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A Handful Of Reactions To Last Night's SPIRITED AWAY Screening At The El Capitan In Hollywood!!

the man is GOD by Bill Harford	Sep 12th, 2002 03:25:59 AM
miyazaki is the BEST director alive today. his vision is distinct and totally his own. i am lucky to have seen all his work (including the early sherlock hound series). miyazaki-san is a film god - a giant, no less. i'm glad that aicn is running the piece on miyazaki - and moriarty's take on the miyazaki body of work should be fun. do yourself the favor and immerse yourself in miyazaki's universe. it makes spielberg looks like a cheap fair, and it makes lucas's star wars universe look like a wannabe movie. peace out, yo.
To hell with any sequels... by tbrosz	Sep 12th, 2002 03:33:56 AM
I'd be one happy camper if Disney would just release more of the originals. "Island in the Sky?" "Nausicaa?" Where are you?
Multiple viewings by Aranel	Sep 12th, 2002 03:39:02 AM
Of course we're crazy!!! Who would see the same movie 5 times if they had a totally healthy mind?!? Movies make you fell so much. It's like therapy. Each time i'm depressed I pop in Breakfast at Tiffany's! Just makes me feel better! And Spirited Away is magical. In a way Amelie was. Amelie just made you happy. Everybody came out of the theater with a broad smile on their faces. Spirited Away just plunges you back into childhood with all it's fears, dreams, mysteries and discoveries, It's wonderful. And I'm really glad to hear Disney did a good job and that you guys will get to see it in the US of A. Enjoy! :)
masterpiece not too strong a word... by snoopy le mans	Sep 12th, 2002 06:30:33 AM
thanks for the coverage of this gorgeously animated masterpiece! definitely more Brothers' Grimm than Powerpuff, Spirited Away is an instant classic. edgier, more fantastic and scarier than My Neighbor Totoro, which some might remember... No Face was a brilliant character, i saw him as a representation of ego -- either inflamed, or tamed...
my favourite is still Porco Rosso but by CuervoJones	Sep 12th, 2002 08:25:51 AM
Spirited Away is better than all the Disney movies
A thing of beauty... by slav	Sep 12th, 2002 08:58:29 AM
It pains me that I cannot watch Spirited Away... again for the fifth time :( My TV set is in repair and my DVD copy sits there wanting to be watched, needing to be watched. This film has an amazing effect on children. I had it playing (in Japanese of course with subtitles) and my little cousin of 5 years sat down and watched it, enthralled. He can't read subtitles (or possibly keep up with them), but he saw the magic. I would have loved to seen it through his eyes...
If you want a sequel to Nausicaa, read the manga by Drath	Sep 12th, 2002 11:15:10 AM
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind the Manga is bigger and more complex than the movie, and it takes the story much further. It's the perfect epic, and all drawn and written by Miyazaki. I think it's available in book stores like Borders. Of course, if you think everything that's worth seeing has to be made into a moviecoughHarrycough, it'll just be a tormenting tease for you. ****** Wait, what did Miyazaki confirm about No Face? That he represents that child mirroring his/her environment theme? I can sort of see that, but it's still a very strange character and it doesn't explain the stuff with him eating people if they take what he offers them or why he wants to eat Sen so much. ***** Thank you Moriarty, I agreed one hundred percent with EVERYTHING you said! I too love all Miyazaki's films(except for Porco Rosso, which I haven't seen), and I really don't know what to say to people who don't like them or are disappointed with them. It's just, well, I don't know what to say. I'm still very sad(and a bit angry) that a great film like Princess Mononoke is going down as a failure in America. I maintain it's a great film that WOULD have found an audience with the right introduction and marketing. I'm not an anime nut, I hate the generic Sci-Fi, pretentious drivel, and overdone fight scenes that so often saturates the medium. But Miyazaki's films are something different from that typecasting. If Crouching Tiger could find an audience stateside, so could Mononoke. I think the problem was that it was a fantasy film, a dramatic animated film, and a foreign film all at once. American audiences in general have an aversion to those types of films, one that is all three was just too great a departure from the norm. For those who think outside the box though, it was a classic. I have confidence people will get it eventually though. Hopefully Spirited Away will capture our masses through the "children's fantasy" back door that has people praising Harry Potter(good books BTW, but I think if people accepted fantasy more they wouldn't be so shocked by the phenomenon). SA is such a charming movie, in a way that few movies EVER are, that it deserves all the attention it can get.
I saw it too there by IAmLegolas	Sep 12th, 2002 12:08:21 PM
Of Miyazaki's films, I've only seen PRINCESS MONONOKE, KIKI'S DELIVERY SERVICE and MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO and love them all. I got a chance to see SPIRITED AWAY at the El Capitan in Hollywood (same night, obviously). Hayao Miyazaki and his producer where there afterwards, they just flew in from Toronto, but couldn't stay for too long because they've been up since 2:30am PST. Anyway, they showed the dubbed version, which didn't sound bad, but then I don't really recognize a bad dub unless I've seen the movie twice, once dubbed and then once in it's original language, but I do have to say that the dub is way better than MONONOKE's. The film's very good, but not GREAT like everyone is flipping out about. I akin the hype on this movie like the hype surrounding CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON, where basically it was a film of an underground genre (kung-fu) that finally broke the mainstream, but those that are familiar with the genre, it's a good movie, but seen better. I mean I thought MONONOKE is still better, but then again since I'm an adult and that movie was more adult themed, maybe it appealed to me more than a story about a 10 year old girl's adventures through Wonderland? But just like with TOTORO I still love it and love being shown a child-like world of fantasy and wonder with crazy looking visuals and some really funny moments involving cute, but far from annoying creatures, fans of TOTORO will recognize the Dust Bunnies characters. The film is very very "Japanese" and hence I still don't think the average American film goer will be embrace this like any other anime that gets release here. Hope I get proven wrong, though, because I would love a nice Miyazaki DVD box set in Region 1, which the option for Japanese audio/English subs.
"a nice Miyazaki DVD box set"? by mbeemer	Sep 12th, 2002 01:00:20 PM
You can get a Studio Ghibli box set of 11 films on 6 DVDs from a number of sellers on eBay. The going price is ~$45 + shipping. The DVDs are region 0 with english subtitles available - menus are in chinese but aren't too hard to poke through. (Also overheard a vendor at a comic show offer to sell this for $120!!)
This movie is PURE MAGIC!!!!! Harry Potter has nothing on Spirit by MentallyMariah	Sep 12th, 2002 02:48:03 PM
I own the dvd and It is one of my most cherished possesions right now! I have screened it 4 times for all my friends and I can't wait to see it again! Man I can't wait to see it on the big screen dubbed...WOW, I love this movie!!!!! It is really something special! A Classic in every sense...Better then anything I have seen all year...Untill the TWO TOWERS!
This film is brilliant! another one worth seeing... by gigaloff	Sep 12th, 2002 02:49:54 PM
...is a Korean animated film called My beautiful Girl Mari. It's not as brilliantly imaginative as this one, but it has nice digital animation and a lovely story about lost chidhoods and a giant fluffy white dog. Seriously. Buy both on DVD and then read Neil Gaimans Coraline. In the words of the almighty Opus the penguin: "it's never too late to hav ea happy childhood." Oh and The Two Towers and Kill Bill wil absolutely KICK ASS (this last part just to try to prove that I'm a nomal TB-BS'er...)
I am legolas...... by ANGELS-EGG	Sep 12th, 2002 03:06:39 PM
Hmmm...So your basically saying that people who regard CTHD and Spirited Away as masterpeices they have not seen enough of the genre? THATS NONSENSE MAN!! I have in my collection all of miyazakis film and an extensive animation and martial arts collection. I regard Spirited Away as Miyazakis greatest film thus far or at least on par with totoro... When I saw CTHD I felt as a martial arts film it delivered something pure like the old novels or serials from china.... Only because you felt Sen was over hyped (which it aint) does not mean the people who loved it dont know there stuff.
Mori, the link to your interview just takes me to the Ain't by crimsonrage	Sep 12th, 2002 04:08:31 PM
Just tellin' ya'.
DVD set is a. . . by ll1234	Sep 12th, 2002 04:12:57 PM
. . . bootleg. Some of the film included in that set haven't been released _in Japan_. There's going to be an announcement from Disney regarding the US DVD releases later this year. So yes, there's finally going to be some Studio Ghibli R1 DVDs for people to see.
ACK! I missed this?? by Sakla	Sep 12th, 2002 04:45:59 PM
I've already deen this...but I had no idea it was the El Capitan! Very few places I would rather have seen this.
ANGELS-EGG : "So your basically saying that people who regard CT by IAmLegolas	Sep 12th, 2002 04:54:43 PM
In general, yes, because (making a sweeping statement here) most people who saw CT,HD and were creaming all over it were new to the genre of kung-fu, more specifically wire-fu/flying type HK movies. Most people, not all, MOST as I liked it a lot and I've seen a lot of anime and HK in my time. I came to this conclusion because the wire-fu genre was pretty underground in the States (well, before CT, HD and THE MATRIX came out) and there is no way the CT, HD would of made the numbers that it did without a healthy dose of the "normals" going to see it who think that the Wu Tang Clan is just a rap group and John Woo hasn't made any movies before "Hard Target". Anyway, I can just see this happening with "Spirited Away" is all I am saying. Now before you call me pretentious, I am NOT saying that it's wrong to enjoy these movies just because one is unfamiliar with the genres, just that said people will OVER HYPE how great these movies are. If they had seen other films of the same ilk, they wouldn't be going so nuts is all. Someone who has watched IRON MONKEY, ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA or even A CHINESE GHOST STORY before seeing CT, HD wouldn't of been so blown away. BTW I loved CH,HD and I loved SPIRITED AWAY and will buy it on DVD. I just didn't like it as much as MONONOKE which was the 2nd film I've seen of his, the first being TOTORO. Now, does anyone really feel that SPIRITED AWAY is his best movie ever? I obviously haven't seen all his films, but it seems like a lot of people regard NAUSICA (sp?)/VALLEY OF THE WIND are his best, but, just like my post, it's all just an opinion.
"Magnolia" ripped off "The Last Kiss" by sjtphoto	Sep 12th, 2002 05:24:50 PM
I just saw "The Last Kiss," an Italian film from 2000 that was just released here. I kept asking myself why the movie seemed so familar - the melodic music from scene to scene that kept building, the multiple storylines of flawed people looking for answers and screwing up along the way, the strong willed man with serious woman problems whose father is on his deathbed... Paul Thomas Anderson ripped off this movie to make "Magnolia." "The Last Kiss" is a much better, more fully realized film.
sjtphoto by Naughty_Sauce	Sep 12th, 2002 06:31:47 PM
FYI, Magnolia was released at the tail end of '99. So I don't see how it could have ripped off a movie that came out in 2000 (2001 according to www.imdb.com). Do some research next time.
Confusing. Me or Miazaki? by Bill5925	Sep 12th, 2002 08:55:34 PM
I saw Spirited Away subtitled a few months ago. I didn't get it. I completly understand that my failure to react to this film could be my lack of understanding of the culture. But I can't help but think that some of it is BECAUSE Miazaki just kind of made it up as he went along. I want a coherant story. This was too much of "what the hell was that?" I suspect that a lot of people who claim this is a work of genius are seeing the pretty images and odd situations and are calling it great BECAUSE they don't understand it. It makes me wonder how many Americans will "get it". Just my poorly informed opinion.
To Bill5925 Re:Confusing. Me or Miazaki? by Kamaji	Sep 12th, 2002 10:11:42 PM
Bill, there are many elements in 'Spirited AWay' that are hidden beneath the surface. The main theme that seems to go through 'Spirited Away' is that many things that you see may not be what they appear to be. And there is also Kaonashi, or as we say in the US, No Face. A creature who seems like a true enigma but if you look carefully, he can serve as a metaphor for the way some people can perceive life. Even the bathhouse workers serve as an example in the face of 'free money.' There is a great message about greed buried in this film. I think 'Spirited AWay' could almost be like 'A.I.' LAst summer, I joined a messageboard and we all started talking about A.I., and uncovered some interesting allegories and some other things that our collective knowledge helped open some doors to understanding what we had just seen.
SPIRITED AWAY press kit online at Nausicaa.net by Kiyone	Sep 12th, 2002 10:18:50 PM
http://www.nausicaa.net/miyaza ki/sen/presskit.html Courtesy of Mr. Howard Green, Vice President of Studio Communications for Buena Vista Pictures Marketing.
Totoro is so cool by iamcaine2	Sep 12th, 2002 10:27:37 PM
My two year old has watched Tonari no Totoro in Japanese every day without fail for the last four months, I must have seen it a good fifty times myself, strangely, love it every time.
Miyazaki's best by JackLint	Sep 12th, 2002 10:27:59 PM
Over the last few years of searching, I was lucky enough to find all of miyazaki's movies and a good dose of other ghibli movies as well(grave of Fireflies etc). Let me tell you, nothing beats searching old used music/movie resell shops to discover hard to find movies like Castle of Cagliostro and the like. Some movies like Porco Rosso and the uncut Nausicaa I had to resort to downloading from imesh - which were really high quality by the way. And Im not one of those people who substitute bootlegs for the real thing, rest assured I'd buy them in a SECOND if they were available. Ive considered getting the Ghilbli box set from Japan - but I heard they're releasing the dvds here soon. Anyway, I have to say, I am kind of surprised to see how well Spirited Away is being received - I think it is definetly one of his best, but I also feel it is his LEAST accessible movie for casual moviegoers. It it filled with Japanese culture, (which to me is a joy to behold and I feel it adds greatly to the whole feeling of wonderment you get while watching it),but I am afraid of how mainstream audiences will react to a heavily foreign-themed movie like this (how is your average joe going to react to Yubaba and the three boucing blad heads? Some might just be wierded out! I think unless some major word of mouth gets around, it will be lost like Mononoke. Which I think was much more of a universal movie. By the way, Ive seen Spirited Away twice now, and i still dont fully understand the deal with Haku. (Sorry if this was already asked ) SPOILER Is he a god? if he is then why was he changed into a different form like the humans? After all he changed back to a human form after he remembered his name. I figured he's a human, who then saved Chihiro from the river while he was in the other form.
Cultural Elements by ll1234	Sep 13th, 2002 12:17:53 AM
For insights about the film's cultural elements (quote: An interesting point is that many Japanese are not familiar with the folklore that inspired Mr. Miyazaki's designs for the film; the fact that modern-day Japanese are cut off from these "roots" is one of the things that inspired Mr. Miyazaki to make the film in the first place, as he so states in THE ART OF SPIRITED AWAY.), I highly recommend this Q&A (http://www.nausicaa.net/miyaz aki/books/sen/Viz_QA.html) held with an editor from Viz, English-language publishers of the "Spirited Away" books.
I am Legolas...2 by ANGELS-EGG	Sep 13th, 2002 08:39:09 AM
Thanks for your reply.... Many regard Nausicaa as their fave and It is one of my favourites over Princess mononoke. But where Princess Mononoke was basically a re-tread of Nausicaa (the film) which many of my friends who saw both agree and feel that it is its weakness, Spirited away is a fresh new direction from miyazaki thats what did it for me as well as the multiple meanings in the film.Saying that the film about a 10 year old girl isn't as good as seeing a more adult themed film (like PM) just because your an adult makes you seem narrow minded as its a more complex film than that..... I had seen IRON MONKEY and many like it before I saw CTHD but still thought it was one of the best martial arts films artistically.Does that make me wrong? But I know what you mean...When I saw the matrix I couldn't see what the big deal was and now that the market has opened up a bit I dont think the sequels are going to be 'groundbreaking'so much to the movie goer. Yes it is down to opinion...In the U.S the public dont even know how fortunate they are to be able to go to their cinema to see such a great animated film while poor british sods like me have to sit and watch it at home (although I do have a 50'' projection tv...he...he)
Heckubus, RE Haku(spoiler, I guess) by Drath	Sep 13th, 2002 11:22:34 AM
My impression, and I don't know enough about Japanese myth to know if he counts as a god or not, was that Haku was the spirit of the river. In the subtitled translation I own, it's said that the river Chihiro almost drowned in was filled in, which makes him a sad figure to me. I don't think we were supposed to think he was a transformed human, again I don't know enough about Japanese mysticism to say with any authority what Haku was originally, but you could make out his dragon form in Cihiro's memory of being in the river--so I think he was magical when he saved her. That said, I don't think his human form was supposed to be a deception or an illusion, I felt it was as much who he was as the dragon. Does anyone here know more about this mythology, or did Miyazaki(and Ghibli) invent the Haku character and all his attributes?
DRAK on the Haku theme SPOILERS! by ANGELS-EGG	Sep 13th, 2002 02:53:38 PM
I think you nailed it on the spot. Perhaps that is why the STINK/RIVER GOD gave san the medicine to free Haku (they are a similar entity). Its all there explained in the jap version..has this been lost in the dub? In eastern mythology I believe that there are gods to all natural things (Although I reckon many are miyazki creations)sort of buddhist I guess. I love this film!
SORRY! ^__^ DRATH! by ANGELS-EGG	Sep 13th, 2002 02:54:35 PM

It's okay, ANGELS-EGG, I'm usually called Darth by Drath	Sep 13th, 2002 03:12:38 PM
so I don't mind. ;^). I too hope that it's still clear in the English dub because that was such an emotional part of the story for me. It'd be a shame if it gets lost in the translation. I don't see why it would have to be left out because I don't think the mythology in this film is intimidating at all. If anything it makes me want to learn more, much the way Clash of the Titans made me HAVE to know more about ancient Greek mythology oh so long ago.
NO FACE my take on him.. by ANGELS-EGG	Sep 14th, 2002 02:36:10 AM
Somebody asked why does no face want to eat chichiro so much...heres my take on why. When no face eats something he takes on the personality of that thing. Noface has no persona. The workers in the brothel are all basically greedy and no-face uses this greed to eat them of course doing this he becomes more and more uncontrollably greedy himself. In the film Chichiro says that the place is no good for him... When he meets chichiro she refuses what he offers her and he is probably more attracted to someone whos decent and honest than someone who is not (taking on the persona of someone good rather than bad must be interesting to no face).No face is not a bad character he just cant help it. Theres so many damn themes in this movie! Parenting,eating,independence, love etc!
That's an interesting idea by Drath	Sep 15th, 2002 09:13:56 PM
For some reason I hadn't thought of No Face taking on the persona of the people he ate(I should have, he becomes greedy like the people he eats and all). He also turned more malevolent as he ate consumed the greedy, even trying to kill Chihiro when she helped him. I think I assumed it was his true self coming out, but that felt tonally off with the rest of the movie and treatment of the character. I think you've got it, Angels Egg! Once No Face regurgitated all the "bad" people, he returned to his more benign state. Coooool. This movie never gets dull.

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A Handful Of Reactions To Last Night's SPIRITED AWAY Screening At The El Capitan In Hollywood!!

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