I really liked Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle but I could barely stand to get to the end of this movie, which is weird considering how much more action the movie has. Everything that happened was either uninteresting or silly (and not silly in an awesome way like a guinea pig in a pirate costume.)
I can't be the only one who thought this.
You needn't worry. While I liked the film, I think this does fit the anime model more closely than most of Miyazaki's other work. It has robots, mild (very mild) sexual tension, and three-d air battles. While I like the film because it has a coherent story (much of Japanese anime is highly convoluted), I fully understand why a person who appreciates movies as an art form might not connect with this film.
shareActually air planes or flying play an important part in most Hayao Miyazaki's movies.
shareyou were probably watching a dub
share<<you were probably watching a dub >>
Nah, that can't be the reason why he found it boring. It's true that some dislike dubs, but it ultimately depends on the viewer. My guess is he was probably expecting something out of it and apparently he didn't get it. It has nothing to do with the dub, or the film itself, it's just the preferences of the viewer. Just like some people like apples better than oranges, others can like certain movies better than others. It's all the same.
When I first saw it, i found it a bit dull, but for me it was the animation, it wasn't anyway near as sharp and colourful as his later works. I ended up deciding to watch it again one day, this time knowing what to expect, and I enjoyed it a lot more than the first time.
if you ever feel up to it, maybe you could view it again and see if that makes a difference?
this is my favourite ghibli movie, :-)
i think the pirates are pedophiles, they are so much older than sheeta.
other than that this is a classic. i just love how miyazaki makes us care about the characters.
cant think of anything clever to write
It's incredible. Simply magical, takes me away every time. It just has such a distinct sense of nostalgic longing. Re-watch it with Japanese audio is my rec.
shareThis is actually my favorite out of all of them all.
shareThis is one of my favorite Ghibli movies, if not the favorite.
It really captured my heart with the characters, animation, soundtrack, everything.
"The world is a mess and I just... need to rule it"
I just finished watching this. I'd have to say that this movie must be geared more for little kids than any other age group. I liked Spirited Away, but this one didn't cut it for me. Maybe it's because I kept thinking to myself, "Man... Disney did it so much better with Treasure Planet". But then again Disney came out with that 16 years after Laputa. Hmmmm...
shareTreasure Planet is just Treasure Island in space, so really Robert Louis Stevenson came up with the idea some 200 years before Disney.
shareThe pirates do appear kinda pedophilic but apparently this is the doing of Disney's version of the script. In the original Japanese version script they see her more as a mother-figure to them (still crazy considering again the age differences but these were all mama's boys after all).
Either way it's just a mere hint, and the sequence where they all go to help Sheeta out of "love" was hilarious.
Most likely you're a *beep* retard. Don't worry, most people are, so you still fit in.
shareThat's funny, because I felt the complete opposite: I loved Laputa but found Spirited Away really boring. But the thing is that I was already a Miyazaki fan long before Spirited Away. When I watched that movie, I felt dissapointed that it wasn't as good as some of his earlier films like Laputa or Princess Mononoke. Of course I was still a teenager when I first saw these movies, but even when I saw them a second time as an adult, I still found Spirited Away somewhat boring and Laputa incredibly enjoyable.
I think the main reason why many Western viewers prefer Spirited Away is probably because it's the first Miyazaki movie most of them had seen. In Japan on the other hand, Nausicaa and Laputa are usually regarded as Miyazaki's best films, neither of which are on the IMDb Top 250 (which of course only represents mainstream Western audiences). This is quite ironic considering how Spirited Away has a largely Japanese setting, whereas Nausicaa and Laputa have somewhat more Western-inspired settings.
Other reasons why some Western viewers might dislike Laputa include the bad sound effects in the English dub (even though the voice acting was spot-on) and the dated animation lacking the polish of Spirited Away and other more recent animations (even though Laputa's animation was ahead of its time).
"WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK I AM???!!!!!"
It's not so much that the new sound effects in the dub are bad as much as they are more, well, "punched up", as they were obviously making a 5.1 Surround Sound Track. Practices like this are often guaranteed to be controversial no matter what. In all honesty, the new sound effects don't bother me that much (the new score and the top-notch voice work in Disney's dub cancel that out), although it IS probably the only thing I'd call into question about this otherwise good dub.
shareI thought the score was the same? I never noticed anything different about the background score in the subbed and dubbed versions, unless you mean the original score was re-performed for 5.1 digital surround sound?
"WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK I AM???!!!!!"
It was. Disney commissioned Joe Hisaishi to rerecord his music for their English dub, resulting with a lot of orchestral pieces, moreso than the more silent Japanese counterpart. Still, the themes remain the same; only difference is is that it's done by a full orchestra, not the electronics from the original. There were a lot of fans who were against this from the start, but Miyazaki and Hisaishi actually approved the reworking.
So yeah, it WAS rerecorded and reperformed for 5.1.
Same here. Spirited Away didn't leave me with a lasting impression the way Laputa has. I first watched Laputa back in the mid-1980s on television in the UK as an English dub (as "The Flying Island"), and it's a been a movie favorite ever since.
shareThis was the first Miyazaki movie I ever saw. I agree with some posters that that has a lot to do with it. I like the nostalgia of the 80's dub...it reminds me of how most good cartoons started out Japanese and just got dubbed over...hahah I wonder how old I was when I realized that...Voltron, Tranzor Z, Battle of the Planets, Robotech..."whaddya mean they're dubbed?" haha
But I digress.
Some people say the old English dub is ruined by the pirate voices...perhaps too silly. However, subtlety is never really a character trait in Eastern movies...they typically interact with very obvious facial expressions.
Anyhoo, I saw Totoro (loved it) and Kiki (the Disney version is good! whoda thunk it?!! Phil Hartmann makes a great cat). Laputa is just more sweeping and epic with awesome characters and vivid imagination.
I have also seen Princess Mononoke, when it first came out. I didn't like that but I think it's because there were no good guys and bad guys. I know I know that's the whole point, but I still didn't care too much. I also saw Howl's Moving Castle, but wow...I hardly remember that movie...I suppose I just was waiting for it to be over.
Those other ones, Spirited Away and Nausicaa, on my list ;) We'll see what happens dot com.
"She's a cute girl, with cute little piggly tails."
Everybody likes the Shen.
I never heard the pirate voices in the original dub, but I think Disney did a great job in casting the pirate trio, and Dola certainly--they all embued their characters with the sort of comic timing and over-the-top comedy that these characters required.
I will say that I prefer Disney's version because while there are fans who argue that the new score works against the film, for me, it ADDED a lot to it. The voices for the leads are mature, true, but I'll take them over what sounds like 30-something year old actresses squeaking into the microphone trying to sound like children in the older dub. And I certainly prefer Mark Hamill's Muska to the totally dull, lifeless monotone voice in the older dub. Compare that boring voice to Luke, and there really is no contest. Keep in mind that this was a sample I heard, but I practically think it pales in comparison to the newer dub; the script in the newer dub is also more smoother-sounding than the slavishly accurate, clunkily written, stiff-sounding dialogue in the older dub ("Did you hear me we go straight forward"--that line was so choppy sounding it threw me for a loop.)
-Jon T.
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What's boring about this??? It's just as adventurous as Spirited Away and just as action-packed as Howl's Moving Castle. What's the matter of this film? I mean, it ain't boring but could've used a little more true love of the kids and the end scared me to death. When Muska kept shooting Sheeta's pigtails off and told her that he was going to shoot her ear. That's all. Nothing terrible.
Sonic will be hearty forever.
"Mom, could I get one of these?" - Little Girl
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Laputa: Castle in the Sky was certainly better than Howl's Moving Castle which, while technically superior and entertaining, seemed (IMHO) more disjointed and self-indulgent scripting wise in comparison to the more original Laputa, and it also supposedly distorting its source material (a British novel).
shareyup, Laputa is definitely one of Miayazaki's not-so-great-movies..
the pace and the lack of character-devolopment outweighs the other positive characteristics of the film - and therefore, sums it up in a disapointing way, in comparison to the other creations in the artists fantastic reportoire.. this was more of like a lukewarm and whimsy action-experience more suited for kids. definitely watchable and entertaining, but not a classic.. the end
***USA makes classic movies, Europe makes better movies and Asia makes interesting movies***
I'm a huuuge Miyazaki fan.. and Howl's Moving Castle is prob mah favorite anime movie EVER !! I did not enjoiii Laputa or Spirited Away as much as other Studio Ghibli films.. I found the stories and characters to be rather dull !! Not saying they are bad movies... not at all, but I always get this nostalgic feeling of back in the days when I was a kid !! And Laputa and Spirited Away did not gief meh this feeling !!
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