Studio Ghibli

This time I want to review the Studio Ghibli films. Studio Ghibli is a Japanese animation film makers. It was founded in June 1985 after the success of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984), with funding by Tokuma Shoten.

Artificial animation Studio Ghibli films are not only famous in Japan alone. But famous all over the world, especially for all of you who are lovers of animated films.

Eight of Studio Ghibli's films are among the 15 highest-grossing anime films made in Japan, with Spirited Away (2001) being the highest, grossing over US $274 million worldwide. Many of their works have won the Animage Anime Grand Prix award, and four have won the Japan Academy Prize for Animation of the Year. Four of Studio Ghibli's films received Academy Award nominations in the United States. Spirited Away won a Golden Bear in 2002 and an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film in 2003 (Wikipedia).

Here are the films made by Studio Ghibli

• Castle in the Sky – August 2, 1986            
• Grave of the Fireflies – April 16, 1988     
• My Neighbor Totoro – April 16, 1988      
• Kiki's Delivery Service – July 29, 1989      
• Only Yesterday – July 20, 1991   
• Porco Rosso – July 28, 1992         
• Pom Poko – July 16, 1994             
• Whisper of the Heart – July 15, 1995       
• Princess Mononoke – July 12, 1997         
• My Neighbors the Yamadas – July 17, 1999          
• Spirited Away – July 27, 2001     
• The Cat Returns – July 19, 2002 
• Howl's Moving Castle – November 20, 2004        
• Tales from Earthsea – July 29, 2006         
• Ponyo – July 19, 2008    
• Arrietty – July 17, 2010 
• From Up on Poppy Hill – July 16, 2011    
• The Wind Rises – July 20, 2013   
• The Tale of the Princess Kaguya – November 23, 2013
• When Marnie Was There – July 19, 2014

Here are some films of the studio Ghibli which I will discuss:

• Grave of Fireflies

   The story was the siblings, Seita and Setsuko, and their desperate struggle to survive during the final months of the Second World War. They lost both parents due to the war. Their mother died due to exposure to a bomb blast. They were forced to live with his maternal family. Seita also provided all the supplies that had been buried prior to her aunt as a reward for having them in her house. He gave all but one tin supply, Fruit drops, candy her sister favorite sister.

   Sooner or later, their aunt began to sell their mother clothes and complained how Seita and Setsuko were a burden to their family and assumed they did not do anything to get food which they ate (In fact, the reality was what they ate, rice, side dishes, and else, was the result of their mother’s kimonos sales and supplies were buried by Seita. Even they were not given the same portion as her family because she said that Seita and Setsuko did not work for the country and were just lazing).

   The situation was uncomfortable; Seita decided to go out of her aunt's house and lived in abandoned bomb shelter. In the evening, Seita and Setsuko caught many fireflies as lights in the shelter.

   The next morning, Setsuko surprised to learn all the fireflies that they catch dead. She was buried the fireflies and asked why fireflies should die so soon and why their mother had to die. Hearing Setsuko said their mother died, Seita was crying. Because of all this he hid the fact their mother had died to Setsuko. But unbeknownst to their aunt told Setsuko Seita that their mother had died.

   Supplies of food and money were running low. This made Seita have to steal to nearest farm in order to feed Setsuko. Seita was increasingly desperate when he learned his sister exposed to malnutrition and one way to treat was to provide nutritious food, even though at that time they had not had any more food either money.

   Seita finally withdrew all the money in their mother savings in order to provide nutritious food for Setsuko. At the same time, he heard that his father fought ship has sunk in the sea floor and there was no hope that their father survived the war.

   Not only that, misfortune befell them back. Not long after Setsuko died. With a sore heart, Seita was cremating his sister. Furthermore, he had no will of life. In the end a few weeks later Seita died due to malnutrition.

My opinion:
This film provides a lesson for us that the war is useless and only misery. The film also shows how the war caused so many victims and most of them are children. Like fireflies, their life did not last long.

The film tells how both siblings have to live with difficulty at the time of war. How his brother must be willing to steal and beaten in order to provide decent food for her sister. I really like this movie. I learn a lot from this movie. Every time I watch this movie, my hearts feel their sadness, their sorrow. I’ll always hold myself not to cry. It’s really a sad movie. I really recommended you to watch this movie.

• Spirited Away

   This film tells about a family, father, mother, and their children Chihiro who entered into the spirit world. Because of eating foods that exist in the world, his mother and father cursed and turned into a pig. Chihiro who had been informed by a man named Haku tried to rescue her parents by asking the job to Kamaji.

Finally, Chihiro got a job and signed a contract agreement with Yubaba and she was renamed into Sen. After that she went back and met Haku who pretended not to know her. But, Haku gave her a warning to keep remember her original name, Chihiro, in order to save her parents and to be able to go out of the world of spirits.

   When she worked, she unintentionally let the spirit of No Face into the bath house. At the same time, Sen proved her hard work by serving a spirit odor that turned out to be a very powerful spirit.

   Things began to chaotic when No Face gave much gold to workers who were greedy. He also requested to be served with plenty of food and he asked Sen to serve him in exchange for gold that much. However, Sen rejected and said that she did not need it.

   Problems occurred when she was helping Haku. She went to the house of Yubaba twin sisters to be able to help Haku. Haku who had been trapped in a spell of Yubaba, had been cured. At that moment Sen knew the real name of Haku was Kohaku which was the guardian of the river Kohaku.

   In the end, Sen / Chihiro could return to her world along with her father and mother.

My opinion:

Actually, I’ve watched this movie today. :D

I like this movie. I really like how the klutzy Chihiro can survive and even help Haku and her parents.

This movie told us not to become greedy to. Greedy will harm you. This movie also told us that magic is not an answer to everything; you can still do something and make it nice without magic.

I don’t know how to say. If only you can just read what inside my mind, you will understand how great this movie is.  

• Howl’s Moving Castle

   The film also tells about the war situation and explains that war is not the answer of peace.

   The story is about how a girl named Sophie who got the curse of the evil witch who maked her become an old hag due to meet with the male wizard named Howl. As a result of the curse, Sophie was determined to be reunited with the witch that had cursed. In the middle of her journey, she met with Howl's Moving Castle. She entered the house. In the house she met with fire demon named Calcifer who will rescue her from the curse in exchange for Sophie also helped him escape from the curse. When Howl appeared, Sophie announces that Calcifer hired her as a cleaning lady terribly dirty after seeing the condition of the house.

   At that time, there were two countries were at war. This was due to the prince of one of the country disappeared and was considered kidnapped by the opponent. Howl was asked to meet with the leaders of each country in order to helping the two countries. One of the royal advisors called Suliman. Howl was asked Sophie to replace him met with Suliman. Suliman realizes Sophie's true relation to Howl and her intense romantic feelings towards him. Howl then arrives to rescue Sophie, disguised as the King. Suliman tries to trap Howl, but with Sophie's help, they manage to escape, taking Heen and the former Witch of the Waste with them.

   In the end, Sophie helped Howl to remove the curse by returning his heart into his body. Howl heart that had been there in Calficer was returned to Howl. So either howl or Calficer freed from the curse, following with Sophie.

   The end of the film is shown that Howl live with Sophie in their moving castle.

My opinion:

Once again, war is not an option for gaining peace. Sometime war started because of misunderstanding from both side. So if we listen to both side clearly, we don’t need violent for answering the problem.

I really like Sophie, because she is not such a cry-baby. She used her strength to release from the cursed. She also helped so many people to release from their curse. She was even kind to the witch that put her in spell.

I can also feel the emptiness in Howl. But I’m glad that Sophie can fill his emptiness. Sometimes what we need is the right person to feel the emptiness. But, in the way to gain it, we might fall or we might do some mistakes.

That’s all from me for this time. Hope you enjoy my quick review and have a nice watching…