frivolous, he hides under false identities to avoid helping out in the war, etc. By the end of the film he's grown to care about Sophie and the family and chooses to fight to try and save them--putting his very life on the line for it.
Howl's Moving Castle might have been more focused if it hadn't started off exactly the same as the book, and then started to veer off exponentially. I hate that movie with a passion. I can understand its objective quality and appeal, but I consider it to be one of the worst big screen adaptations ever made. Seriously. I watched the Last Airbender movie and found myself enjoying it, simply because Howl's Moving Castle had set such an impressively low standard for big screen adaptations.
Or maybe, just maybe for the same reason he criticised Nausicaa? Both movies are loosely based on a much better original source and both films fail to capture the story. Some times visuals alone don't help at all and Howl's moving castle is that time.
Look. Not everyone was going to get what that was all about in the English translation. Even I was confused at first. Hell, I still was until I read your comment. I still liked the movie, and the only part I truly understood was the link between Howl and Calcifer.
@@Tylendal242 Diana Wynne Jones herself likes it. I saw the movie first, and though I do like the movie better, I think it's a good adaption, if not a faithful one. The characters have essentially the same motivations, a bit distilled for timing purposes. I think of it as an alternate universe steampunk-themed fanfiction.
Critic, you seem to have missed the point of Sophie's curse in Howl's Moving Castle: she has been cursed to look as old as she feels. So her age bounces around based on how she is feeling at the time. The curse is never lifted, she just learns to accept herself and the curse by the end and that's okay.
You see, this is why this film fails so hard, because it forgets to point out the reason for Sophie turning young is that she herself lifts her curse off, that is the whole point of the story in the book, Howl's moving castle is a disgrace
she doesnt lift the curse, she just doesnt let it dominate her, theres a difference a very sad difference, between feeling pain and simply not experiencing pain
I can honestly never imagine Spirited Away being redone, reimagined, or adapted. It’s just so unique and every image of the movie is so well done and worked hard upon
In terms of adaptation, they DID make said masterpiece into a stage play: Spirited Away Live on Stage. DON'T WORRY though; Based on the clips I've found, the trailer itself, and the reviews from people who've been lucky enough to see it, it's absolutely AMAZING. I just about cried my eyes out when I saw the trailer, and knew exactly which scenes were depicted based on the shots alone, THAT's how faithful it is: th-cam.com/video/uIJQGo--Fpo/w-d-xo.htmlsi=VcP5bZj5ww0LPohR
Comment section: 1%: hope that's not gonna be copyrighted by Disney or Ghibli... 4%: wow, I'm glad you enjoyed the "(movie's name)", that's my favorite one! 95%: H O W L ' S C A S T L E !
It's not fucking owned by fucking Disney, those fucking assholes just distribute them and yet they fucking pretend they did fucking ANYTHING to help out.
@@coletrainhetrick calm your tits down. There is no reason to get that hyped. You didn't make it come you're not getting money from it, calm your cholesterol down.
San (Princess Mononoke) isn't half-wolf, she's the female Mowgli. Her parents were attacked while she was a baby, by Moro, and her parents threw San to Moro and fled (hoping Moro would be distracted by the infant). Obviously Moro then raised her, and her character was more the opposite of Eboshi prior to meeting Ashitaka, who began to influence her humanity for the first time. This is one of the conflicts Ashitaka had with the wolves/Moro - they feared she would inexorably be drawn to him and humanity in general, making him a dangerous influence. In the end Moro tried to let her go as things got desperate and emotional, then went to die in the final battle, but San picked the forest anyway, despite the huge loss of spirituality there after what happened to the Forest Spirit - but her connection to Ashitaka at least allows her some peace and implies a future friendship, so it was ambiguous but leans more towards hope.
"Spirited Away" has many little nuances most people never notice. I, being outlandishly intuitive, noticed them at once. 1. The moon goes through nearly 3/4 of a cycle, changing each 'night' Chihiro is in the spirit realm. Then, we find out why once they leave: time has been passing much faster outside, and the car is full of dust and surrounded by weeks worth of plant growth. 2. "The train used to run in both directions, but these days it's a one-way ride" -Kamaji, the Boiler Man. The train carries human souls from the living realm to the land of the dead. In Japanese culture, there were times similar to the 'Day of the Dead', when the spirits of ancestors could return and commune with the living. In the modern era, this seems to no longer be the case... and the train only going INTO the spirit realm now is the explanation. 3. Noh Face, is of course a play on 'No' and 'Noh theater'. However, the reason his personality became so random was that, having no personality of his own, he absorbed the nature of what was around him. In the bath house, surrounded by greed, he became greedy himself. He didn't like it, but couldn't escape from it on his own, and so was naturally drawn to Chihiro's kindness toward him. In the house of Zaneeba, with generosity surrounding him, his temperament reflected it. I later read Miazaki also said that he felt much like Noh Face, trying to fit in with his surroundings at times and being uncertain of what he should be. 4. Chihiro beginning to disappear until she eats something of the spirit realm. As the Sun set, the link between the realms (the train station) was severed and her mortal body was then exposed to a purely non-material realm. One can assume without some of the energy of that realm in her own body, she could no longer maintain cohesion. Her parents, having gorged on the spirits' food, were in no such danger. 5. Zaneeb's gold seal. Basically, this was the same sort of magic as Yubaba stealing the names of those she put to work. Names have power in many mythologies, and this is true in the SA world. The seal contained the power of Zaneeba's name, and someone possessing it could have gained some control over her by using it. This explains why she was so angry at Haku. 6. Humans were disliked because of their 'smell', which was revolting to the spirits. One could speculate that this is because humans are still living, and their organic bodies always carry the stench of decay and other aspects of the living world, which the spirits, regardless of what they look like, are no longer tainted by it. Note that the River Spirit became a reeking mass of filth when filled with human garbage. It was one way in which the humans could contaminate a spirit, and perhaps a bit of a reason the spirits often hated or feared humans. This is a bit of the environmentalist aspect of Miazaki's mindset at work, but it fits in with the rest of the spirit world's construction. 7. One spirit was overtly kind to Chihiro: the Raddish Spirit. Now this takes a knowledge of horticulture to understand! This Spirit feels indebted to humans for a simple reason: wild radishes are small, scrawny plants that can only grow in disturbed soil and tend to be crowded out quickly in succession. They must always struggle to remain uneaten by insects and animals, especially cabbage butterfly larvae. Humans cultivated them, allowed them to thrive and grow enormous, hundreds of times larger than their native varieties. Humans protect them from insects and wild herbivores, and even though they are eaten, their seeds are protected and treasured, and planted in vastly greater numbers than nature would ever permit. Therefore, the Spirit of Radishes has also grown large and fat, and also (in keeping with spirit mythos in Japan, far more powerful than he would ever have been otherwise since his physical aspect is being cultivated and expanded). He pays part of the debt he feels to humanity by aiding Chihiro.
Fwazangalang Entertainment wanna cry even more? The author of the original short story it was based on made it as an apology to his sister because he felt guilt that she slowly died from malnutrition during the war while he lived and watched her die unable to do anything. That is why the boy dies in the story, because the author wanted to die and be with his sister.
@@surft dont forget the whole reason it was made into a movie was to remind the youth of that time that HEY! Stop being slacker brats your grandparents had to live threw HELL so you could be born, RESPECT the sacrifices of your elders
Call me a contrarian but there is something metaphysically wrong with Grave of the Fireflies. It makes no sense for Japanese animation to have such a Western theme of mourning for the dead. Nosaka was born in 1930, making him 14-15 during the firebombing which means he must have definitely been exposed to the thanophilia of Japanese culture, yet years later he wrote such an "American" work that makes no sense from the Japanese background it is set in.
In Howl’s Moving Castle, I take the scene of Sophie and the Witch of the Waste walking up the steps to show the growth in their characters. Sophie is unsure of herself, shy, and self deprecating so her curse causes her physical appearance to reflect her emotional state. The witch was built up a bit and when you see her the first time she appears to be a big threat and a force not to be messed with. Here, however, we see how weak and feeble the arch actually is while Sophie encourages the witch to move on, gets perseveres to the top, and ends up being a bit sassy to her as well. While one character grows, the other one seems to wither away. Her curse lessens throughout which makes her old but not as old on the beginning since she is getting more confident in herself. However, it isn’t fully broken due to her so easily returning to her previous way of seeing herself. Those are just my thoughts
I thought so too. I never once felt uncomfortable watching that. (Howl’s Moving Castle is my favorite Ghibli move, I understand his opinion; but it was hard to watch)
I think the scene sums up what I really love about Moving Castle was the subtlety. It’s not perfect by any means, I agree that some character motivation is lost but it’s scenes like those that make it up in spade.
+Melkor Morgoth No, you missed the point. He wished this movie had a better Mononoke, and had his flaws. He almost does like it as much as other people. I think it’s pretty much close enough.
It makes more sense when you realize that a better title would be "spirit princess", that her name is San and that she is not a half wolf(entirely human). She despies humanity due to what they have done to her surrogate family, and so she despise herself for being human. Ashitaka becomes a "nobody" after getting cursed, so he is not truly human either, and struggles to find a new foothold. They are on common ground, but for different reasons. They are both potential bridges between nature/spirits and humanity, but neither of them are able to become one on their own.
When sofie is true to her emotions or when she acts without worrying about her insecurities she gets younger. I think the curse shows her inside on the outside. So when she grows to accept herself she in a way overcomes the curse. Hope that helps. Loving this whole thing thanks for doing it, its awesome.
After my first time watching Howl's Moving Castle, my thoughts were pretty much the same as Doug's. Four viewings later, it's my favorite Ghibli film and one of my favorite films of all time. The story feels vague and labyrinthine at first, but with each viewing, it becomes clearer and more compelling. It's my prime example of a movie that needs to be watched many times.
@@ossianback same reaction as spirited away, when i first saw it, i left be blank and thinking how this movie is as good as people said, then i watch it again this week and i think it's felt better then my first watch probably because i came to understand some of the concept of the story
Fun fact: Tanuki actually aren't raccoons! It's an understandable mistake, as apparently the English dub claims that they are, but they're actually called raccoon _dogs_ and are, in fact, a type of canid I believe are closely related to foxes. They're also really cute and VERY common in Japanese folklore as yokai and spirits.
Racoon is a very common (mis)translation of Tanuki. I am actually pretty sure that they aren't a real (currently existing atleast) animal and racoons are just the closest thing to it. But Tanuki and Kitsune (fox spirits) are related in some way afaik.
What always kept me thinking about Kiki is the fact that at the of the movie, she still can’t understand the cat. She found back the ability to fly, so I expacted all to be the same again, but then she still couldn’t speak with her cat. It made me think that while coming of age up you lose yourself and at some point find yourself back again, but some things have changed and got lost for good and can’t be regained. Just a thought.
Time Stamps: 0:00 Preface 1:00 Introduction 3:30 Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind 8:50 Laputa: Castle in the Sky 12:53 Grave of the Fireflies 19:14 My Neighbor Totoro 25:17 Kiki’s Delivery Service 32:00 Porco Rosso 36:26 Pom Poko 41:23 Whispers of the Heart 46:45 Princess Mononoke 53:26 Spirited Away 59:41 The Cat Returns 1:03:22 Howl’s Moving Castle 1:08:38 Tales from EarthSea 1:15:43 Ponyo 1:19:56 The Secret World of Arrietty 1:23:20 From Up on Poppy Hill 1:27:30 The Wind Rises 1:33:50 The Tale of Princess Kaguya Have fun!
Whisper of the Heart is my number one favorite Ghibli movie. I relate a lot to the main protagonist. I remember in my high school years how I so badly wanted to do all these artistic careers. Be a writer, manga artist, painter, etc. But my mom and step father were incredibly unsupportive, calling it just a 'hobby', lazy, unrealistic. (If they were willing to pay for art classes at the college instead of shitty 'special' classes, then my goals WOULD HAVE become realistic!) Real life was always boring to me, so I would escape into my own imagination like Shizuku did when she started writing her perfect story. I'd go for long walks, wander through neighborhoods or scenic hiking trails looking for anything to inspire me. The old man, the owner of the antique shop Shizuku visits, reminded me so much of my Grandad. I'd visit him a lot, go out for ice cream or visit the petting zoo, he'd nourish my artistic talent with encouragement, gave me his old easel, books on painting, a whole bunch of canvases, he'd tell me stories of his past (which motivated me to pick up a history book and learn more.). And just like when Shizuku lets the Antique shop owner read her first manuscript she worked tooth and nail over, it was just like when I showed my Grandad my very first large canvas painting I really put my whole heart into. It was of a baby horse sitting with two baby deers in a garden of spring flowers. He was so happy and proud to see it. That was about a year before he passed away. So I tear up a little at the scenes with the old Antique shop owner. I miss Grandad a whole lot. I love this movie a whole lot. And I do kinda hope I reach that point in the story where a sweet guy I can really connect with proposes to me with a huge, cheesy I LOVE YOU!!
Thanks for making me cry. I know I am 7 months late but be brave, your dreams will always end up realising themselves. I wanted to become a director/filmmaker. My parents were super unsupportive. So what did I do? Getting a degree. And after I'll finish my degree start doing filmmaking in my free time with the budget from my revenues. Right now I'm preparing a movie with some friends and I'm so happy! So if I can reassure you, even if you don't know me a "I love you" (as acquaintances) is always great. Good luck with your future 😉
Omg whisper of the heart is my fave too. I really feel shizukus plight to truly want to be great at something but not getting it right away and feeling worthless when compared to seiji. Also the movie is absolutely teeming with beautiful scenery. Each frame could be a piece of art in a museum. It’s a film that fills me with such wistfulness and hope in its beauty and shizukus progression.
I relate to this a lot, but now my passion and hopes are dashed and I'm kinda just empty and sad now. But I love Whisper of the Heart because it is hopeful, and optimistic. It makes me dream of a day where I can actually do something and find happiness. It's beautiful
12:54 you can say that the movie is about both the futility of war and the futility of pride. About how in both war and in real life accepting defeat can be the overall best option. You could say the older brother represents a country itself and the girl as its people and how much a country could try to win a war they can't while dragging their people through hell. And even an allegory for people in general and how holding onto your pride can hurt you and the one's you love.
I can see how someone could interpret it that way, but the movie is based on a book of someone's real-life experience during WWII (the difference being that the author didn't die in the original story, and wrote the book wishing he had died with his sister).
Sen can be a shortened name for "Chihiro". The name "Chihiro" literally means "a thousand questions". which is really fitting for her. "Sen" just means "thousand". It is annoying that he doesn't call her Chihiro, though. Like I said, it really fits her, being an awkward ten-year-old girl.
@ Identity, and the name you identify with is a huge part of this movie's theme of coming of age and confidence. Chihiro has to hang on to her real name, because if she forgets it, she'll never get home.
about “totoro”: these spirits actually are from japanese mythology. sort of spirits that we know from the childhood: home spirits, wood spirits, swamp spirits and so one. in russia there are so many of them and every russian person know about them: kikimora, domovoi, baba yaga, koschey immortal etc. i don’t know what you american have, evil they are or not, but our spirits not evil, but they are not good either. they can hurt you, but can help you sometimes. and japanese spirits are the same way - they beyond good and evil, they just are.
Think a lot of people loved Miyazaki's worlds because they can be just about anything. Grounded in reality, no magic. Or full of magic, mysticism, and wonder. Magic's a potentially dangerous secret that must be well-tempered, or like in Kiki's Delivery Service, magic is there, but it's subdued. There's wonder and awe in just how someone with a few supernatural powers copes with every-day life and the people just accept it, it's not demonized or everyone's fearful of a magical person, "Oh, you're a witch? Cool! Don't hurt yourself and have a good day!" That not every story with magical elements needs some magic-abusing big bad to overcome, it CAN just be about endearing characters, story threads and locations.
It would be really cool if you could review the other three Studio Ghibli films not covered in this video: "Only Yesterday", "My Neighbors the Yamadas", and "When Marnie Was There". I haven't seen the first two myself, but the last of those was really good.
I liked WMWT too. It's my favorite actually (To be fair, I haven't seen very many Ghibli films.) My reasons for enjoying it are pretty much the usual reasons you'd hear. I like the setting. I could live there! It's beautiful and memorable. I like the music. I like the characters. I understand why people might find it boring, but I couldn't stop watching. I had to get some answers. And of course, it messed with me emotionally. I can rewatch this, really appreciating the art and quieter moments.
I loved WMWT, one of my favourites of Ghibli, and probably the one that touched me the most. I know that a lot of people find it boring or manipulative, but i just felt it so natural, touching, beautiful cause i've been in situations like Anna or Marnie. I think it's a very underrated film and here in Argentina only premiered last year and i got a chance to see it in cinemas. Different from the Ghibli stuff we are used to see, but amazing nontheless.
I've seen most of My Neighbours The Yamadas. It's basically just a lot of shorts. Like - if you remember how The Simpsons started out on The Tracey Ullman Show, each short starring them was about the same length as these ones - just cute little cartoons. The movie has no coherent story. As for Only Yesterday - I remember seeing the beginning and I got SO bored. WMWT is GORGEOUS. I really identify with Anna and her outsider perspective.
I think 2 major reasons for why ppl didn’t like WMWT were 1) The surprise incest ruining ppl’s shipping of the two leads, and 2) Anna being needlessly mean to ppl who clearly were trying their best to care for her.
Oh man Howls Moving Castle is by far my favorite studio Ghibli movie. The story, animation, characters, colors all boggle my mine. I understand how it's not everyone fav but honestly I feel like a lot of ghibli movies to me are on the same level and if u said say monkone nasica spirited away howl or kiki was the best I wouldn't argue with u. I think it's just up to what u prefer. Also Porco Rosco is my 2nd fav sheerly for entertainment value also the story is amazing even though I really wish there was clear ending. Yeah its wired he's a pig but the film really touched me when it comes to loss,guilt, and love. A beautiful and funny film to say the least.
See for me it's really tough, because I adore the book, but I didn't like this adaptation. So while I like the movie, it will always be underwhelming to me after the book. There's just a certain charm in the book that I don't think is there in the movie.
Whisper of the heart is one of the best movies I have seen it’s so well made and very fun to watch and you get sucked into the fun of it and some of it is pretty shocking with its ways of the story instead of cliche’s.
My Neighbor Totoro was created the way it was because it was released right besides Grave of The Fireflies, it was supposed to cheer people up after Grave’s darkness
35:44 Doug, The ending, when Fio kisses Porco and Curtis screams, "your face!", they're implying that something changed in his character. I think Ghibli studios tried to convey the message that to be human in a time of war, requires honor and love. Honor was something Porco was rich in. A symbol of love was a gift he receives in the end. The studios on going antiwar message holds the idea of compassion and love as among the highest importance in the human element. I believe Porco was the metaphor used to show this idea. :)
What I like about Miasaki’s films (aside from the atmosphere and animation) is the fact that there’s no real villains in his creations, there’s just conflicts, there’s just nature, there’s just interactions
Kiki was mine too. Spirited away was my 2nd. But growing up I didn't know they were made by the same person. Now as an adult I have the whole box set. Lol
Ok, I think I figured out your problem, Doug. You need to read the books... Howl's Moving Castle is an amazing book (and series of books). The adaptation is actually pretty decent, in that they follow most of the plot points. The only big difference is that the Witch of the Waste is the main villain in the books, not the war that must be fought. (The war is a back burner conflict that might happen if Howl/Sophie can't figure out the mysteries that are brewing in the book.) This leads to a snowball effect of other changes to make a more cohesive movie that fits within the run time, like a good amount of Howl's backstory being cut out and some side characters being cut. The movie is one of the few Ghibli films that DOES have focus, as they are following plot points from the book. Sophie has to figure out what the deal is between Howl and Calcifer that causes them to be "cursed" and break it, and in return Calcifer had agreed to break Sophie's curse. Howl grows as a person (and has a similar growth of character in the books). Sophie's biggest change is that she's magical in the books. As a person who normally scoffs at book adaptations to movies, especially if there are significant changes, I actually love this one. They still manage to capture the spirit of the books, despite the changes. Tales from Earthsea- You definitely need to read the books. This is a travesty from an adaptation perspective. Don't get me started. It's an "in name only" adaptation with some cool artwork. Read the books, they're absolutely amazing.
I love all of these films, but Kiki's is probably my favorite. It was the first one I saw as a young kid, and even now as an adult I connect with it in a way I'm unable to with most other films that transcends simple nostalgia.
I can't pick a single one to be my favorite. I've loved basically all of them that I've seen. If anything one just fits my mood at a certain time than the others and that can change regularly.
I agree, when i hear the music i can't help but feel overjoyed or burst into tears. Heres a link to the live orchestral performance th-cam.com/video/m4LrW5f4dyc/w-d-xo.html , I'm sure you've seen it already but it never gets old for me. They have the orchestral performance of most of the Miyazaki movies, it's amazing if you want to feel warm inside or have a good cry, lol! (here's a link tot he long one >>>> th-cam.com/video/eY1XtWyKlJA/w-d-xo.html)
if you get the chance pick up the Gkids release that came out last year. a lot of stuff was restored(that Disney took out)And a lot of the over dub that belong was removed, also the Orignal music was placed back in. it a MUCH better film then the crap disney gave us
Huh. I mean, I think it's great, but I always found it to be one of the weaker Ghibli films. It's so simple and doesn't really do anything too deep. Nice and sweet movie, but not revolutionary in any way.
I love how all with these movies, you think: “Is the third act gonna happen yet?” But it doesn’t. Instead it catches you off guard in a really good way. They are all at least an hour long, but they feel 5-7 hours long for me.
In the book its actually established that the curse wasn’t even because of the Witch of the Waste and that Sophie was actually the one who was doing it to herself. Theirs a point in the book where Howl even says that he just figured she liked being like that because she could change back whenever she wanted. Sophie is actually established in the book to be a powerful witch herself so it would make sense that she would be able to break the curse herself if she realized how much power she actually has. The book explains so much that the movie left out although I never thought it was anything that was super important. Like we don’t need to know where Howl came from or that Sophie has another sister. I love Howl’s Moving Castle both the book and the movie because they both accomplished the same tone while still telling a really good story. So what I’m getting at is read the book then come back to the movie and things might make more sense.
I think were Howel looses focus is that it dumped entire characters and plot points for time in its transition from novel to big screen. I filled in a lot of blanks when I read it: Turnip head is a combination of two characters from the book, a sister was entirely removed and Sophie has a much more active role in her surroundings in the book. I highly recommend reading it to flesh out the experience.
I read the book a long time ago after watching the movie and to be honest, I found the book way more confusing. XD Also I wasn't nearly as convinced of the romance between Sophie and Howl in the book. In fact I can't even recall if they ended up together. Maybe I need to give it a reread someday.
Right? I felt dead for a couple days after that. Very powerful and engaging story though. My grandmother was in a similar situation in Japan. Her home town was bombed and she had to live in an abandoned Sake factory and see the mushroom cloud while her father was working in Nagasaki. He fortunately survived, but man, I can't imagine what it would have been like to live in those circumstances. Like he said, it wasn't about taking sides or necessarily anti-war. It was just showing a reality of someone's life in difficult circumstances.
You did your thing with this video. Like I love how thought out and how easily you talk and explain the masterpiece Studio Ghibli movies are, straight heat 🤒🤒🔥🔥🔥
How's moving castle is my favorite movie ;_; I felt so close to everyone and the thing of not having a clear goal was what connected me to them, we find our way with them. I think princess mononoke and my neighbor Totoro are kinda overrated, I've heard too much to get too little still nice tho but not wow what a master piece. Whisper to the heart and lives in the wind are my other favorites miazaki movies I always loved his animation and I love to share feelings with others through those movies
A little nitpick, San from Princess Mononoke is NOT a half-human half-wolf, she's a human child that was abandoned when her parents tossed her to the Moro to devour while they made their escape. This is what informed Moro's view of humanity and their lack of respect for life, that they would throw their own child to die to save themselves. It's actually a pretty big part of Moro's viewpoint and character! San is fully aware of this, which is WHY she doesn't want to BE a human, she wants to BE a wolf because she views wolves as more noble and caring for their family and pack, than the humans who abandoned her to die. Also, the girl's name is San, Princess Mononoke (Mononoke-hime) is what the fearful humans calls her because they don't know she's human, they think she's a vengeful spirit of the forest, so they gave her the name which is exactly that - a vengeful spirit princess.
Okay on the note of you not really liking Howl's Moving Castle Doug. Your intitled to your own opinion man that's fine. Personally it's a favorite of mine. But if your not satisfied with the movie, read the original book by Diana Wynne Jones. If you haven't already by this upload. It's pretty well paced and a really fun and mello read. It even has two follow up books Castle in the Air (No relation to Castle in the Sky), and the House of Many Ways. Either way just throwing that out there for you Doug, and to others out there if you were feeling a little let down. Or if your curious as to what would happen afterward.
Howl's Moving Castle is my favorite book. It is one of the most enjoyable, whimsical adventures I have ever read. I reread all three books at least once a year. While the Ghibli movie made me buy the book, the book is the superior product. I get why Doug has problems with the film. Some of the changes made took away from Sophie's character, such as turning her into an ugly duckling. I personally don't like that choice. And Howl's watered down too, which I think takes away from the uniqueness of the original story. Additionally, while I get that Miyazaki puts war themes in almost all his movies, the focus on it did not particularly fit in this one in my opinion. Visually interesting as it is, as the follow up movie to Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle does feel like a step down.
About Kaguya: It's an adaptation of the probably most popular Japanese faurytale! So of course the story isn't revolutionary. That's the reason why it had this simple style: It's supposed to look like traditional Japanese ink drawings! I really liked the plot of the movie and the ending was so sad, I cried very much.
Concerning Nausicaä, i know the movie is amazing, but i had already read the manga, which is sooo much more developped, so i felt kinda "robbed" So weirdly enough i'd advise people to watch the movie then read the manga, the movie doesn't spoil much from the manga anyway
@ledzeppelin27 @@Erik-ou3tl In the Original Version it's just 7 books, i bought them in Ebook a while ago, it's a great read and you get through them pretty quickly
There's more to Totoro than just a laid-back movie. You completely omitted the fact that their mother doesn't even live with them...she's ill and hospitalized. The light-hearted energy of film shifts when Mei & Satsuki have this explosive argument when they discovered their mother is not well enough to come home. Mei then runs away from home with an ear of corn in attempt to reach the hospital because she believes it will help her mom feel better. There's a lot to this film to appreciate and relate to, especially when the sister argue about their mother's well-being. It's very realistic for one sibling to be naive/innocent & idealistic while the other internalizes a lot of stress, fear, & burden.
The best: Spirited Away. The characters and emotions themselves are phenomenal. Like Doug says, if a reboot does happen it would be amazing My personal favorite: Howl's Moving Castle. The reason being that the characters' chemistry is really likeable, particularly with Sophie and Howl. Sophie is just this person who has a low self-esteem but she doesn't care, she just keeps on going. Howl, on the hand, is energetic and mysterious. His personality is a bit hard to grasp on but you find that you still like him. And their chemistry is really nice. I find myself feeling _kilig_ whenever they share moments together. If i were to complain, it's that i wish i could see a little more of that.
Kiki's Deliver Service established that Kiki was 13, and she looked like it. The Cat Returns established that Haru was in high school, and she looked it. The Secret World of Arrietty established that Arrietty was 14, but she looked like she was Haru's age. Did anyone else think she looked a little older than 14?
So a few things about Howls Moving Castle ( I know comments already filled with this stuff) 1) unlike some of his other work, the movie is actually based on a book, so if you really don't like the motivations I would blame the author instead of Miyazaki (though the book takes more time explaining things, but thats the nature of things, can only squeeze so much into a movie, not to mention there are multiple books in the series) 2) due to the nature of the movie and the story it does take multiple viewings (back to back) in my opinion to really enjoy it, lots of little things you don't notice the first time around that make sense the second time though given the odd nature of the ending scenes. 3) I personally find the reception to the movie really divided. some people adore the movie, some people just don't get grabbed by it. I don't think that the film is bad in any way, but its just not for everyone. As an aside, I find it telling that someone could just adore Tales from Earthsea and yet think Howls Moving Castle is the worst Miyazaki film (fun fact, Miyazaki has been quoted saying he doesn't even like Tales, didn't think it was a good movie at all, which sadly really crushed his son)
Grave of the Fireflies was such an emotionally devastating film that it, literally, made me feel numb by the end. I literally felt nothing for a good hour or so after it ended. It's one movie I'll never see again, no matter how much of a masterpiece it is. I have a ton of respect for it, but my heart can't handle the journey of watching those two kids fall apart.
If you haven't seen Miyazaki's first film, The Castle of Cagliostro, you should just to see where he started. This is where most people were introduced to Lupin III. He also worked on the series, and you can see some designs in those episodes that he'd later use in his Studio Ghibli films.
WOW! I love studio Ghibli so much!! I cried the whole time! My favourites are: Kiki’s Delivery Service, howls moving castle, spirited Away, whisper of the heart My mom got me into these movies and I’ve grown up with them and love them all dearly 💕
Ponyo scared the shit out of me when her dad voiced by Liam Neeson came out of the sea went up to the boy and said "I'm looking for my daughter, have you seen my daughter?" 😰😰
@@c0mpu73rguy It's really good! I highly recommend it to anyone who falls under the following categories: 1. a 90s kid, 2. a Ghibli fan, and/or 3. a Gainax fan. The show is a total of 39 episodes long, and is both dubbed and subbed to fit one's preference. Here's the intro to give you an idea of what to expect: th-cam.com/video/uOmqOhGno6Y/w-d-xo.html
I remember growing up, Castle in the Sky always had a large imprint on my brain. I always loved the movie, and the imagination that went into it always fascinated me. By far my favorite Studio Ghibli film, even though I love all the others too.
I love the fact that Doug likes even the movies he doesn't like... that's the magic of Miyazaki for you! I showed Laputa and Nausicaa to my whole family after a dinner, and EVERYONE, from my 8-year-old nephews to my 85-year-old Grandma, loved them, each for different reasons. They have something for everyone, whether it's the story, the animation, the characters, the colors, you name it!
I will never, never, never watch Grave of the Fireflies ever again ... It's such a great movie, but it's a damn hard pill to swallow ... it hits me everytime. I always wish someone just step in and help this kids, it just hits me every single time, it broke me like no other movie ever has (not even Hachiko) ... and for that, is the best movie i'll never watch again.
I’m really surprised you don’t like Howl’s Moving Castle. I think it’s the best Miyazaki film after Castle in the Sky, Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke (all three of those are tied as my favourite).
I can't stand that movie. It's like watching a puppet theatre performed by marionettes made from the corpses of your loved ones. I've seen The Last Airbender, I've seen Dragon Ball Evolution, I've seen Eragon, and Ender's Game. I consider all of those, every one, to be a better and more faithful adaptation than Howl's Moving Castle. It's one thing when a movie like World War Z takes the title and almost nothing else. But when a movie starts off so faithfully, then just veers exponentially away from the source material, accelerating into further and further pointless contrivances? That's about as bad as it gets.
@@Tylendal242 jesus dude I think you over exaggerating a bit. I mean I know some people don't like the movie ,everyone has their preferences but you acting like it's the fucking end of the world
@@Tylendal242 So? If the movie can stand on its own, then it’s totally fine. Mary Poppins veered far from its source material yet I see no one giving it flack
What really draws castle in the sky together, and I’m sad that you didn’t include this, THE SOUNDTRACK OMG. The soundtrack to castle in the sky is one of the best musical compositions I’ve ever heard. If you watch the scene where Sheeta falls from the sky and listen to the soundtrack and how it plays into that scene it is truly one of the most beautiful scenes in cinema ever. The soundtracks to the Ghibli movies are what make them so magical, I would even put Hisiaishi’s music over the animation itself.
Indeed. The reorchestrated version by Joe Hisaishi especially. That version of the score I think is arguably a better fit for this film. That and I just love hearing evil Luke Skywalker chew the scenery as the villain.
Grave of the Fireflies, From up on Poppy Hill, and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya should not be part of Disneycember because Disney had nothing to do with releasing them in North-America. He also forgot My Neighbors the Yamadas, which was dubbed by Disney. Now with that rant over, it's nice to see these finally get re-uploaded. EDIT: I'm fully aware that these are older videos. In fact, I was annoyed about this when they were originally posted on Channel Awesome.
I'd love to know Doug's thoughts on the Ghibli films he didn't review, like Only Yesterday, Ocean Waves, My Neighbours the Yamadas, When Marnie Was There as well as Miyazaki's first film, The Castle of Cagliostro.
I feel the same about Kiki's Delivery Service. It gives me a warm, cozy sensation whenever I watch it, kinda like the feeling you get when you're sitting in front of a fire place on a cold day. I'm not really sure why I get that reaction from it-- I just do. Kiki's adorable, and my god I always wanted a piece of bread from Osono's bakery! xD
I think that, in the case of Howl's Moving Castle, a lot of that is because of the book it's based on. Not that there's anything wrong with it, it's just a book that isn't very focused, and so Miyazaki/Ghibli tried to recreate it with his own spin.
Doug, in My Neighbor Totoro, did you somehow miss that the whole plot revolves around them coping with their mother being ill? They move to the country for the fresh air, they visit her in the hospital, the father is doing his best to be a single parent while the mom is in the hospital, the younger dauggter runs away for awhile because she is worried that they are moving on when the mother is still alive. All the fantastical imagery is about how the imagination of a child can help them cope with a deeply personally troubling issue. Also it has to do with the power and tranquility of old wild places and the unknown not being so scary if you give it a chance.
There's something about Kiki's that always stuck with me. It was my first Ghibli movie and I was so young at the time, I couldn't read/remember the title. So when I tried to find it again only going off vague memories, it became this whole quest to rediscover it. Something that actually took me almost a decade to do and once I did, the movie still filled me with that feeling of childlike wonder and excitement.
Howl's is probably my favorite Miyazaki film, and while I'm not 100% on what the deal is with Sophie's curse, I always got the impression that it was somehow tied to her own self-consciousness vs. her selflessness. It's as if whenever she's thinking of herself, she looks more like an old woman, but in scenes where she's more focused on Howl she looks more like herself. And at the end, she no longer seems to care because Howl loves her for who she is, so she's left as mostly her old self with silver hair. It also mirrors Howl's own hangups over his appearance. It's kind of a twist on the "true love breaks the curse" trope, in that the curse isn't so much broken as it is suppressed
1. Howl's Moving Castle was based on a book of the same name written by British author Diana Wynne Jones. The book was twice as scatterbrained compared to the movie the movie 2. If you are paying attention Sophie's shift in age was consistent with her shift in emotions especially about herself 3. The scene where the Witch and Sophie are going up the stairs was also in the book and the writer British author Diana Wynne Jones love the way it was depicted in the movie
"This looks like something that could be animated today!" At first I got upset by this notion, then I remembered all the poorly animated films of my youth. On the note of Totoro, it's such a big deal to people because it defines their childhood, because that's litteraly what it's designed to do, it's not over the top outlandish action scenes, it's childhood, everyone's childhood... To be fair I might be a bit biased as it really was just so close to my childhood, I was the youngest of two siblings(boy boy instead of girl girl), my mother was constantly in and out of the hospital (though I don't remember concern mostly apathy), my dad always worked late my mother a teacher(so their dad felt like an amalgamation of the two), I spent a lot of time with my grandmothers and just being outside, it just really speaks to me, it has since I was little and always will. Porco Roso "I'm a pig", like a womanizer, like a greedy person, like a selfish person, he sees himself as all these things as a pig, and so he is suffering a self imposed curse where so long as he sees himself as a pig he is a pig, but whenever he gives into his better nature he reverts, how don't you get this. Tanuki aren't Racoons, in English they're called racoon dogs, and I know that makes them seem even more like racoons but they're really not, they are a real creature but while visually simular to racoons are not actually racoons. The reason her family is so okay with her going off in whispers of the heart is because in Japan High school isn't required education, and it happens in Japan where students miss their chance to take entrance exams and the like so they have to take a year, basically it's not the best option but if she needs a year to understand herself it's not the end of the world... Though granted from what we know of stereotypical Japanese family mentality this seems unlikely, just saying. It's called Princess Mononoke because she's the driving force for Ashitaka, like Zelda in legend of Zelda, I'm not disagreeing I find that an odd way to name something too, I guess it was just a more intriguing than Ashitaka. In the cat returns it's the king of the cats who makes the offer to have her marry his son, he makes all the mistakes not the Prince, and not seeing it in Japanese first it's not as obvious that the assistant cat should be female, there are one or two scenes where you're like "something's up here", but up until then it made perfect sense to have Andy be the cat. In Howl's moving castle he never goes back and forth about helping in the war, he's just observing the happenings he flatly refused to aid in the war, also the curse is tied to Sophie's mental state not the witch of the waste's power, that said while I enjoy the film I do feel the story needed more building. As someone who still really likes the black cauldron I think I might really be able to get intovtales of earth and sea. I've never felt the appeal of Ponyo, but having kids in the house maybe now's the time to give it a chance. ...Douge most people don't read the credits, especially not on their first viewing. Oh god Up on Poppy Hill... I fucking loved that fucked up movie.
I'm really glad Whisper of the Heart got some screen time in this video. It helps me a lot everytime I watch it. It helps me to keep going and finding the will to try. It's my favorite movie out of all the Ghibli films.
He COMPLETELY like most people missed almost EVERYTHIN Totoro is about.. like went over his head. These girls and their dad move to this absolute SH(T box of a house, because their mother is gravely ill with probably TB in her lungs, I think thy've moved from a much nicer house A to be closer to the hospital and B because they're financially crippled paying for the mother to be healed. The girls are JUST about 6months before the ages where they really start thinkin exestentially about life and death. These 2 girls are a wonderful example of the human heart and the human imagination. The girls instead of dealing with the fact their mother may die by being miserable, they o on a journey through their imaginations and bring to us an amazing little personal magical kingdom where there's no death, there's no mysery, but hope, growth, life. And they demonstrate better than any movie of ANY kind how i think my imagination was and how i saw the world when i was 4 or 8. They brings a simple childs imaineation to life on the screen and prove to us that deep down this is the kind of magical kingdom we all have inside of us. Not Xboxes and iphones, games, youtube etc.. but playing in the garden, digging up worms with a stick, and pretending you're a sniper in some imaginary war... Anyway, thats my soppy enterpretation of it
What I always believed with Howl's Moving Castle when Sophie goes from being older to younger here and there is the pure fact of childhood wonder. Moments that aren't so heavy and being wondrous she can appear to be a bit younger. When reality of the situation sets in she is old again. The reality of war and the possibility that she could be cursed forever. Also, with that time traveling at the end when she can see Howl as a kid I feel like it's her connecting with him. Plus since he is magical and can open up different doors to other areas who says he can't show her his past in the world where they connected that he made for her that was where he use to go.
Totoro for me is about respecting spirits or anything that is different, unusual and unique to you. And it made me reminisce all the fun times in my childhood where I experienced the most Eerie yet Ethereal moments I still question them today like what happened back 🤔😌😂😂then like this movie always makes me wonder about earth 😌 Edit: the imaginable simplicity of it is what makes it not to bad 😌
I was always told Toroto was a slice of life movie so not to expect anything grand which helped when I 1st saw it Also...I never saw the sub version of The Cat Returns so...I can't picture the assistant with any other voice really cuz I kind of love the idea of it looking semi-female and just "nope, dude, that's cool. Still wanna pet him"
I know as a kid my siblings and I loved My Neighbour Totoro so much that we wore out the VHS tape we owned of it. I think even kids can appreciate the quiet moments and just experiencing the life of someone else without over the top action. Not to mention the cat bus always looked super fluffy and all three of us grew up with cats. To my absolute shame, I actually used to think both Kiki's Delivery Service and Castle in the Sky were BORING. Shows how much I knew. Thankfully, when I tried again when I was older, I was a lot more invested and enjoyed both of them a lot more. I wound up watching more Ghibli films as I got older as well, and while I still haven't seen all of them that show up here I'm a big fan of the ones I have seen. Some I rewatch more than others (Princess Mononoke is probably my favourite to just put on nearly any time), but I can't deny the heart that appears in these films and the absolute beauty and imagination they bring to the screen. If some of you disliked studio Ghibli films if you watched them when you were younger for whatever reason and it's been a while, I'd encourage another try. You might be surprised with how your view changes on them.
"Totoro" was the first foray into 'fantasy slice of life' by anime. This reached its peak in the astoundingly inventive and beautiful series "Mushishi", which was mainly self-contained episodic stories.
I just find it annoying that the reason for Yubaba and Zeniba being twins totally went over Doug's head. They're meant to represent two sides of one person. Yubaba primarily stands for the negative side, while Zeniba primarily stands for the positive side. I say primarily because both twins have positive and negative aspects and just one side stands out more than the other. That was the point of them being twins - they're really meant to be "two sides of the same coin".
I've only seen Ponyo and Spirited Away, and I heavily enjoyed the latter. I need to watch more of their movies, but I should probably finish college first.
I just got done with Kiki’s Delivery Service and I love it like you do It’s actually incredible that you get sucked into a world and it’s characters in just an hour and 44 minutes and they’re not incredibly deep or complex but just simple and very likable. My first Miyazaki film is one that I love. Here’s hoping I’ll love more.
I loved Tales from Earthsea! Oddly enough, I didn’t want any kind of big ending. I went in wanting it, but the more I watched it, the more I enjoyed the slower stuff. I loved the relationship between all of the characters. I loved the farm life and finding out why he killed his father and I absolutely loved the singing scene. It captured my attention and made me feel a lot with very little said.
The trick with Howl's Moving Castle is that, basically, Howl's a non-committal and vain man without direction. You see it in how he acts, how he changes forms and seems to lose himself, like he's not even sure he's human, or how he takes assumed names, and even how his castle is set up to shift locations via its magic door and the like. It stems from lacking value in himself, but trying to pretend otherwise., so when the illusion he makes for himself shatters, he falls apart. It's paralleled by Sophie's curse, she just sort of accepts it, because she has a low opinion of herself so to her it seems "Fine" that she's ancient and decrepit. When she's feeling young, vigorous, when she feels like she matters, the curse weakens, etc. Ultimately, Howl's Moving Castle is about self-worth and commitment.
As simple as Whisper of the Heart is I absolutely love it. It's characters, the introspective nature of it, and the story of a young unsure teen who discovers a passion for writing is one that hit really close to home with me. I love Shizuku, her relationship with Seiji and that scene where she sings while he plays the violin is so cheesy but I love it so much. It's a beautiful film I recommend to anyone who is feeling lost and in need of hope
![🔴 ฟุตบอลแชมป์กีฬา 7HD แชมเปียน คัพ 2024 [รอบรองชนะเลิศ]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/zPm8ClLVhoE/mqdefault.jpg)
These reviews have been down for so long it's like they are brand new videos!
SQUIDBEAR and mine too!
*Vietnam Flashbacks to the Ponyo Review*
Channel Awesome are you going to release these reviews separate?
They made him a pig for. one. key. reason.
The pun
Channel Awesome I hope the MCU movies from 2016-2018 (from Captain America Civil War up to Ant Man and the Wasp) will be part of this upcoming Disneycember. I'd also love to see a Disneycember review of Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, and maybe also The Clone Wars pilot movie that was released in theaters in 2008.
Disneycember Ghibli
1:00 - Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
8:44 - Castle in the Sky
12:47 - Grave of the Fireflies
19:08 - My Neighbor Totoro
25:11 - Kiki's Delivery Service
31:54 - Porco Rosso
36:19 - Pom Poko
41:16 - Whisper of the Heart
46:38 - Princess Mononoke
53:20 - Spirited Away
59:35 - The Cat Returns
1:03:16 - Howl's Moving Castle
1:08:32 - Tales from Earthsea
1:15:36 - Ponyo
1:19:48 - The Secret World of Arrietty
1:23:14 - From Up on Poppy Hill
1:27:24 - The Wind Rises
1:33:44 - The Tale of Princess Kaguya
@@Chad_Eldridge no problem!
Your the hero we dong deserve
Bless your soul good sir. Thank you!
Thank you for this!
He dident review only yesterday
Me and my brother were actually rewatching howls moving castle a few days ago. and our conclusion of the theme was that howl is a child in an adults body, he's immature and childish, while sophie is an old woman in a young womans body, she is insecure, boring, thinks of herself as ugly that literally gets cursed to be an old woman. and when she is learning to be adventurous, energetic and when she is in love, she gets younger. while howl is growing into a man that takes responsibility.
also war is bad i guess but thats kind of a theme in every movie of miyazakis
That's actually a greate way of looking at it!
Please how can I download the howls moving castle cause am only seeing the trailers on TH-cam I need the full movie in english
Okechi Cynthia 123 movies if you want to pirate it
@@Cynthia.O. hun you can find it on Amazon and just buy the physical copy.
alright, now explain the turniphead prince thing.
Just got to the Howl's moving castle review: I don't really know what to say other than you might not have liked it just because you didn't understand the curse. The film makes it clear during the scene when she's with Howl in the field that it's tied to her feelings of self worth--when she feels bad about herself she turns older but when she feels good about herself (or even just forgets TO think about herself, like when she's asleep) she looks younger. It really has nothing to do with the Witch of the Waste losing her powers at all because that doesn't even happen until the palace scene with Sulliman about 3/4ths of the way through the film, it all has to do with Sophie and how she perceives herself.
The point of the film is that Sophie was CONTENT with the curse, she was almost happy being old because it "finally suits her." Her story arc is coming to grips with her feelings about herself and realizing her own worth, which is finally resolved once and for all at the end when Howl compliments her hair at the end. Instead of looking downcast and feeling bad about herself like she would have before she joyfully jumps into his arms accepting the compliment.
Howl's story arc (while admittedly less developed since less time was spent on it) is about thinking of other people instead of himself. He's vain, he's frivolous, he hides under false identities to avoid helping out in the war, etc. By the end of the film he's grown to care about Sophie and the family and chooses to fight to try and save them--putting his very life on the line for it.
👏👏👏👏👏
Howl's Moving Castle might have been more focused if it hadn't started off exactly the same as the book, and then started to veer off exponentially. I hate that movie with a passion. I can understand its objective quality and appeal, but I consider it to be one of the worst big screen adaptations ever made. Seriously. I watched the Last Airbender movie and found myself enjoying it, simply because Howl's Moving Castle had set such an impressively low standard for big screen adaptations.
Or maybe, just maybe for the same reason he criticised Nausicaa?
Both movies are loosely based on a much better original source and both films fail to capture the story.
Some times visuals alone don't help at all and Howl's moving castle is that time.
Look. Not everyone was going to get what that was all about in the English translation. Even I was confused at first. Hell, I still was until I read your comment. I still liked the movie, and the only part I truly understood was the link between Howl and Calcifer.
@@Tylendal242 Diana Wynne Jones herself likes it. I saw the movie first, and though I do like the movie better, I think it's a good adaption, if not a faithful one. The characters have essentially the same motivations, a bit distilled for timing purposes. I think of it as an alternate universe steampunk-themed fanfiction.
Critic, you seem to have missed the point of Sophie's curse in Howl's Moving Castle: she has been cursed to look as old as she feels. So her age bounces around based on how she is feeling at the time. The curse is never lifted, she just learns to accept herself and the curse by the end and that's okay.
You see, this is why this film fails so hard, because it forgets to point out the reason for Sophie turning young is that she herself lifts her curse off, that is the whole point of the story in the book, Howl's moving castle is a disgrace
I've seen a few different explanation so what that tells me is that it's confusing how the curse works
she doesnt lift the curse, she just doesnt let it dominate her, theres a difference
a very sad difference, between feeling pain and simply not experiencing pain
@@aurorauplinks she actually lifts the curse, she literally lifts the curse, there is an entire chapter dedicated to this fact.
is it lifting the curse ? oh il go and enjoy the film again someday if i can
I can honestly never imagine Spirited Away being redone, reimagined, or adapted. It’s just so unique and every image of the movie is so well done and worked hard upon
In terms of adaptation, they DID make said masterpiece into a stage play: Spirited Away Live on Stage. DON'T WORRY though; Based on the clips I've found, the trailer itself, and the reviews from people who've been lucky enough to see it, it's absolutely AMAZING. I just about cried my eyes out when I saw the trailer, and knew exactly which scenes were depicted based on the shots alone, THAT's how faithful it is: th-cam.com/video/uIJQGo--Fpo/w-d-xo.htmlsi=VcP5bZj5ww0LPohR
Comment section:
1%: hope that's not gonna be copyrighted by Disney or Ghibli...
4%: wow, I'm glad you enjoyed the "(movie's name)", that's my favorite one!
95%: H O W L ' S C A S T L E !
Here's hoping you don't get copyright claimed by Ghibli or Disney
Bryce McKenzie Download while you can
It's not fucking owned by fucking Disney, those fucking assholes just distribute them and yet they fucking pretend they did fucking ANYTHING to help out.
@@coletrainhetrick calm your tits down. There is no reason to get that hyped. You didn't make it come you're not getting money from it, calm your cholesterol down.
@@AxioProductions how can you download?
ベール グリーンハートVert Green Heart By pressing the download button
San (Princess Mononoke) isn't half-wolf, she's the female Mowgli. Her parents were attacked while she was a baby, by Moro, and her parents threw San to Moro and fled (hoping Moro would be distracted by the infant). Obviously Moro then raised her, and her character was more the opposite of Eboshi prior to meeting Ashitaka, who began to influence her humanity for the first time. This is one of the conflicts Ashitaka had with the wolves/Moro - they feared she would inexorably be drawn to him and humanity in general, making him a dangerous influence. In the end Moro tried to let her go as things got desperate and emotional, then went to die in the final battle, but San picked the forest anyway, despite the huge loss of spirituality there after what happened to the Forest Spirit - but her connection to Ashitaka at least allows her some peace and implies a future friendship, so it was ambiguous but leans more towards hope.
The one that grabbed me the most was Howl's Moving Castle. I dont know why, but that movie in particular really drew me in
In case you don't know, it's based on a german book.
The music is fantastic.. and Howl is hot as hell!
That movie can go toe to toe with any other animated film ever
@@b.sylphaen you can almost SMELL the German themes in it. so it makes sense that its based off a German book
@@b.sylphaen The author of the book is british actually.
"Spirited Away" has many little nuances most people never notice. I, being outlandishly intuitive, noticed them at once.
1. The moon goes through nearly 3/4 of a cycle, changing each 'night' Chihiro is in the spirit realm. Then, we find out why once they leave: time has been passing much faster outside, and the car is full of dust and surrounded by weeks worth of plant growth.
2. "The train used to run in both directions, but these days it's a one-way ride" -Kamaji, the Boiler Man. The train carries human souls from the living realm to the land of the dead. In Japanese culture, there were times similar to the 'Day of the Dead', when the spirits of ancestors could return and commune with the living. In the modern era, this seems to no longer be the case... and the train only going INTO the spirit realm now is the explanation.
3. Noh Face, is of course a play on 'No' and 'Noh theater'. However, the reason his personality became so random was that, having no personality of his own, he absorbed the nature of what was around him. In the bath house, surrounded by greed, he became greedy himself. He didn't like it, but couldn't escape from it on his own, and so was naturally drawn to Chihiro's kindness toward him. In the house of Zaneeba, with generosity surrounding him, his temperament reflected it. I later read Miazaki also said that he felt much like Noh Face, trying to fit in with his surroundings at times and being uncertain of what he should be.
4. Chihiro beginning to disappear until she eats something of the spirit realm. As the Sun set, the link between the realms (the train station) was severed and her mortal body was then exposed to a purely non-material realm. One can assume without some of the energy of that realm in her own body, she could no longer maintain cohesion. Her parents, having gorged on the spirits' food, were in no such danger.
5. Zaneeb's gold seal. Basically, this was the same sort of magic as Yubaba stealing the names of those she put to work. Names have power in many mythologies, and this is true in the SA world. The seal contained the power of Zaneeba's name, and someone possessing it could have gained some control over her by using it. This explains why she was so angry at Haku.
6. Humans were disliked because of their 'smell', which was revolting to the spirits. One could speculate that this is because humans are still living, and their organic bodies always carry the stench of decay and other aspects of the living world, which the spirits, regardless of what they look like, are no longer tainted by it. Note that the River Spirit became a reeking mass of filth when filled with human garbage. It was one way in which the humans could contaminate a spirit, and perhaps a bit of a reason the spirits often hated or feared humans. This is a bit of the environmentalist aspect of Miazaki's mindset at work, but it fits in with the rest of the spirit world's construction.
7. One spirit was overtly kind to Chihiro: the Raddish Spirit. Now this takes a knowledge of horticulture to understand! This Spirit feels indebted to humans for a simple reason: wild radishes are small, scrawny plants that can only grow in disturbed soil and tend to be crowded out quickly in succession. They must always struggle to remain uneaten by insects and animals, especially cabbage butterfly larvae. Humans cultivated them, allowed them to thrive and grow enormous, hundreds of times larger than their native varieties. Humans protect them from insects and wild herbivores, and even though they are eaten, their seeds are protected and treasured, and planted in vastly greater numbers than nature would ever permit. Therefore, the Spirit of Radishes has also grown large and fat, and also (in keeping with spirit mythos in Japan, far more powerful than he would ever have been otherwise since his physical aspect is being cultivated and expanded). He pays part of the debt he feels to humanity by aiding Chihiro.
This is incredible!!!! Spirited Away was one of my favorites as a kid.
Thank you so much for giving us this! I never knew these facta
I'll never be able to finish Grave of the Fireflies, the feels of that movie is soul crushing.
Fwazangalang Entertainment wanna cry even more? The author of the original short story it was based on made it as an apology to his sister because he felt guilt that she slowly died from malnutrition during the war while he lived and watched her die unable to do anything. That is why the boy dies in the story, because the author wanted to die and be with his sister.
@@surft dont forget the whole reason it was made into a movie was to remind the youth of that time that HEY! Stop being slacker brats your grandparents had to live threw HELL so you could be born, RESPECT the sacrifices of your elders
God seeing the Protagonists dead body hits me freaking hard
Me too
Call me a contrarian but there is something metaphysically wrong with Grave of the Fireflies.
It makes no sense for Japanese animation to have such a Western theme of mourning for the dead.
Nosaka was born in 1930, making him 14-15 during the firebombing which means he must have definitely been exposed to the thanophilia of Japanese culture, yet years later he wrote such an "American" work that makes no sense from the Japanese background it is set in.
In Howl’s Moving Castle, I take the scene of Sophie and the Witch of the Waste walking up the steps to show the growth in their characters. Sophie is unsure of herself, shy, and self deprecating so her curse causes her physical appearance to reflect her emotional state. The witch was built up a bit and when you see her the first time she appears to be a big threat and a force not to be messed with. Here, however, we see how weak and feeble the arch actually is while Sophie encourages the witch to move on, gets perseveres to the top, and ends up being a bit sassy to her as well. While one character grows, the other one seems to wither away. Her curse lessens throughout which makes her old but not as old on the beginning since she is getting more confident in herself. However, it isn’t fully broken due to her so easily returning to her previous way of seeing herself. Those are just my thoughts
I thought so too. I never once felt uncomfortable watching that. (Howl’s Moving Castle is my favorite Ghibli move, I understand his opinion; but it was hard to watch)
I think the scene sums up what I really love about Moving Castle was the subtlety. It’s not perfect by any means, I agree that some character motivation is lost but it’s scenes like those that make it up in spade.
Princess Mononoke is one of my all time favorite movies
Mine as well, shame Doug wasnt the biggest fan of it
+Melkor Morgoth No, you missed the point. He wished this movie had a better Mononoke, and had his flaws. He almost does like it as much as other people. I think it’s pretty much close enough.
It makes more sense when you realize that a better title would be "spirit princess", that her name is San and that she is not a half wolf(entirely human).
She despies humanity due to what they have done to her surrogate family, and so she despise herself for being human. Ashitaka becomes a "nobody" after getting cursed, so he is not truly human either, and struggles to find a new foothold. They are on common ground, but for different reasons. They are both potential bridges between nature/spirits and humanity, but neither of them are able to become one on their own.
I’ve only seen it once, but I didn’t care for it. It felt like I was watching Ghibli try to make a Disney movie.
the soundtrack is so amazing
When sofie is true to her emotions or when she acts without worrying about her insecurities she gets younger. I think the curse shows her inside on the outside. So when she grows to accept herself she in a way overcomes the curse. Hope that helps. Loving this whole thing thanks for doing it, its awesome.
I am in love with this guy's style of animation.
Same here. Even Nadia the Secret of Blue Water has that Ghibli feel, even though it's done by Hidiaki Ano(aka: the creator of Evangelion)
Considering how Anno was part of Nausicaa‘s animation team (I think the God-Warrior scene?) I’m not surprised. ;D
After my first time watching Howl's Moving Castle, my thoughts were pretty much the same as Doug's. Four viewings later, it's my favorite Ghibli film and one of my favorite films of all time. The story feels vague and labyrinthine at first, but with each viewing, it becomes clearer and more compelling. It's my prime example of a movie that needs to be watched many times.
@@ossianback same reaction as spirited away, when i first saw it, i left be blank and thinking how this movie is as good as people said, then i watch it again this week and i think it's felt better then my first watch probably because i came to understand some of the concept of the story
Fun fact: Tanuki actually aren't raccoons! It's an understandable mistake, as apparently the English dub claims that they are, but they're actually called raccoon _dogs_ and are, in fact, a type of canid I believe are closely related to foxes. They're also really cute and VERY common in Japanese folklore as yokai and spirits.
Racoon is a very common (mis)translation of Tanuki. I am actually pretty sure that they aren't a real (currently existing atleast) animal and racoons are just the closest thing to it. But Tanuki and Kitsune (fox spirits) are related in some way afaik.
@@gokbay3057 Tanuki are very real
Yes, Tanuki is not raccoon. Raccoon is know as Araiguma in japan. And Tanuki does exist in japan.
Thank you. Man, do I feel stupid...there's even a Japanese restaurant in my town called "Tanuki's Cave", and still I thought they were raccoons.
What always kept me thinking about Kiki is the fact that at the of the movie, she still can’t understand the cat. She found back the ability to fly, so I expacted all to be the same again, but then she still couldn’t speak with her cat. It made me think that while coming of age up you lose yourself and at some point find yourself back again, but some things have changed and got lost for good and can’t be regained. Just a thought.
Ghibli animated movies: Come for the stories, stay for the animated food. HOLY SHIT IS THE FOOD SO GOOD LOOKING.
Your god damn right
Time Stamps:
0:00 Preface
1:00 Introduction
3:30 Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
8:50 Laputa: Castle in the Sky
12:53 Grave of the Fireflies
19:14 My Neighbor Totoro
25:17 Kiki’s Delivery Service
32:00 Porco Rosso
36:26 Pom Poko
41:23 Whispers of the Heart
46:45 Princess Mononoke
53:26 Spirited Away
59:41 The Cat Returns
1:03:22 Howl’s Moving Castle
1:08:38 Tales from EarthSea
1:15:43 Ponyo
1:19:56 The Secret World of Arrietty
1:23:20 From Up on Poppy Hill
1:27:30 The Wind Rises
1:33:50 The Tale of Princess Kaguya
Have fun!
42:45 What she really wanted to do was listen to lo-fi hip hop radio beats to study and relax to
Whisper of the Heart is my number one favorite Ghibli movie. I relate a lot to the main protagonist. I remember in my high school years how I so badly wanted to do all these artistic careers. Be a writer, manga artist, painter, etc. But my mom and step father were incredibly unsupportive, calling it just a 'hobby', lazy, unrealistic. (If they were willing to pay for art classes at the college instead of shitty 'special' classes, then my goals WOULD HAVE become realistic!) Real life was always boring to me, so I would escape into my own imagination like Shizuku did when she started writing her perfect story. I'd go for long walks, wander through neighborhoods or scenic hiking trails looking for anything to inspire me.
The old man, the owner of the antique shop Shizuku visits, reminded me so much of my Grandad. I'd visit him a lot, go out for ice cream or visit the petting zoo, he'd nourish my artistic talent with encouragement, gave me his old easel, books on painting, a whole bunch of canvases, he'd tell me stories of his past (which motivated me to pick up a history book and learn more.). And just like when Shizuku lets the Antique shop owner read her first manuscript she worked tooth and nail over, it was just like when I showed my Grandad my very first large canvas painting I really put my whole heart into. It was of a baby horse sitting with two baby deers in a garden of spring flowers. He was so happy and proud to see it. That was about a year before he passed away. So I tear up a little at the scenes with the old Antique shop owner. I miss Grandad a whole lot.
I love this movie a whole lot. And I do kinda hope I reach that point in the story where a sweet guy I can really connect with proposes to me with a huge, cheesy I LOVE YOU!!
Lord you sound like me except that I am dude and my parents were supportive in my career choice. My major is visual creative artist or illustrator.
Thanks for making me cry. I know I am 7 months late but be brave, your dreams will always end up realising themselves. I wanted to become a director/filmmaker. My parents were super unsupportive. So what did I do? Getting a degree. And after I'll finish my degree start doing filmmaking in my free time with the budget from my revenues. Right now I'm preparing a movie with some friends and I'm so happy! So if I can reassure you, even if you don't know me a "I love you" (as acquaintances) is always great.
Good luck with your future 😉
Omg whisper of the heart is my fave too. I really feel shizukus plight to truly want to be great at something but not getting it right away and feeling worthless when compared to seiji. Also the movie is absolutely teeming with beautiful scenery. Each frame could be a piece of art in a museum. It’s a film that fills me with such wistfulness and hope in its beauty and shizukus progression.
I relate to this a lot, but now my passion and hopes are dashed and I'm kinda just empty and sad now. But I love Whisper of the Heart because it is hopeful, and optimistic. It makes me dream of a day where I can actually do something and find happiness. It's beautiful
Lol my parents are "supportive" but don't really get it
Yubaba and Zeniba being identical twin witches are from I think Japanese culture.. another example might be koume and kotake from the legend of zelda
I WAS JUST THINKING THIS BEFORE I READ THE REST OF YOUR COMMENT!
One of my favorite films is spirited away. It’s top 5 material.
Same here!
Top 3 personally! Even though I saw it this year I immediately fell in love
Feel a strong nostalgia trip looking at these again... thank you and happy birthday doug!
12:54 you can say that the movie is about both the futility of war and the futility of pride. About how in both war and in real life accepting defeat can be the overall best option. You could say the older brother represents a country itself and the girl as its people and how much a country could try to win a war they can't while dragging their people through hell. And even an allegory for people in general and how holding onto your pride can hurt you and the one's you love.
I can see how someone could interpret it that way, but the movie is based on a book of someone's real-life experience during WWII (the difference being that the author didn't die in the original story, and wrote the book wishing he had died with his sister).
Wow this comment is really fucking gay
@@nonsansdroit3800 Not at all.
@@Kentama Now I'm double sad
@@nonsansdroit3800 weak b8 bro
if you loved spirited away you should of called her by her real name, Chihiro, instead of Sen which is her name after yubaba hires her
Aesura Dracaheorte - every time he calls her Sen I die a little inside. Dx
Sen can be a shortened name for "Chihiro". The name "Chihiro" literally means "a thousand questions". which is really fitting for her. "Sen" just means "thousand". It is annoying that he doesn't call her Chihiro, though. Like I said, it really fits her, being an awkward ten-year-old girl.
Who cares
That’s like saying you should call Midoriya instead of Deku because it’s his proper name
@ Identity, and the name you identify with is a huge part of this movie's theme of coming of age and confidence. Chihiro has to hang on to her real name, because if she forgets it, she'll never get home.
about “totoro”:
these spirits actually are from japanese mythology. sort of spirits that we know from the childhood: home spirits, wood spirits, swamp spirits and so one. in russia there are so many of them and every russian person know about them: kikimora, domovoi, baba yaga, koschey immortal etc. i don’t know what you american have, evil they are or not, but our spirits not evil, but they are not good either. they can hurt you, but can help you sometimes. and japanese spirits are the same way - they beyond good and evil, they just are.
The moment when Howl and Sophie step on the little tower pinnacle while walking in the air is the most iconic Ghibli moment to me ever.
I'd say the train sequence in Spirited Away is up there for me
Think a lot of people loved Miyazaki's worlds because they can be just about anything. Grounded in reality, no magic. Or full of magic, mysticism, and wonder. Magic's a potentially dangerous secret that must be well-tempered, or like in Kiki's Delivery Service, magic is there, but it's subdued. There's wonder and awe in just how someone with a few supernatural powers copes with every-day life and the people just accept it, it's not demonized or everyone's fearful of a magical person, "Oh, you're a witch? Cool! Don't hurt yourself and have a good day!"
That not every story with magical elements needs some magic-abusing big bad to overcome, it CAN just be about endearing characters, story threads and locations.
I never found Ghiblis characters that interesting to be honest
@Leo B Watch yourself, lest the anime mob (& especially the feminists!) burn you for blasphemy. 👀
It would be really cool if you could review the other three Studio Ghibli films not covered in this video: "Only Yesterday", "My Neighbors the Yamadas", and "When Marnie Was There". I haven't seen the first two myself, but the last of those was really good.
Dream Traveler Zenddrex I heavily dislike “When Marnie Was There”. Can you tell me what you like about the film?
I liked WMWT too. It's my favorite actually (To be fair, I haven't seen very many Ghibli films.) My reasons for enjoying it are pretty much the usual reasons you'd hear.
I like the setting. I could live there! It's beautiful and memorable. I like the music. I like the characters. I understand why people might find it boring, but I couldn't stop watching. I had to get some answers. And of course, it messed with me emotionally. I can rewatch this, really appreciating the art and quieter moments.
I loved WMWT, one of my favourites of Ghibli, and probably the one that touched me the most. I know that a lot of people find it boring or manipulative, but i just felt it so natural, touching, beautiful cause i've been in situations like Anna or Marnie. I think it's a very underrated film and here in Argentina only premiered last year and i got a chance to see it in cinemas.
Different from the Ghibli stuff we are used to see, but amazing nontheless.
I've seen most of My Neighbours The Yamadas. It's basically just a lot of shorts. Like - if you remember how The Simpsons started out on The Tracey Ullman Show, each short starring them was about the same length as these ones - just cute little cartoons. The movie has no coherent story. As for Only Yesterday - I remember seeing the beginning and I got SO bored. WMWT is GORGEOUS. I really identify with Anna and her outsider perspective.
I think 2 major reasons for why ppl didn’t like WMWT were 1) The surprise incest ruining ppl’s shipping of the two leads, and 2) Anna being needlessly mean to ppl who clearly were trying their best to care for her.
Oh man Howls Moving Castle is by far my favorite studio Ghibli movie. The story, animation, characters, colors all boggle my mine. I understand how it's not everyone fav but honestly I feel like a lot of ghibli movies to me are on the same level and if u said say monkone nasica spirited away howl or kiki was the best I wouldn't argue with u. I think it's just up to what u prefer. Also Porco Rosco is my 2nd fav sheerly for entertainment value also the story is amazing even though I really wish there was clear ending. Yeah its wired he's a pig but the film really touched me when it comes to loss,guilt, and love. A beautiful and funny film to say the least.
Read the book! It's amazing!
Fandom Follower it’s my favourite movie of all time with Back To The Future.
Fandom Follower I mean Howl’s Moving Castle.
See for me it's really tough, because I adore the book, but I didn't like this adaptation. So while I like the movie, it will always be underwhelming to me after the book. There's just a certain charm in the book that I don't think is there in the movie.
Please I want to download the full movie in English but am only seeing the trailers on youtube
Whisper of the heart is one of the best movies I have seen it’s so well made and very fun to watch and you get sucked into the fun of it and some of it is pretty shocking with its ways of the story instead of cliche’s.
Yes! Studio Ghibli is the Best!
The account so nice you did it twice.
@@bitchables5469 He is not so nice Byrce
My Neighbor Totoro was created the way it was because it was released right besides Grave of The Fireflies, it was supposed to cheer people up after Grave’s darkness
These films make me euphoric and/or emotional every time I watch them,im only missing 4 of them on dvd
35:44
Doug,
The ending, when Fio kisses Porco and Curtis screams, "your face!", they're implying that something changed in his character. I think Ghibli studios tried to convey the message that to be human in a time of war, requires honor and love. Honor was something Porco was rich in. A symbol of love was a gift he receives in the end. The studios on going antiwar message holds the idea of compassion and love as among the highest importance in the human element. I believe Porco was the metaphor used to show this idea. :)
Happy birthday Doug!
@@SQUIDBEARSTUDIO Congratulations on surviving another trip around the sun,may this next trip be as awesome as you are
What I like about Miasaki’s films (aside from the atmosphere and animation) is the fact that there’s no real villains in his creations, there’s just conflicts, there’s just nature, there’s just interactions
Kiki's Delivery Service was my first introduction to Hiyao Miyazaki, and it's STILL my favorite SG movie.
Followed by Princess Mononoke.
Kiki was mine too. Spirited away was my 2nd. But growing up I didn't know they were made by the same person. Now as an adult I have the whole box set. Lol
Kiki was mine three
Mine as well
Castle in the sky was my first Miyazaki movie
Ok, I think I figured out your problem, Doug. You need to read the books...
Howl's Moving Castle is an amazing book (and series of books). The adaptation is actually pretty decent, in that they follow most of the plot points. The only big difference is that the Witch of the Waste is the main villain in the books, not the war that must be fought. (The war is a back burner conflict that might happen if Howl/Sophie can't figure out the mysteries that are brewing in the book.) This leads to a snowball effect of other changes to make a more cohesive movie that fits within the run time, like a good amount of Howl's backstory being cut out and some side characters being cut. The movie is one of the few Ghibli films that DOES have focus, as they are following plot points from the book. Sophie has to figure out what the deal is between Howl and Calcifer that causes them to be "cursed" and break it, and in return Calcifer had agreed to break Sophie's curse. Howl grows as a person (and has a similar growth of character in the books). Sophie's biggest change is that she's magical in the books. As a person who normally scoffs at book adaptations to movies, especially if there are significant changes, I actually love this one. They still manage to capture the spirit of the books, despite the changes.
Tales from Earthsea- You definitely need to read the books. This is a travesty from an adaptation perspective. Don't get me started. It's an "in name only" adaptation with some cool artwork. Read the books, they're absolutely amazing.
I love all of these films, but Kiki's is probably my favorite. It was the first one I saw as a young kid, and even now as an adult I connect with it in a way I'm unable to with most other films that transcends simple nostalgia.
I can't pick a single one to be my favorite. I've loved basically all of them that I've seen. If anything one just fits my mood at a certain time than the others and that can change regularly.
I agree, when i hear the music i can't help but feel overjoyed or burst into tears. Heres a link to the live orchestral performance th-cam.com/video/m4LrW5f4dyc/w-d-xo.html , I'm sure you've seen it already but it never gets old for me. They have the orchestral performance of most of the Miyazaki movies, it's amazing if you want to feel warm inside or have a good cry, lol! (here's a link tot he long one >>>> th-cam.com/video/eY1XtWyKlJA/w-d-xo.html)
if you get the chance pick up the Gkids release that came out last year. a lot of stuff was restored(that Disney took out)And a lot of the over dub that belong was removed, also the Orignal music was placed back in. it a MUCH better film then the crap disney gave us
same, I think the one miyazki film I didn't like as much was spirited away, because it kind of was too weird in a way to me.
Huh. I mean, I think it's great, but I always found it to be one of the weaker Ghibli films. It's so simple and doesn't really do anything too deep. Nice and sweet movie, but not revolutionary in any way.
I love how all with these movies, you think: “Is the third act gonna happen yet?” But it doesn’t. Instead it catches you off guard in a really good way. They are all at least an hour long, but they feel 5-7 hours long for me.
I freaking love you, Doug. ❤
In the book its actually established that the curse wasn’t even because of the Witch of the Waste and that Sophie was actually the one who was doing it to herself. Theirs a point in the book where Howl even says that he just figured she liked being like that because she could change back whenever she wanted. Sophie is actually established in the book to be a powerful witch herself so it would make sense that she would be able to break the curse herself if she realized how much power she actually has. The book explains so much that the movie left out although I never thought it was anything that was super important. Like we don’t need to know where Howl came from or that Sophie has another sister. I love Howl’s Moving Castle both the book and the movie because they both accomplished the same tone while still telling a really good story. So what I’m getting at is read the book then come back to the movie and things might make more sense.
I think were Howel looses focus is that it dumped entire characters and plot points for time in its transition from novel to big screen. I filled in a lot of blanks when I read it: Turnip head is a combination of two characters from the book, a sister was entirely removed and Sophie has a much more active role in her surroundings in the book. I highly recommend reading it to flesh out the experience.
You may have just convinced me to re-read the book, I am reminded of how much I loved it. I love the movie and I love the book even more.
Not to mention, the scene where the Witch of the Waste and Sophie climbed the stairs NEVER HAPPENED.
I read the book a long time ago after watching the movie and to be honest, I found the book way more confusing. XD Also I wasn't nearly as convinced of the romance between Sophie and Howl in the book. In fact I can't even recall if they ended up together. Maybe I need to give it a reread someday.
CinemaSins: The Books Don't Matter. *(DING)*
10:00 Laputa, of course, is the floating city from Gulliver's Travels. Some stories just keep getting revised and re-imagined in awesome ways.
Grave of the Fireflies killed me on the inside
It's the best movie that I've ever watched that I will never watch again.
only watching him talk about it breaks me inside again :|
@@sj4iy i said id never watch it again, but im collecting Ghibli dvds and watched it again anyway. Even more painful than the first time...
Right? I felt dead for a couple days after that. Very powerful and engaging story though. My grandmother was in a similar situation in Japan. Her home town was bombed and she had to live in an abandoned Sake factory and see the mushroom cloud while her father was working in Nagasaki. He fortunately survived, but man, I can't imagine what it would have been like to live in those circumstances. Like he said, it wasn't about taking sides or necessarily anti-war. It was just showing a reality of someone's life in difficult circumstances.
Actual bombs killed a bunch of kids on the outside too. If you know what I mean.
You did your thing with this video. Like I love how thought out and how easily you talk and explain the masterpiece Studio Ghibli movies are, straight heat 🤒🤒🔥🔥🔥
How's moving castle is my favorite movie ;_; I felt so close to everyone and the thing of not having a clear goal was what connected me to them, we find our way with them. I think princess mononoke and my neighbor Totoro are kinda overrated, I've heard too much to get too little still nice tho but not wow what a master piece. Whisper to the heart and lives in the wind are my other favorites miazaki movies I always loved his animation and I love to share feelings with others through those movies
A little nitpick, San from Princess Mononoke is NOT a half-human half-wolf, she's a human child that was abandoned when her parents tossed her to the Moro to devour while they made their escape. This is what informed Moro's view of humanity and their lack of respect for life, that they would throw their own child to die to save themselves. It's actually a pretty big part of Moro's viewpoint and character!
San is fully aware of this, which is WHY she doesn't want to BE a human, she wants to BE a wolf because she views wolves as more noble and caring for their family and pack, than the humans who abandoned her to die.
Also, the girl's name is San, Princess Mononoke (Mononoke-hime) is what the fearful humans calls her because they don't know she's human, they think she's a vengeful spirit of the forest, so they gave her the name which is exactly that - a vengeful spirit princess.
Okay on the note of you not really liking Howl's Moving Castle Doug. Your intitled to your own opinion man that's fine. Personally it's a favorite of mine. But if your not satisfied with the movie, read the original book by Diana Wynne Jones. If you haven't already by this upload. It's pretty well paced and a really fun and mello read. It even has two follow up books Castle in the Air (No relation to Castle in the Sky), and the House of Many Ways. Either way just throwing that out there for you Doug, and to others out there if you were feeling a little let down. Or if your curious as to what would happen afterward.
I read the original book. It was okay. Kind of wandered a bit ways, like the author was recounting a dream more than telling a story.
Rachel Swank: I’ve read two of the three you have listed.
Howl's Moving Castle is my favorite book. It is one of the most enjoyable, whimsical adventures I have ever read. I reread all three books at least once a year. While the Ghibli movie made me buy the book, the book is the superior product. I get why Doug has problems with the film. Some of the changes made took away from Sophie's character, such as turning her into an ugly duckling. I personally don't like that choice. And Howl's watered down too, which I think takes away from the uniqueness of the original story. Additionally, while I get that Miyazaki puts war themes in almost all his movies, the focus on it did not particularly fit in this one in my opinion. Visually interesting as it is, as the follow up movie to Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle does feel like a step down.
About Kaguya: It's an adaptation of the probably most popular Japanese faurytale! So of course the story isn't revolutionary. That's the reason why it had this simple style: It's supposed to look like traditional Japanese ink drawings! I really liked the plot of the movie and the ending was so sad, I cried very much.
Concerning Nausicaä, i know the movie is amazing, but i had already read the manga, which is sooo much more developped, so i felt kinda "robbed"
So weirdly enough i'd advise people to watch the movie then read the manga, the movie doesn't spoil much from the manga anyway
@@ledzeppelin27 the manga is only about 12 books, so it's not that long of a read. plus, it's fairly gripping. I got through it in an afternoon or so.
@ledzeppelin27 @@Erik-ou3tl In the Original Version it's just 7 books, i bought them in Ebook a while ago, it's a great read and you get through them pretty quickly
There's more to Totoro than just a laid-back movie. You completely omitted the fact that their mother doesn't even live with them...she's ill and hospitalized. The light-hearted energy of film shifts when Mei & Satsuki have this explosive argument when they discovered their mother is not well enough to come home. Mei then runs away from home with an ear of corn in attempt to reach the hospital because she believes it will help her mom feel better. There's a lot to this film to appreciate and relate to, especially when the sister argue about their mother's well-being. It's very realistic for one sibling to be naive/innocent & idealistic while the other internalizes a lot of stress, fear, & burden.
The best: Spirited Away. The characters and emotions themselves are phenomenal. Like Doug says, if a reboot does happen it would be amazing
My personal favorite: Howl's Moving Castle. The reason being that the characters' chemistry is really likeable, particularly with Sophie and Howl. Sophie is just this person who has a low self-esteem but she doesn't care, she just keeps on going. Howl, on the hand, is energetic and mysterious. His personality is a bit hard to grasp on but you find that you still like him. And their chemistry is really nice. I find myself feeling _kilig_ whenever they share moments together. If i were to complain, it's that i wish i could see a little more of that.
I watched grave of the fireflies only once and I still break into tears by only watching the clips in your collection.
God damnit I was hoping someone would really love porco rosso as much as I do
I love it too, don't worry :)
I love Porco, apart from the ending, which felt abrupt to say the least.
It's so underrated! It's actually one of my favorite Ghibli films. It's one that I can rewatch multiple times and not get tired of it.
Same here that was one of my favorite
I love it too.
Kiki's Deliver Service established that Kiki was 13, and she looked like it.
The Cat Returns established that Haru was in high school, and she looked it.
The Secret World of Arrietty established that Arrietty was 14, but she looked like she was Haru's age. Did anyone else think she looked a little older than 14?
So a few things about Howls Moving Castle ( I know comments already filled with this stuff)
1) unlike some of his other work, the movie is actually based on a book, so if you really don't like the motivations I would blame the author instead of Miyazaki (though the book takes more time explaining things, but thats the nature of things, can only squeeze so much into a movie, not to mention there are multiple books in the series)
2) due to the nature of the movie and the story it does take multiple viewings (back to back) in my opinion to really enjoy it, lots of little things you don't notice the first time around that make sense the second time though given the odd nature of the ending scenes.
3) I personally find the reception to the movie really divided. some people adore the movie, some people just don't get grabbed by it. I don't think that the film is bad in any way, but its just not for everyone.
As an aside, I find it telling that someone could just adore Tales from Earthsea and yet think Howls Moving Castle is the worst Miyazaki film (fun fact, Miyazaki has been quoted saying he doesn't even like Tales, didn't think it was a good movie at all, which sadly really crushed his son)
Grave of the Fireflies was such an emotionally devastating film that it, literally, made me feel numb by the end. I literally felt nothing for a good hour or so after it ended. It's one movie I'll never see again, no matter how much of a masterpiece it is. I have a ton of respect for it, but my heart can't handle the journey of watching those two kids fall apart.
If you haven't seen Miyazaki's first film, The Castle of Cagliostro, you should just to see where he started. This is where most people were introduced to Lupin III. He also worked on the series, and you can see some designs in those episodes that he'd later use in his Studio Ghibli films.
WOW!
I love studio Ghibli so much!! I cried the whole time!
My favourites are: Kiki’s Delivery Service, howls moving castle, spirited Away, whisper of the heart
My mom got me into these movies and I’ve grown up with them and love them all dearly 💕
Ponyo scared the shit out of me when her dad voiced by Liam Neeson came out of the sea went up to the boy and said "I'm looking for my daughter, have you seen my daughter?" 😰😰
Taken 4?
The robot in castle in the sky always made me cry
Oh, Castle in the sky... You never fail to be awesome! You wonderful piece of cinematic history.
I swear Nadia drew inspiration from that movie, because it is literally the exact same story(with a few minor differences of course)
@@nine_tails137 I never saw that series, I really should.
@@c0mpu73rguy It's really good! I highly recommend it to anyone who falls under the following categories:
1. a 90s kid,
2. a Ghibli fan,
and/or
3. a Gainax fan.
The show is a total of 39 episodes long, and is both dubbed and subbed to fit one's preference. Here's the intro to give you an idea of what to expect: th-cam.com/video/uOmqOhGno6Y/w-d-xo.html
my favorite small thing about the wind rises is how much the sound design uses human voices
I remember growing up, Castle in the Sky always had a large imprint on my brain. I always loved the movie, and the imagination that went into it always fascinated me. By far my favorite Studio Ghibli film, even though I love all the others too.
I love the fact that Doug likes even the movies he doesn't like... that's the magic of Miyazaki for you! I showed Laputa and Nausicaa to my whole family after a dinner, and EVERYONE, from my 8-year-old nephews to my 85-year-old Grandma, loved them, each for different reasons. They have something for everyone, whether it's the story, the animation, the characters, the colors, you name it!
Reading tales of earth sea books makes it so much better as u see and imagine characters differently in your mind and screen
Well, considering the story in the movie appears to have 0% to do with the books...
@@Brandyalla like Howl's moving castle?
@@risottopose9970 I've never read the book, so I can't compare that one
I will never, never, never watch Grave of the Fireflies ever again ... It's such a great movie, but it's a damn hard pill to swallow ... it hits me everytime. I always wish someone just step in and help this kids, it just hits me every single time, it broke me like no other movie ever has (not even Hachiko) ... and for that, is the best movie i'll never watch again.
I’m really surprised you don’t like Howl’s Moving Castle. I think it’s the best Miyazaki film after Castle in the Sky, Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke (all three of those are tied as my favourite).
I can't stand that movie. It's like watching a puppet theatre performed by marionettes made from the corpses of your loved ones. I've seen The Last Airbender, I've seen Dragon Ball Evolution, I've seen Eragon, and Ender's Game. I consider all of those, every one, to be a better and more faithful adaptation than Howl's Moving Castle. It's one thing when a movie like World War Z takes the title and almost nothing else. But when a movie starts off so faithfully, then just veers exponentially away from the source material, accelerating into further and further pointless contrivances? That's about as bad as it gets.
@@Tylendal242 jesus dude I think you over exaggerating a bit. I mean I know some people don't like the movie ,everyone has their preferences but you acting like it's the fucking end of the world
It's one of those movies where I didn't understand a lick of it, but I easily give it a pass for the creativity and visuals!
@@Tylendal242 So? If the movie can stand on its own, then it’s totally fine. Mary Poppins veered far from its source material yet I see no one giving it flack
What really draws castle in the sky together, and I’m sad that you didn’t include this, THE SOUNDTRACK OMG. The soundtrack to castle in the sky is one of the best musical compositions I’ve ever heard. If you watch the scene where Sheeta falls from the sky and listen to the soundtrack and how it plays into that scene it is truly one of the most beautiful scenes in cinema ever. The soundtracks to the Ghibli movies are what make them so magical, I would even put Hisiaishi’s music over the animation itself.
Indeed. The reorchestrated version by Joe Hisaishi especially. That version of the score I think is arguably a better fit for this film. That and I just love hearing evil Luke Skywalker chew the scenery as the villain.
Grave of the Fireflies, From up on Poppy Hill, and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya should not be part of Disneycember because Disney had nothing to do with releasing them in North-America.
He also forgot My Neighbors the Yamadas, which was dubbed by Disney.
Now with that rant over, it's nice to see these finally get re-uploaded.
EDIT: I'm fully aware that these are older videos. In fact, I was annoyed about this when they were originally posted on Channel Awesome.
I'd love to know Doug's thoughts on the Ghibli films he didn't review, like Only Yesterday, Ocean Waves, My Neighbours the Yamadas, When Marnie Was There as well as Miyazaki's first film, The Castle of Cagliostro.
I feel the same about Kiki's Delivery Service. It gives me a warm, cozy sensation whenever I watch it, kinda like the feeling you get when you're sitting in front of a fire place on a cold day. I'm not really sure why I get that reaction from it-- I just do. Kiki's adorable, and my god I always wanted a piece of bread from Osono's bakery! xD
I keep wondering if you're ever gonna tackle _The Castle of Cagliostro._
Why did he not include it ? It# s on netflix and i wanted to see doug's review before I watched it.
Kili Fischkopp if it wasn’t dubbed by Disney then he can’t do it for Disneycember. I don’t know if it was or wasn’t but that’s my best guess.
I was hoping he'd do "When Marnie Was There" and "Only Yesterday".
@@gamersinacontainer Ironically, "Grave of the Fireflies" and "Up on Poppy Hill" weren't dubbed by Disney either, and yet he reviewed them here.
@@moviemaniac9034 Well then. I dunno.
I think that, in the case of Howl's Moving Castle, a lot of that is because of the book it's based on. Not that there's anything wrong with it, it's just a book that isn't very focused, and so Miyazaki/Ghibli tried to recreate it with his own spin.
I agree. The plot in the book was all over the place, like the author was more focused on recounting a dream than telling a story.
Doug, in My Neighbor Totoro, did you somehow miss that the whole plot revolves around them coping with their mother being ill? They move to the country for the fresh air, they visit her in the hospital, the father is doing his best to be a single parent while the mom is in the hospital, the younger dauggter runs away for awhile because she is worried that they are moving on when the mother is still alive. All the fantastical imagery is about how the imagination of a child can help them cope with a deeply personally troubling issue. Also it has to do with the power and tranquility of old wild places and the unknown not being so scary if you give it a chance.
There's something about Kiki's that always stuck with me. It was my first Ghibli movie and I was so young at the time, I couldn't read/remember the title. So when I tried to find it again only going off vague memories, it became this whole quest to rediscover it. Something that actually took me almost a decade to do and once I did, the movie still filled me with that feeling of childlike wonder and excitement.
Good now I don't have to type it out 😃
Howl's is probably my favorite Miyazaki film, and while I'm not 100% on what the deal is with Sophie's curse, I always got the impression that it was somehow tied to her own self-consciousness vs. her selflessness. It's as if whenever she's thinking of herself, she looks more like an old woman, but in scenes where she's more focused on Howl she looks more like herself. And at the end, she no longer seems to care because Howl loves her for who she is, so she's left as mostly her old self with silver hair. It also mirrors Howl's own hangups over his appearance. It's kind of a twist on the "true love breaks the curse" trope, in that the curse isn't so much broken as it is suppressed
*Vietnam Flashbacks to the Ponyo Review*
EeveeStar 682 Wait. You watch the Nostalgia Critic?
@@gamersinacontainer Yes. Every week. In fact, I'm even waiting for his next upload tonight.
@@eeveestar6826 Hams!
1. Howl's Moving Castle was based on a book of the same name written by British author Diana Wynne Jones. The book was twice as scatterbrained compared to the movie the movie
2. If you are paying attention Sophie's shift in age was consistent with her shift in emotions especially about herself
3. The scene where the Witch and Sophie are going up the stairs was also in the book and the writer British author Diana Wynne Jones love the way it was depicted in the movie
"This looks like something that could be animated today!" At first I got upset by this notion, then I remembered all the poorly animated films of my youth.
On the note of Totoro, it's such a big deal to people because it defines their childhood, because that's litteraly what it's designed to do, it's not over the top outlandish action scenes, it's childhood, everyone's childhood... To be fair I might be a bit biased as it really was just so close to my childhood, I was the youngest of two siblings(boy boy instead of girl girl), my mother was constantly in and out of the hospital (though I don't remember concern mostly apathy), my dad always worked late my mother a teacher(so their dad felt like an amalgamation of the two), I spent a lot of time with my grandmothers and just being outside, it just really speaks to me, it has since I was little and always will.
Porco Roso "I'm a pig", like a womanizer, like a greedy person, like a selfish person, he sees himself as all these things as a pig, and so he is suffering a self imposed curse where so long as he sees himself as a pig he is a pig, but whenever he gives into his better nature he reverts, how don't you get this.
Tanuki aren't Racoons, in English they're called racoon dogs, and I know that makes them seem even more like racoons but they're really not, they are a real creature but while visually simular to racoons are not actually racoons.
The reason her family is so okay with her going off in whispers of the heart is because in Japan High school isn't required education, and it happens in Japan where students miss their chance to take entrance exams and the like so they have to take a year, basically it's not the best option but if she needs a year to understand herself it's not the end of the world... Though granted from what we know of stereotypical Japanese family mentality this seems unlikely, just saying.
It's called Princess Mononoke because she's the driving force for Ashitaka, like Zelda in legend of Zelda, I'm not disagreeing I find that an odd way to name something too, I guess it was just a more intriguing than Ashitaka.
In the cat returns it's the king of the cats who makes the offer to have her marry his son, he makes all the mistakes not the Prince, and not seeing it in Japanese first it's not as obvious that the assistant cat should be female, there are one or two scenes where you're like "something's up here", but up until then it made perfect sense to have Andy be the cat.
In Howl's moving castle he never goes back and forth about helping in the war, he's just observing the happenings he flatly refused to aid in the war, also the curse is tied to Sophie's mental state not the witch of the waste's power, that said while I enjoy the film I do feel the story needed more building.
As someone who still really likes the black cauldron I think I might really be able to get intovtales of earth and sea.
I've never felt the appeal of Ponyo, but having kids in the house maybe now's the time to give it a chance.
...Douge most people don't read the credits, especially not on their first viewing.
Oh god Up on Poppy Hill... I fucking loved that fucked up movie.
I'm really glad Whisper of the Heart got some screen time in this video. It helps me a lot everytime I watch it. It helps me to keep going and finding the will to try. It's my favorite movie out of all the Ghibli films.
He COMPLETELY like most people missed almost EVERYTHIN Totoro is about.. like went over his head. These girls and their dad move to this absolute SH(T box of a house, because their mother is gravely ill with probably TB in her lungs, I think thy've moved from a much nicer house A to be closer to the hospital and B because they're financially crippled paying for the mother to be healed.
The girls are JUST about 6months before the ages where they really start thinkin exestentially about life and death. These 2 girls are a wonderful example of the human heart and the human imagination. The girls instead of dealing with the fact their mother may die by being miserable, they o on a journey through their imaginations and bring to us an amazing little personal magical kingdom where there's no death, there's no mysery, but hope, growth, life. And they demonstrate better than any movie of ANY kind how i think my imagination was and how i saw the world when i was 4 or 8. They brings a simple childs imaineation to life on the screen and prove to us that deep down this is the kind of magical kingdom we all have inside of us.
Not Xboxes and iphones, games, youtube etc.. but playing in the garden, digging up worms with a stick, and pretending you're a sniper in some imaginary war...
Anyway, thats my soppy enterpretation of it
What I always believed with Howl's Moving Castle when Sophie goes from being older to younger here and there is the pure fact of childhood wonder. Moments that aren't so heavy and being wondrous she can appear to be a bit younger. When reality of the situation sets in she is old again. The reality of war and the possibility that she could be cursed forever. Also, with that time traveling at the end when she can see Howl as a kid I feel like it's her connecting with him. Plus since he is magical and can open up different doors to other areas who says he can't show her his past in the world where they connected that he made for her that was where he use to go.
Totoro for me is about respecting spirits or anything that is different, unusual and unique to you. And it made me reminisce all the fun times in my childhood where I experienced the most Eerie yet Ethereal moments I still question them today like what happened back 🤔😌😂😂then like this movie always makes me wonder about earth 😌
Edit: the imaginable simplicity of it is what makes it not to bad 😌
He said most of the main characters in Pom Poko are animals, but really they're spirits in animal form.
I was always told Toroto was a slice of life movie so not to expect anything grand
which helped when I 1st saw it
Also...I never saw the sub version of The Cat Returns so...I can't picture the assistant with any other voice really cuz I kind of love the idea of it looking semi-female and just "nope, dude, that's cool. Still wanna pet him"
I know as a kid my siblings and I loved My Neighbour Totoro so much that we wore out the VHS tape we owned of it. I think even kids can appreciate the quiet moments and just experiencing the life of someone else without over the top action. Not to mention the cat bus always looked super fluffy and all three of us grew up with cats.
To my absolute shame, I actually used to think both Kiki's Delivery Service and Castle in the Sky were BORING. Shows how much I knew. Thankfully, when I tried again when I was older, I was a lot more invested and enjoyed both of them a lot more. I wound up watching more Ghibli films as I got older as well, and while I still haven't seen all of them that show up here I'm a big fan of the ones I have seen. Some I rewatch more than others (Princess Mononoke is probably my favourite to just put on nearly any time), but I can't deny the heart that appears in these films and the absolute beauty and imagination they bring to the screen.
If some of you disliked studio Ghibli films if you watched them when you were younger for whatever reason and it's been a while, I'd encourage another try. You might be surprised with how your view changes on them.
"Totoro" was the first foray into 'fantasy slice of life' by anime. This reached its peak in the astoundingly inventive and beautiful series "Mushishi", which was mainly self-contained episodic stories.
I just find it annoying that the reason for Yubaba and Zeniba being twins totally went over Doug's head. They're meant to represent two sides of one person. Yubaba primarily stands for the negative side, while Zeniba primarily stands for the positive side. I say primarily because both twins have positive and negative aspects and just one side stands out more than the other. That was the point of them being twins - they're really meant to be "two sides of the same coin".
I've only seen Ponyo and Spirited Away, and I heavily enjoyed the latter. I need to watch more of their movies, but I should probably finish college first.
I just got done with Kiki’s Delivery Service and I love it like you do
It’s actually incredible that you get sucked into a world and it’s characters in just an hour and 44 minutes and they’re not incredibly deep or complex but just simple and very likable.
My first Miyazaki film is one that I love. Here’s hoping I’ll love more.
I loved Tales from Earthsea! Oddly enough, I didn’t want any kind of big ending. I went in wanting it, but the more I watched it, the more I enjoyed the slower stuff.
I loved the relationship between all of the characters. I loved the farm life and finding out why he killed his father and I absolutely loved the singing scene. It captured my attention and made me feel a lot with very little said.
The trick with Howl's Moving Castle is that, basically, Howl's a non-committal and vain man without direction. You see it in how he acts, how he changes forms and seems to lose himself, like he's not even sure he's human, or how he takes assumed names, and even how his castle is set up to shift locations via its magic door and the like. It stems from lacking value in himself, but trying to pretend otherwise., so when the illusion he makes for himself shatters, he falls apart.
It's paralleled by Sophie's curse, she just sort of accepts it, because she has a low opinion of herself so to her it seems "Fine" that she's ancient and decrepit. When she's feeling young, vigorous, when she feels like she matters, the curse weakens, etc.
Ultimately, Howl's Moving Castle is about self-worth and commitment.
welp now this will bee seen by studio ghibli
I T ' S C O P Y R I G H T T I M E
As simple as Whisper of the Heart is I absolutely love it. It's characters, the introspective nature of it, and the story of a young unsure teen who discovers a passion for writing is one that hit really close to home with me. I love Shizuku, her relationship with Seiji and that scene where she sings while he plays the violin is so cheesy but I love it so much. It's a beautiful film I recommend to anyone who is feeling lost and in need of hope