I'll admit it, Studio Ghibli movies just have never done it for me in a way that I could say, "This movie is a masterpiece." They've certainly got their unique, inimitable charm, but ofttimes it feels like that's really the only thing they do exceptionally well, too. I guess I'd say it's a bit like spending time in a quiet, grassy spot in some forest. It's unique and makes me feel a bit like I exist in harmonious unison with nature, but holy hell does it get boring after a while. I also have a hard time separating the films... they all seem a bit samey to me when I disregard their often fantastical elements. So you can, in essence, consider this a review of all four-five Miyazaki films I've seen so I'll avoid further wasting your time with subjective points of criticism you may not agree with and which may in fact want you to punch me in the face (don't try it: my mask has automatic sharp spike protection).
This one I remember distinctly mostly because Kiki's pretty awesome. It takes balls to leave home so young to try and find your place in a world that doesn't necessarily completely understand you or consider you useful. You don't have to be born a witch for this to be one's actual life situation. S'applicable is what I'm saying. Her cat is also Phil Hartman so that's awesome. She makes Harry Potter and crew look like complete wusses for having to go to boarding school to learn magic. Any lesser person would have given up and settled on becoming an accountant or something.
There's also a very sweet and uber-Ghibliesqe old lady that helps her out in starting out her package delivery business. These are the kinds of characters I really like Ghibli for; not a bad bone in 'em. God only knows our real world could use a lot more people like her. And pretty much every character treats Kiki like an adult, a thing I like a lot about Japanese culture. I could do without that creepy annoying glasses dude Kiki inexplicably grows fond of, but ehhhhhh.
Yeah, I'm sorry, these movies just kinda leave me kind of underwhelmed and unable to give any sort of good (or particularly bad) criticism. Ghibli's "the world is beautiful and filled with good people" sentiment is a nice change of pace, but it always seems like something more appropriate for a short film than full-length features they struggle to keep wholly entertaining.
Good enough, I guess.
I'll admit it, Studio Ghibli movies just have never done it for me in a way that I could say, "This movie is a masterpiece." They've certainly got their unique, inimitable charm, but ofttimes it feels like that's really the only thing they do exceptionally well, too. I guess I'd say it's a bit like spending time in a quiet, grassy spot in some forest. It's unique and makes me feel a bit like I exist in harmonious unison with nature, but holy hell does it get boring after a while. I also have a hard time separating the films... they all seem a bit samey to me when I disregard their often fantastical elements. So you can, in essence, consider this a review of all four-five Miyazaki films I've seen so I'll avoid further wasting your time with subjective points of criticism you may not agree with and which may in fact want you to punch me in the face (don't try it: my mask has automatic sharp spike protection).
This one I remember distinctly mostly because Kiki's pretty awesome. It takes balls to leave home so young to try and find your place in a world that doesn't necessarily completely understand you or consider you useful. You don't have to be born a witch for this to be one's actual life situation. S'applicable is what I'm saying. Her cat is also Phil Hartman so that's awesome. She makes Harry Potter and crew look like complete wusses for having to go to boarding school to learn magic. Any lesser person would have given up and settled on becoming an accountant or something.
There's also a very sweet and uber-Ghibliesqe old lady that helps her out in starting out her package delivery business. These are the kinds of characters I really like Ghibli for; not a bad bone in 'em. God only knows our real world could use a lot more people like her. And pretty much every character treats Kiki like an adult, a thing I like a lot about Japanese culture. I could do without that creepy annoying glasses dude Kiki inexplicably grows fond of, but ehhhhhh.
Yeah, I'm sorry, these movies just kinda leave me kind of underwhelmed and unable to give any sort of good (or particularly bad) criticism. Ghibli's "the world is beautiful and filled with good people" sentiment is a nice change of pace, but it always seems like something more appropriate for a short film than full-length features they struggle to keep wholly entertaining.