What cartoon is this?

[Nemoide]

My problem with Howl's Moving Castle was that I had trouble relating to the characters and did not feel engaged with the story. It's been a while since I saw it and maybe I should give it another chance but I remember it seeming to have a plot along the lines of "people go here, then go here."

Ponyo was good for what it was, but it was a movie aimed squarely at a child audience rather than the "all ages" most of his films are. The environmental message normally found in Miyazaki movies felt sledgehammered in without subtlety. It was cute and it was well animated, but it wasn't for me.

To me, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind was the director at his peak. I love the post-apocalyptic "dangerous nature" imagery and the sci-fi/fantasy setting. The manga really does a great job of expanding upon things in the movie in addition to having jaw-droppingly amazing art. (It was also a clear influence on Panzer Dragoon!)

I'd say my favorite non-Miyazaki Ghibli movie is Grave of the Fireflies. It wasn't licensed by Disney, so it's not quite as high-profile as the others, but it's a wonderful and sad story about a brother and sister who are orphaned in World War II.

[bladerunner]

Completely agree. I'd love a release of Only Yesterday. I watched both versions when TCM aired them (That's when I first saw Whisper of the Heart and fell in love with it) and was really disappointed that they didn't give it a release. Sometimes Disney can be really disappointing. They'll release a movie like John Carter, a total dud filled with violence, but one little instance of a conversation of natural bodily functions and they go and freak out. I'm not even sure I'd want to get the film if they did bother to release it because I have a horrible fear that they'd want to edit it in some way.

Michi - you said two versions - is there another version of Only Yesterday?

To me, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind was the director at his peak. I love the post-apocalyptic "dangerous nature" imagery and the sci-fi/fantasy setting. The manga really does a great job of expanding upon things in the movie in addition to having jaw-droppingly amazing art. (It was also a clear influence on Panzer Dragoon!)

I'd say my favorite non-Miyazaki Ghibli movie is Grave of the Fireflies. It wasn't licensed by Disney, so it's not quite as high-profile as the others, but it's a wonderful and sad story about a brother and sister who are orphaned in World War II.

Nemoide - have you read the Nausicaa manga? Blows the film out of the water. I was so pleased to read those. Makes it a shame they did not make a series or another film.

Grave of the Fireflies is indeed the best Ghibli film. Truly one of the great and most tragic war films ever made. Even if you don't like anime, you need to see it.