Miyazaki Hayao

Been watching a bit of Miyazaki's films lately. Yea, yea, I know. I'm a little late in appreciating his works. But better late than never.

I must say I love the themes and fantastic imagination Miyazaki-san animated in his masterpieces. The animation is obviously top-notch, but what was far better was the amazingly imaginative stories and characters.

1986 - 天空の城：ラピュタ
(Laputa: Castle in the Sky)

1988 - となりのトトロ
(My Neighbor Totoro)

1989 - 魔女の宅急便
(Kiki's Delivery Service)

1997 - もののけ姫
(Princess Mononoke)

2001 - 千と千尋の神隠し
(Spirited Away)

2004 - ハウルの動く城
(Howl's Moving Castle)

All are simply excellent and brilliant. I especially like Howl's Moving Castle because the voicing by Kimura Takuya (as Howl the wizard) is just fitting. 木村さんの声とハウルの性格はすごくぴったりだよ。

One thing I note about the style of Miyazaki's characters is that they tend to have pretty similar designs over adjacent releases. Take Satsuki (My Neighbor Totoro) and Kiki (Kiki's Delivery Service) for example. The two movies were released in two consecutive years (1988 and 1989 respectively), and both of them looked pretty much the same!

The other example is Haku (Spirited Away) and Hauru (Howl's Moving Castle). Okay, the resolution's pretty bad here, but watching Hauru reminds me instantly of Haku! Even the trait of the voice actor had the same clear tones!

One thing exceptionally incredible about Miyazaki's works is that his films makes you think about the themes he wants to convey. For instance, in Princess Mononoke and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, there's a very significant emphasis on environmental issues especially concerning the collapsing harmony between the human race and the nature. In Howl's Moving Castle and Laputa: Castle in the Sky, he contemplates the issue of love and war. Not all his movies are laden with heavy themes though. My Neighbor Totoro and Spirited Away takes you into a world of forbidden fantasy, which is simply entertaining.

While Miyazaki establishes the foundation of all these masterpieces with his fantastic plots, it is Joe Hisaishi who breathes audio vibrancy into all these films. All the soundtrack were mastered by Hisaishi-sensei himself, and they are masterpieces in their ownright. I can't put in words how marvellous a job he has done, to the point Miyazaki's films would not be Miyazaki's if it does not come with Hisaishi's soundtrack.

While I think Shinkai Makoto rivalled Miyazaki in his quality of animation, I have to admit Miyazaki's storytelling is way over Shinkai-san. Miyazaki's art of capturing his audience into his fantasy world is incredibly refined and incredible, and it makes you look forward eagerly to his next release (which is of course, God knows how long). Well, as of now, we know that his next feature film will be released sometime in 2008, and it is entitle Ponyo on a Cliff.

たのしみ待っています！

～みはる～