tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24969765.post8335568422460043808..comments2024-03-19T02:27:08.584-05:00Comments on Ghibli Blog: Studio Ghibli, Animation and the Movies: The Hidden DimensionDaniel Thomas MacInneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01406180871529775448noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24969765.post-3752281233996676662009-11-29T03:17:18.796-06:002009-11-29T03:17:18.796-06:00@melanie: Thank you so much for your kind words. ...@melanie: Thank you so much for your kind words. I'm humbled.<br /><br />@michael sporn: I really need to see this movie this weekend. Thanks for the tip. Your description is terrific - that should be on movie posters! Hah!Daniel Thomas MacInneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01406180871529775448noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24969765.post-24164385770662580492009-11-28T16:57:06.167-06:002009-11-28T16:57:06.167-06:00I just stumbled on Ghibli Blog today and I have to...I just stumbled on Ghibli Blog today and I have to tell you how impressed I am with it.<br /><br />There's so much substance, so many treasures that must have taken so much time and effort to compile. The writing is clever and relevant. And you don't have to sift through advertisements or junk to get there. Even the comments are thoughtful and stimulating. And it is an overall beautiful site. Bravo.<br /><br />This is the first post I read, and it really spoke to me. Even though it is relatively short, it captures part of what makes Miyazaki so brilliant: that "Hidden Dimension." It reminds me of reading <i> Alice and Wonderland </i> as a child. The world that the story creates is so crazy and different and unique. But by no means does it offer any explanation for the scenes, characters, and lives that it barely touches on. And that's what makes it so compelling, particularly for a child; you can just imagine your own explanations. <br /><br />Your other posts are just as well-written and captivating. This is a quality site deserving of covering Studio Ghibli. Thank you for your contribution to the World Wide Web.Melanie Dickinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04310466322654915114noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24969765.post-88653600130308213572009-11-28T07:15:21.316-06:002009-11-28T07:15:21.316-06:00There's a nice little video clip and commentar...There's a nice little video clip and commentary by Wes Anderson on the NYTimes site. In it, Anderson talks about a scene, at the opening of The Fantastic Mr. Fox, which he based on something he learned from watching Miyazaki films. <br /><br />http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/11/13/movies/20091113-mrfox-feature.html<br /><br />Anderson's film is thoroughly charming and entertaining. I think of it as a child playing with his Mr. Fox dolls, but the child's arms have been removed for the movie.Michael Spornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02018522723674960270noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24969765.post-22925178030436951932009-11-27T23:06:39.749-06:002009-11-27T23:06:39.749-06:00Thanks for sharing all the good impressions on Fan...Thanks for sharing all the good impressions on Fantastic Mr. Fox. I'll have to see it this weekend, since I've been a Wes Anderson fan for the longest time. Also, the stop-motion animation looks really terrific, almost deliberately jerky in a nostalgic way.<br /><br />One interesting question is how this will be seen as a "family" movie. I'm sure a lot of us look at Fox and see Generation X irony-slash-nostalgia. But parents and kids might enjoy it, too. The story is based on Roald Dahl, one of the great children's storytellers, so there's hope.<br /><br />Reminds me - I have to get that book about Roald Dahl's involvement in World War II. It came out during Ken Burns' The War.<br /><br />Thanks to everybody for joining in, as always.Daniel Thomas MacInneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01406180871529775448noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24969765.post-79556851528600727852009-11-27T14:38:28.026-06:002009-11-27T14:38:28.026-06:00"Oh, what if the kids start crying about word...<i>"Oh, what if the kids start crying about words they don't know? -- Mommy, Mommy! What's creme brulee?" -- Show them, for goodness sake. They'll thank you for it. "</i><br /><br />Great point ! Don't "dumb down" the movies because some kid (or adult) might not know a certain word . Bring the audience up with the material, not play down to the audience's (perceived) ignorance. Many animated films suffer from this feeling that some committee of hand-wringing, beady-eyed product testers and assorted marketing hacks have beat all the poetry and mystery out of the thing because someone , someplace might not "get it". (it's probably them ,the marketing hacks , who don't "get it" and they can't imagine anyone's mind , especially a child's, being broader than theirs . In fact , children who haven't been ruined by too much TV and video games can understand a lot more than these hacks give them credit for)Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02162612139500138953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24969765.post-46584585440573934132009-11-27T09:47:11.184-06:002009-11-27T09:47:11.184-06:00I saw Fantastic Mr Fox in a packed cinema one nigh...I saw Fantastic Mr Fox in a packed cinema one night a few weeks ago, with about an even mix of kids and adults. Everyone was thoroughly entertained throughout, and there were plenty of laughs from all. It's definitely the last interesting animated film we'll see in what has been a strong year for the medium. The stop-frame animation was reminiscent one of those Oliver Postgate handmade tv shows that used to feature prominently on British children's television, something that I'm sure is due to the film's British animation director (whose style is experimental anyway--he's worked with Svankmajer in the past) and studio. I'm not sure the same effect could have been produced anywhere else.<br /><br />Another thing about the film that worked for me was the story's gradual warming up, very much like a Wes Anderson film; not everyone loves each other regardless. Personally, I felt the unquestionable love and joy is what made something like Ponyo work, whereas I left Fantastic Mr Fox reconsidering certain hard home truths. This isn't a bad thing to have in an (atypical) family film, just not something I expected him to do. For reasons such as these, I think I'll find this the last interesting animated film of the year.Dan Hammanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09659781968126665038noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24969765.post-4437296289101981212009-11-27T00:09:09.226-06:002009-11-27T00:09:09.226-06:00Just got back from seeing this movie, and I have t...Just got back from seeing this movie, and I have to say, I absolutely love it! I really can't find the words to describe it, but it will blow you out of the water, thats for sure.Katie Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12747168971857295124noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24969765.post-65953773776816115892009-11-26T22:27:04.843-06:002009-11-26T22:27:04.843-06:00I am totally with you on this. I really want to s...I am totally with you on this. I really want to see this movie, and it looks like Wes Anderson has knocked another one out of the park. Let's cross our fingers and hope for the best.Daniel Thomas MacInneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01406180871529775448noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24969765.post-85454496534425838572009-11-26T22:01:13.154-06:002009-11-26T22:01:13.154-06:00I haven't seen Fantastic Mr. Fox yet, but ever...I haven't seen Fantastic Mr. Fox yet, but every single frame of it that I *have* seen begs to be printed extra large and gazed at for hours. Far more than any of the other Wes Anderson movies, which are drab and empty in comparison. That's one heck of a thing for an animated movie to achieve.<br /><br />The downside: seeing the trailer in the cinema, with 24 of these glorious frames whipping by every second or two, almost gave me a headache. Almost. Thankfully it was all over in two minutes.<br /><br />So I'm waiting for the opportunity to watch it on a smaller screen. Definitely going to see it. It tickles that urge to observed civilized talking animals in their natural habitat that was awakened by Wind in the Willows. And it'll better viewing than a Wind in the Willows adaptation by far. The latter is buried so deep in the world of English (childrens'??) literature that animating it would be like trying to make a film adaptation of Jack and the Beanstalk.Serheihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13839433118785125438noreply@blogger.com