Movies: The Official "Movie of the Week" Club Thread IV

[KallioWeHardlyKnewYe]

Ponyo
Miyazaki (2008)
“She loves ham and she can do magic.”

Big movie confession time: Before this assignment, I have never seen a Miyazaki or Studio Ghibli movie. I know the reputation and how beloved they are. When I was younger, it just didn’t intrigue me. As I got older, I was open to it, but it just wasn’t something I ever decided to prioritize. Became something of a comedy bit between myself and a few of my friends who love the movies. Me just being obstinate and saying I’ll never watch one. But it was just a bit.

Thanks @Jevo for making me break my vow. Going to need a new bit.

I think I overuse the word delightful (and charming). But what a damn delightful and charming movie. A magical fish(?) flees its creator and winds up with Souske, a young boy whose family sits on a cliff overlooking the sea. But a small taste of his blood sparks a conversion in her and the want to become a person. Ponyo, as he names her, loves Souske. Ponyo loves ham. But there are consequences as her wants throws the sea into turmoil and threatens Souske’s town.

It's a fairy tale. Clear echoes of The Little Mermaid but I don’t know enough to know if it’s an original story or something from Japanese culture. It certainly has the aura of a classic fairy tale. I just liked how damn likable it is. The threats aren’t that threatening. Souske and Ponyo never seem to register any real danger. I like that though her magical scientist dad sorta gives off bad vibes, he’s not really bad. He’s just an adult who understand the potential chaos. It’s simple in all the best ways.

Most of all, of course, there’s the animation itself. The opening sequence of Ponyo’s escape is a wonderful wave of colors. The water itself is art with its undulations. It’s not surreal, but it’s an effective effect. The character faces seem in a perpetual wonder mode. I was also struck by a few scenes I just wouldn’t expect to see given the work and deliberate nature of animation, like Souske watching his mom’s car drive off in to the distant woods, headlights appearing then disappearing, then appearing again. Not needed but I’m glad it’s there.

I’ve been given two suggested routes for Miyazki – some have told me Ponyo (or My Neighbor Totoro) are the idea place to start, being his most straightforward and kid friendly. I’ve had others tell me to start with one of the more grown up features like Spirited Away. I suppose this doesn’t matter now because I’ve made my choice. I certainly don’t feel discouraged.

 

[kihei]

Ponyo
Miyazaki (2008)
“She loves ham and she can do magic.”

Big movie confession time: Before this assignment, I have never seen a Miyazaki or Studio Ghibli movie. I know the reputation and how beloved they are. When I was younger, it just didn’t intrigue me. As I got older, I was open to it, but it just wasn’t something I ever decided to prioritize. Became something of a comedy bit between myself and a few of my friends who love the movies. Me just being obstinate and saying I’ll never watch one. But it was just a bit.

Thanks @Jevo for making me break my vow. Going to need a new bit.

I think I overuse the word delightful (and charming). But what a damn delightful and charming movie. A magical fish(?) flees its creator and winds up with Souske, a young boy whose family sits on a cliff overlooking the sea. But a small taste of his blood sparks a conversion in her and the want to become a person. Ponyo, as he names her, loves Souske. Ponyo loves ham. But there are consequences as her wants throws the sea into turmoil and threatens Souske’s town.

It's a fairy tale. Clear echoes of The Little Mermaid but I don’t know enough to know if it’s an original story or something from Japanese culture. It certainly has the aura of a classic fairy tale. I just liked how damn likable it is. The threats aren’t that threatening. Souske and Ponyo never seem to register any real danger. I like that though her magical scientist dad sorta gives off bad vibes, he’s not really bad. He’s just an adult who understand the potential chaos. It’s simple in all the best ways.

Most of all, of course, there’s the animation itself. The opening sequence of Ponyo’s escape is a wonderful wave of colors. The water itself is art with its undulations. It’s not surreal, but it’s an effective effect. The character faces seem in a perpetual wonder mode. I was also struck by a few scenes I just wouldn’t expect to see given the work and deliberate nature of animation, like Souske watching his mom’s car drive off in to the distant woods, headlights appearing then disappearing, then appearing again. Not needed but I’m glad it’s there.

I’ve been given two suggested routes for Miyazki – some have told me Ponyo (or My Neighbor Totoro) are the idea place to start, being his most straightforward and kid friendly. I’ve had others tell me to start with one of the more grown up features like Spirited Away. I suppose this doesn’t matter now because I’ve made my choice. I certainly don’t feel discouraged.

How out of character that decision seems. My jaw dropped. Glad you enjoyed Ponyo, though. Next to My Neighbor Totoro and maybe The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, I think it might be my favourite.

 

[kihei]

Ponyo (2008) Directed by Hiyao Miyazaki

I have always loved this film, but I hadn't seen Ponyo in a while, anyway not since the arrival of my two grandsons, now two years old and 15 months. The thing that struck me this time is that how magically Ponyo captures a child's imagination and puts you in their world. Children have a curiosity and an openness and a very direct way of seeing things some times, and they tend to wear their hearts on their sleeve. Ponyo encapsulates all of that beautifully. The movie is such a wonderful work of pure fantasy, and it is complemented beautifully by some of the most gorgeous and creative animation that I have seen. I know the story pretty well having seen the movie three or four times. The English-language version was getting on my nerves--the one self-imposed unforced error of the translated version is Liam Neeson's voice. Somehow I found it jarring in this context. Either it was the familiarity of it that seemed to stick out or, maybe, it was his line-readings. I don't know, for sure, but it just didn't fit in this movie at all. So I turned the sound down for the last hour or so. What an effect that had. Suddenly my sole focus was the animation, and with only the animation to concentrate on alone, it was pretty much mind-blowing. Not just how beautiful and often unexpected it was, but all the little nuances and touches that I hadn't noticed before, little things like a small octupus sneaking its way into the house while Ponyo makes the toy boat bigger. Who would even think of a tiny detail like that? And such a lovely colour spectrum, with a minimum of garishness and a maximum of painterly sophistication. How lovingly and with such great care the film seemed to be visually executed. The greatest compliment that I can give Ponyo is that the story-telling and the sensitivity to a child's world is as superb as the actual animation. This is a movie a five-year-old will immediately understand and better than I now can do. I don't use the adjective "joyous" much but I think I will use it in this case: Ponyo is a joyous film to behold. I can't wait to take my grand kids when they are a little older.

 

[Pink Mist]

Ponyo / 崖の上のポニョ(Hiyao Miyazaki, 2008)

Like @KallioWeHardlyKnewYe , Miyazaki has always been a director on my radar that I know is beloved by many, but a director who I haven't really engaged with (unlike Kallio, I have seen a couple of his films though - Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke). I get the appeal - beautiful hand drawn animation, a magical mix of myth and fantasy, and a childlike sensibility palatable for adults. But I hate to say it, but even after watching Ponyo, Miyazaki doesn't do much for me. I've engaged with the variance in his style with the two films I had seen prior definitely lean more for films for adults, whereas Ponyo is the most accessible as a borderline children's movie. But they still feel more like films that I appreciate rather than enjoy.

For Ponyo, I do love how Miyazaki takes his ecological message found elsewhere in his films and distills it for a younger audience. It would be a great film to show to a child to introduce ecological conservation and the harm humans can have on the natural world. Its an effectively made children's film, and if I had a child it would be on a shortlist of films I would try to get them to watch over other crap. The animation is also stunning, especially that opening scene with Ponyo's initial escape from her father. (Speaking of her father, I'm glad I watched the original Japanese version instead of the English dub, as Liam Neeson seems like a bizarre casting choice for the voicework.) But still for me, the film just feels a little too cute, too straightforward, and perhaps too familiar (both in the sense that its message is covered elsewhere by Miyazaki, and narratively it feels like a Spielberg film such as E.T.) But although I don't necessarily love it, I would gladly pass it off as a recommendation to others if someone is looking to get into Miyazaki or looking for a good children's film.