Rating: 
Summary: Very Inspiring and Ambitious
Review: For those of you with an adventurous side (and those of you who don't-because we know you have one deep down), this movie is for you! First of all, Castle in the Sky is a studio Ghibli film which means that it is guarateed to be spectacular and will somehow at the end of the movie leave you wondering, "How can one movie possibly be so breathtaking and real at the same time?" This movie combines action, suspense, love, and comedy (and many more elements) into one plot to create the spectacular product. It is a pure fact that this movie is stunning-not an opinion! Pazu, a teenage boy (don't be fooled by the age), helps to rescue Sheeta, a girl who (literally) falls from the sky. The couple work together to solve the mystery of "Laputa (Castle in the Sky)" and come to the realization of how actively they are all involved with this mysterious place.
As always there is a shocking moral or two to be learned by one of Miyazaki's intricate tales, but I won't spoil the surprise for you! I think that the best word to describe any of Miyazaki's works is simply...ineffable.
Rating:
Summary: It's been a long time coming.
Review: The wonderful thing about this movie is the way in which Miyazaki likes to present his underlying message; that technology is seductive, overwhelming, and may be the key to dominating others, but the user/abuser eventually isolates himself from those whom he would rule and/or fear. The isolation is complete, separating the "powerful" from others as well as nature. The poem that Sheeta recites to Muska is the reason why the initial inhabitants left Laputa: We need roots in the Earth; Let's live with the wind;
With seeds, make fat the winter;
With the birds, let's sing of spring. To couch the theme of this poem in the metaphor of the search for a floating mythical island of power demonstrates the depth of Miyazaki's talent and abilities in blending a moral message with his love for flight, talent for timing, storytelling prowess, and his immense respect for ecology and nature. The other wonderful thing about Miyazaki's/Studio Ghibli's films is that it isn't aimed at any market; it is aimed at both adults and children despite the fact that it is anime, and as a result, is much more honest about presenting its themes without resorting to sugar-coating or talking down to children. It is a very watchable film - not cartoon - despite being a fantasy, despite being anime, and despite Disney's efforts to process it through its marketing machinery. It's appalling that the release of this movie as well as Miyazaki's others such as Nausicaa, Porco Rosso, Omohide Poro Poro (Only Yesterday), and others has been held up in this country for as long as they have simply because Disney or Buena Vista owns the distribution rights. The international release year was way back in 1986, when I was in 6th grade. I enjoyed it immensely then, I enjoy watching it with even more pleasure now. I find it ridiculous that Disney would request the rescoring of the movie simply for marketing purposes and to sell more DVDs. Nonetheless, the belated release of this movie in this country more than overshadows the distateful actions of corporate narrow-mindedness.
Rating: 
Summary: Missing a star for dub and dvd presentation
Review: Before the 3 Miyazaki movies came out on DVD in the US, I told people the 2 best companies for DVD presentation are Criterion Collection and Disney. If you want proof, there are many that can back them. But after watching the 2-disc Castle In The Sky, The Disney company has put out their most lack-luster DVD ever. Disc 2 is JUST storyboards? No Angle switching like the imports? Why not just include them on disc 1 alongside the original movie like "Grave Of The Fireflies" did? Other extras are pretty bland, couldn't they dig up some archives from Ghibli, or newspaper articles text form? Probably didn't seem to interest them since all Studio Ghibli movies are their stepchildren. (Cinderella anyone?) Disney has ruined the movie with their english dub in larger proportions than ever. Come on, does VanDerBeek even remotely sound like a 10 year old? The new music? Mr. Hisaishi, I absolutely think you are an incredible composer, but the scene where the robot hands over the flower? What happened? All the emotional power of that scene was lost in the new music. All the 'scary' music replaced with 'exciting' music? Not a very good job in my opinion. New dub and new music? Remember folks, the remixes usually can't surpass the original. So why 4 stars for such a bad review? Incredible movie, and the fact that they didn't remove a frame, and kept the original Japanese soundtrack. Miyazaki-san is probably the greatest living director, so give him props (that means you, Disney). Best shot/sequence:
The robot on Laputa handing over the flower to Sheeta for the grave is one of the most touching moments in any of his films, but ONLY when you watch it with the original Japanese music. Then comes a cameo appearance by Nausicaa's Teto, with a bunch of his friends and play on the robot's shoulder. If you watch "Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind" first, you will be most overjoyed by the appearance.
Rating:
Summary: One of Hayao Miyazaki's earliest films!
Review: I've been waiting for this movie to be released in America ever since I saw the preview for it on the 1998 video release of Kiki's Delivery Service! The movie's length was a bit long, but the many action sequences kept it from dragging on. Laputa: Castle in the Sky's animation isn't on the level of excellence of Spirited Away's or many other animes', but then again its not exactly a good thing to judge a movie of any sort just by how it looks; Plus there's the fact that this came out in 1986. But for its' time, the animation was superb.
The only problem I had after viewing the movie was Muska; You never really find out just WHY he wanted Laputa's destructive power. After hearing both the Japanese and English versions of this movie, I didn't have much of a problem with the English version's actors, although I DID have a few gripes. Like most people, I didn't really enjoy James Van Der Beek's voice acting for Pazu. For one thing, it seemed as if he was trying too hard to make every word fit the 'lip flaps', which made him sound like he had too much sugar. ^_^;
Plus, he sounded like an OLDER teenager, while Pazu looks like he's about 12 or 13. I mostly liked Anna Paquin's(Who also plays as Rouge in the X-Men movies, I believe) acting as Sheeta. I thought her voice actually sounded CUTE, except for most of the added lines like "Pazu! Are you alright?!" when Pazu crashes through his house; she sounded a bit whiny, but maybe its just me!
I personally think Mark Hamill did an excellent job as "Muska". He sounded like a very 'sly' and 'supercilious' character. It fit very well, though there were some parts that it seemed like he was stressing a little too much on the voice.
As for Hisaishi's(sp?) re-scored music, I must be in the minority here, but I loved it! It gave the movie a more epic, grander feel.(Personally I despise MIDI or synthesised music; though sometimes you CAN make it sound good when used correctly)
The original score was okay, and it fit with the type of music an 80's film would have. But I thought it had moments of silence that lasted WAY too long. Don't get me wrong; I love it when they have some parts that don't have music, like when Pazu and Sheeta enter the 'Dragon's Nest' or whatever it was called. Anyway, I recommend that you see this movie if you love any of Miyazaki's other films, or if you love anime in general. Castle in the Sky contains almost all of the elements of later Hayao Miyazaki films(i.e: be kind to nature; a strong willed female main character; strange creatures; fantastically imaginative worlds), which is a good reason that you should see this film first if you've never seen a Hayao Miyazaki film. Now if only Disney can get around to releasing Nausicaa sometime soon. :)
Rating:
Summary: English version [is not good]!!!
Review: I am an Japanese, who watch both English version and Japanese one. The English one ruins everything!! I am not talking about dubbing, but the music they changed!!. Why they did not keep original music!!. I would strongly recommend to watch this movie in Japanese with English subtitle.
Rating:
Summary: Great art, but the audio?
Review: The new audio for the english version I would have to say, being from the U.S., is wonderful. I'm greatly sorry for any who took offense to the new dubbing but for me personally, the scenes that were breathtaking were amplified by the new music. Thats just the way I'd like it, its more dramatic (for me). I know that most of you seem to prefer the simplicity of the original but personally, I think the new audio did the movie good and probably appealed to many more consumers from the U.S. and increased sales. Yes, we may have lessened the "cultural treasure" with the audio, but in all honesty I found the original soundtrack bland and to empty, that and Pazu sounded annoying as hell. It all has to do with preference and location. At least there's more than one way to listen to it. *grins*
Also, I'm glad they made the movie "more talkative", personally I find dead silence awkward and the added dialogue gave the film finer detail. You had more of a sense of what all the characters were thinking. Either way, I'm picking up the rest of Miyazaki's movies A.S.A.P.
Rating:
Summary: Great movie, fair dub
Review: This is one of the greatest movies of all time. It's got everything -- action, mystery, suspense, comedy, and a little romance. The visuals are stunning, the story fascinating, the characters compelling. Disney's English translation and dub, unfortunately, captures maybe 20% of the power of the original soundtrack. The dialog is dumbed down, the delivery emotionally flat. Most unforgiveably, the amazing sound effects of the original have been pushed so far down into the mix that they're often inaudible. This results in the disconcerting experience of seeing, say, a roaring engine or a massive explosion, but without the accompanying sound. The sounds effects are almost completely buried in unnecessarily intrusive background music which has been added to the English version. This is a great movie, enjoyable by people of all ages. For the best viewing experience, turn on the subtitles and switch to the original Japanese soundtrack. Six stars out of five for the original movie, minus two for the English soundtrack.
Rating:
Summary: Miyazaki does it again.
Review: Hayao Miyazaki is THE premier animation artist. I see no reason not to get the film. Everyone can watch and enjoy it. Get it!
Rating:
Summary: A Great Adventure
Review: Another masterpiece by Miyazaki. Castle in the Sky is a great adventure brimming with fantasy, and an edge of reality that makes it all seem possible. The characters are fun and contain a depth not seen in many cartoons. A definite good buy.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic animated adventure from Miyazaki!
Review: CASTLE IN THE SKY is master animator Hayao Miyazaki's third film, and it's one of his most beloved of all time. This is not to say, however, that it was one of his greatest hits. It was actually a box office disappointment in its initial release in 1986, though its take of roughly two and a half million dollars was decent enough to make it the highest-grossing animated film of its year. To this date, it has retained an enthusiastic cult following. Inspired by the works of Jules Verne and GULLIVER'S TRAVELS, the story centers on two young orphans -- young miner Pazu, and mysterious girl Sheeta (who wears a magic pendant around her neck) -- who team up to find the long-lost island of Laputa, which is rumored to have great riches and gems. They are accompanied by a band of bumbling yet sympathetic air pirates led by the quick-tempered Dola (who at first chase them, yet turn out to be true allies) and pursued by government agents (namely the treacherous Muska) who want the power of Laputa for their own benefit. Miyazaki didn't know it, but LAPUTA is an offensive word in Spanish, which is why the film was retitled (for its US release anyway) from LAPUTA: THE CASTLE IN THE SKY to just CASTLE IN THE SKY. This does nothing to detract from the overall film itself, which is a marvelous animated achievement. The artwork, although not as spectacular as in some of Miyazaki's later movies, is fantastic and gorgeous enough to watch with imaginative characters and locations and breathtaking flight sequences that will make one feel giddy. The characters may not be as interesting or well-polished as in Miyazaki's later movies, either, but all in all, this cast of characters more than get the job done for an action-adventure that, even running at 2 hours, never once gets dull. On a side note, a 1989 Anime series called NADIA: THE SECRET OF BLUE WATER bears many similarities to CASTLE IN THE SKY. Both films share similar ideas and, even more interestingly, were conceived by Miyazaki himself! NADIA originally started out as an idea for a TV series involving two orphans who meet Captain Nemo and the Nautilus while being chased by bad guys, but Miyazaki's idea was later tackled by angst-ridden Hideaki Anno. However, some elements of Miyazaki's original idea found its way into some of his later projects. CASTLE IN THE SKY was one of them. It is easy to compare this film to the popular TV show. Unlike NADIA, however, CASTLE IN THE SKY is shorter, its heroine (thankfully) is more sweet-tempered, and there are none of the stupid, extraneous sequences that almost sank the otherwise entertaining 39-part TV series. I know this seems off-topic, but I thought I would mention it since I at first thought of NADIA as a way to pass the time until CASTLE IN THE SKY. Of course, it turned out to be more than that (see my reviews on this show for your reference). As part of their distribution deal, Disney has dubbed this movie into English with the voices of James Van Der Beek (Pazu), Anna Paquin (Sheeta), Mark Hamill (Muska), Cloris Leachman (Dola), and Mandy Patinkin (Louie-one of Ma Dola's sons). It was supposed to be released to video in 1999, but was soon considered for theaters, as Joe Hisaishi rerecorded his beloved score for CASTLE IN THE SKY with the Seattle Music Orchestra. Unfortunately, the failure of PRINCESS MONONOKE in the U.S. -- and the fact that the films had not yet been released to DVD in Japan at the time -- delayed the movie from ever getting such a release. At last, however, the movie is finally available on DVD -- and what a fantastic release it is! First of all, I will say that I've heard opinions ranging from the delighted to the outraged about this English dub, but after seeing it for myself, I have nothing except praising compliments. The U.S. voice acting is fantastic -- especially Mark Hamill's Muska -- the rescored music is both gorgeous and breathtaking, and the script, although loaded with extra lines and/or commentary, is still better written than the sparsely translated subtitles and maintains the adventurous spirit of the movie. All in all, another first-class dub from the Mouse House. The DVD is also top notch. The video quality is spectacular (despite some minor grain in the darker scenes), the audio is brilliantly mixed, and the extras -- including a behind-the-microphone featurette -- are decent enough. The menus are a little iffy in that you have to do a lot of configuring to play the Japanese credits, but that's the one weakness of this otherwise A+ grade DVD of one of Miyazaki's most entertaining movies. Highly reccomended, period.
|
