April was the final month of Studio Ghibli releases on Netflix and I thought rather than do the same kind of blog like with the last where I listed and reviewed in order of listed Studio Ghibli films by year, I would list and review each film from the first Studio Ghibli film I've watched. So here we go for the last lot of Studio Ghibli films releases.
Ponyo
Synopsis: During a forbidden excursion to see the surface world, a goldfish princess encounters a human boy named Sosuke, who gives her the name Ponyo. Ponyo longs to become human, and as her friendship with Sosuke grows, she becomes more humanlike. Ponyo's father brings her back to their ocean kingdom, but so strong is Ponyo's wish to live on the surface that she breaks free, and in the process, spills a collection of magical elixirs that endanger Sosuke's village. Cast: Noah Cyrus as Ponyo Frankie Jonas as Sōsuke Tina Fey as Lisa Matt Damon as Kōichi Cate Blanchett as Gran Mamare Liam Neeson as Fujimoto Mona Marshall as Young Mother Akiko Yano as Ponyo's sisters Lily Tomlin as Toki Betty White as Yoshie Cloris Leachman as Kayo OMG!!! This film was one the most brilliant films I've ever seen, let alone the best film adaptions of Hans Christian Anderson's The Little Mermaid apart from Disney's The Little Mermaid. I'd watch this film again and again as it was enjoyable to watch.
From Up On Poppy Hill
Synopsis: It's 1963 and Japan is in the midst of swift modernisation, leaving behind the Second World War's painful memories and focusing on a brighter future, symbolised by the coming year's Tokyo Olympics. Cast: Sarah Bolger as Umi Matsuzaki Anton Yelchin as Shun Kazama Edie Mirman as Hana Matsuzaki Jamie Lee Curtis as Ryoko Matsuzaki Gillian Anderson as Miki Hokuto Chris Noth as Akio Kazama Bruce Dern as Yoshio Onodera Charlie Saxon as Shirō Mizunuma Tokuma Shoten as Chief Director Tokumaru Isabella Fuhrman as Sora Matsuzaki Alex Wolff & Raymond Ochoa as Riku Matsuzaki Aubrey Plaza as Sachiko Hirokouji Christina Hendricks as Saori Makimura Emily Osment as Nobuko Bridget Hoffman as Yuko Ronan Farrow as Isogo High School's world history teacher
Jeff Dunham as Gen
Ron Howard as Philosophy Club's president
This is one of Studio Ghibli's greatest films and I quite enjoyed this film.
When Marnie Was There
Synopsis: A young girl is sent to the country for health reasons, where she meets an unlikely friend in the form of Marnie, a young girl with flowing blonde hair. As the friendship unravels Marnie has closer ties to the protagonist than we might expect.
Cast: Haliee Steinfield as Anna Sasaki Kiernan Shipka as Marnie Taylor Autumn Bertman as Marnie (young) Ava Acres as Sayaka Vanessa Williams as Hisako Mila Brener as Hisako (young) Catherine O'Hara as Elderly Lady Geena Davis as Yoriko Sasaki John C. Reilly as Kiyomasa Oiwa Grey Griffin as Setsu Oiwa Ellen Burstyn as Nanny Fred Tatasciore as Tōichi Kathy Bates as Mrs. Kadoya Raini Rodriguez as Nobuko Kadoya Bob Bergen as Doctor Yamashita N/A as Neighborhood Association Officer N/A as Art Teacher Who doesn't like going to the country for health reasons? I certainly enjoyed my stay in the Lake District a few years ago. This film is one of the beautifully made studio ghibli films and I do recommend this film. Pom Poko
Synopsis:
A community of magical shape-shifting raccoon dogs struggle to prevent their forest home from being destroyed by urban development.
Cast:
Jonathan Taylor Thomas as Shōkichi
Clancy Brown as Gonta
Tress MacNeille as Fireball Oroku
Andre Stojka as Osho
J. K. Simmons as Seizaemon
David Oliver Cohen as Ponkichi
Wally Kurth as Tamasaburo
Kevin Michael Richardson as Bunta & Wonderland President
Marc Donato as Sasuke
John DiMaggio as Ryutaro
Jillian Bowen as Kiyo
Brain George as Kincho Daimyoujin the Sixth & Yashimano Hage
Jess Harnel as Inugami Gyōbu
Olivia d'Abo as Koharu
Brian Posehn as Hayashi
Russi Taylor as Otama
Maurice LaMarche as Narrator
Mark Moseley as Reporter & News Anchor
OK this film was one of the weirdest films I've ever watched because of the raccoons turning themselves into inanimate objects or humans. But all in all it was very interesting to watch.
Whispers Of The Heart
Synopsis:
14-year-old teenage bookworm Shizuku lives a simple life, dominated by her love for stories and writing. One day she notices that all the library books she has have been previously checked out by the same person: 'Seiji Amasawa'. Curious as to who he is, Shizuku meets a boy of her age whom she finds infuriating, but discovers to her shock that he is her 'Prince of Books'. As she grows closer to him, she realises that he merely read all those books to bring himself closer to her. The boy, Seiji, aspires to be a violin maker in Italy, and it is his dreams that make Shizuku realise that she has no clear path for her life. Knowing that her strength lies in writing, she tests her talents by writing a story about Baron, a cat statuette belonging to Seiji's grandfather.
Cast:
Brittany Snow as Shizuku Tsukishim
David Gallagher as Seiji Amasawa
Jean Smart as Asako Tsukishima
James Sikking as Seiya Tsukishima
Cary Elwes as Baron Humbert von Gikkingen
Harold Gould as Shiro Nishi
Ashley Tisdale as Yuko Harada
Vicki Davis as Kōsaka-sensei
Mika Boorem & Abigail Mavity as Kinuyo and Nao
Martin Spanjers as Sugimura
Courtney Thorne-Smith as Shiho Tsukishima
(Kita) Walker Edminson as Nishi's musician friends
I really do think that this film is really the most charming Studio Ghibli film I ever watched so far. This film is mainly about a junior high school girl who is struggling to find what she wanted to do but with the advice from her friends she was encouraged to find her gem and polish it no matter how long it's going to take.
The Wind Rises
Synopsis:
A lifelong love of flight inspires Japanese aviation engineer Jiro Horikoshi, whose storied career includes the creation of the A6M World War II fighter plane.
Cast:
Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt as Jiro Horikoshi
Emily Blunt as Naoko Satomi
John Burke Krasinski as Kiro Honjo
Martin Short as Kurokawa
Werner Herzog as Castorp
William H. Macy as Satomi
Edie Mirman as Jiro's mother
Mae Whitman as Kayo Horikoshi & Kinu
Mandy Patinkin as Hattori
Jennifer Grey as Mrs. Kurokawa
Stanley Tucci as Giovanni Battista Caproni
Elijah Wood as Sone
Ronan Farrow as Mitsubishi employee
Zach Callison as Young Jiro
Eva Bella as Young Kayo
Madeleine Rose Yen as Young Nahoko
Darren Criss as Katayama
David Cowgill as Flight Engineer
I thought this film had heart and life. And that's all I can say about this film.
And finally...
Howl's Moving Castle
Synopsis:
The story is set in a fictional kingdom where both magic and early 20th-century technology are prevalent, against the backdrop of a war with another kingdom. The film tells the story of a young, content milliner named Sophie who is turned into an old woman by a witch who enters her shop and curses her. She encounters a wizard named Howl, and gets caught up in his resistance to fighting for the king.
Cast:
Emily Mortimer as Sophie Hatter (young)
Jean Simmons as Sophie Hatter (old)
Christian Bale as Howl
Lauren Bacall as Witch of the Waste
Billy Crystal as Calcifer
Josh Hutcherson as Markl
Blythe Danner as Madame Sulliman
Jena Malone as Lettie
Mari Devon as Honey
Crispin Freeman as Prince Justin/Turnip Head
Liliana Mumy as Madge
Mark Silverman as King of Ingray
Daijiro Harada as Hin
This is my favorite Studio Ghibli film EVER!!!! I really loved how it was beautifully done. The character Howl reminds me of one of the Luv2MeetU supporters Kieran James but only much later on in the film when Howl becomes a child at heart not at the start if the film when we first meet Howl. Just like the first Frozen film everyone has been pointing fingers at the wrong character who they thought was the villain mainly at Witch of the Waste and Madame Sullivan when really the villain of the film was War as this film is set during a war between two kingdoms. This film also explores themes of old age, depicting age positivity and the value of compassion. Hayao Miyazaki said when he asked about this film which was his favorite film he ever made and his answer was "I wanted to convey the message that life is worth living, and I don't think that's changed."
Howl's Moving Castle was my very first Studio Ghibli film I ever watched. I got this film on DVD as a Christmas present for my dad as I felt that he needed a bit more anime films in his life because Film 4 isn't showing very much Studio Ghibli or anything like Studio Ghibli films and I remember when we started watching it has put a warm smile on my face.
Well guys this is it
we have finally finished watching every Studio Ghibli film that Netflix has put on...
...well except Ocean Waves because that film is yet to have a English dubbing cast as throughout the film it's mostly spoken in Japanese with English subtitles. I don't watch foreign films with English subtitles as it distracts you from the film.
Comments