week 6

Studio Ghibli will flourish even after Miyazaki is gone, (if he ever *actually* leaves!)


Studio Ghibli's characters and stories are almost as iconic as Micky mouse (and that's before Disney bought their licensing) Unlike Micky mouse, characters like Totoro, Ponyo, Kiki, are more than adorable and silly. They contain actual plotlines that are more relatable to many people. Not one of Ghibli's main characters is perfect, and their choices and reactions are more relatable and set better examples. They also explore the typical villain character type, by showing likable villains, and that some are just people trying to do what they think is best. These complex ideas of right and wrong are constantly explored and challenged in Ghibli films, but somehow always are able to be gripping, enchanting films with beautiful colors and distinct design.
I remember seeing spirited away for the first time flipping through channels and was completely heartbroken I couldn't find it again online or at a movie rental store (i was too young to remember the name of it and explaining the movie to people was hard) but I rediscovered it was by Ghibli later in life at some slumber party because we were all huddled up, glued to the screen watching spirited away, howls moving castle, and what I found to be the most magical was Ponyo. Ponyo gets a rep for being low-quality writing because it was meant for a really young target audience, but Ponyo explores so much more than just the perspective of a child, it is artistically one of the most impressive films I've ever watched. However, it is not my dear favorite of the Ghiblis magical animations.
I was 14, and i had just gotten out of the hospital for a major surgery that would leave me bed bound and mouth wired shut for several weeks. If i wasn't sleeping off pain medications, i was looking for anime or manga. I will never forget my dad offering to pick up movies from the nearest Block Buster (yeah our town still had one) and giving him a list of films by Ghibli. He returned with only one they had at the time, Princess Mononoke. To summarize my love and passion for that film will just say, I watched it on repeat until I was able to go to the BlockBuster my self to obtain more. That store came to know me pretty well after that. The hardest film for them to get for me was surprisingly Totoro, and when it came into the store it was scratched the hell out of, so the manager put it in some machine to buff it out, a minute later the machine was smoking and you could hear the disc crunching within it. Needless to say, i was almost fully healed when they got another copy of this film. Was it worth the hassle to finally see?....eh? I think i was hoping for something more when i watched it for the first time. I had built up some greater expectation after watching Mononoke so many times. I like the film, its fun, bright and whimsical, and something about having a movie starting a small electrical fire in a blockbuster just kind of gives it a special place in my heart.
I dont know how i passed over Nausicaa of the Wind for so long, it wasn't until my senior year of high school i saw it and fell in love with its story and world build (im a sucker for any story that confronts humanity relationship with nature). I really wasn't aware there was a manga until this class, and i wish i had more time to read it thoroughly.