Kaguriosutoro no Shiro / Castle Cagliostro
Based on characters from Monkey Punch's comic Lupin III,
a 007-style slapstick comedy about a thief, counterfeit money and a bride in distress.
His first film -- an amazing achievement!

Kaze no Tani no Nausicaa / Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind
A young woman stands between two misunderstanding groups,
fighting for survival in post-apocalyptic earth.
Actually, made before Ghibli existed, from a manga series Miyazaki wrote that
he doubted would be very successful.

Tenku no Shiro Raputa / Laputa: Castle in the Sky
Lovely movie about two orphans, greedy pirates, corrupt government agents,
and the mythical castle they all want to find!

Tonari no Totoro / My Neighbor Totoro
Gentle movie about two girls who meet the king of the heart of the forest.
Symbol for Ghibli, and now mascot for some environmental groups.

Majo no Takkubin / "Witch's express delivery" / Kiki's Delivery Service
Lovely coming-of-age story about a witch who must
learn to be on her own at the age of 13.
Based on a famous children's book by the same name.
And where I get my nickname! :)

Kurenai no Buta / "The Crimson Pig" / Porco Rosso
A Red-Baron-type film about an air-boat pilot bounty-hunter,
and the feisty American pilot who challenges him.

Mononoke Hime / "Spirit-God Princess" / Princess Mononoke
An action film about a boy cursed to death by a boar-god who died in hatred,
and his search for the source of the hatred.
All-time blockbuster in Japan, beating ET's 12-year record for ticket sales.
Recently dubbed by Disney and released in the US.

Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi / "A Thousand and Chihiro's Spirited Away"
Schedulaed to be released in 2001!

TAKAHATA Isao
More dramatic and complex than Miyazaki.
He tends to have more dialog, and the plot tends to be more rich.
His films might be more boring to children

Hotaru no Haka / Grave of the Fireflies
Heart-wrenching true story about two children trying to survive in WWII.
Bring tissues!

Omohide Poro Poro / "Memories" "the sound tears make" / Only Yesterday
A young woman spends her vacation working in a
safflower field...and discovers herself.
Coming of age film for women in their late 20's!
My all-time favorite film.

Heisei Tanuki Gassen Pon Poko / "Heisei period racoon wars pon poko" / Racoon Wars
About the struggle of the racoons against the encroaching human development.
Includes some Japanese humor...which Americans may find a bit odd. :)

Houhokekyo Tonari no Yamada-Kun / My Neighbors, the Yamadas
This is based on a well-known Japanese comic strip.
Partly funded on the recent Takoma-Disney deal,
this animated film, released this past July [99], is Ghibli's first all-CG film!

KONDO Yoshifumi
He directed only one film before he died early in '98...
He was supervising animator in Kiki and Mononoke Hime, character designer for Grave,
and was a long-time friend of Miyazaki and Takahata.
I had the deep privilage to have met this great director in the fall of '97.

Mimi O Sumaseba / "If you listen closely" / Whispers of the Heart
Lovely film about a high school girl, and a young boy violin maker her age.
Tragically, Kondo's only film.

Akira
As Otomo says, "a story about the friendship between two boys."

Memories
Three short films, all written by Otomo, one directed by him.

Magnetic Rose: a haunted piece of space junk lures a salvage ship in...
Stink Bomb: what might happen if you mix too many cold medications. :)
Cannon Fodder: art-school feel, political statement, reminds
me of the animation from The Wall

X
I have no real idea what it's about, but it's a lovely film.
The earth and the sky battle over the fate of the earth.

Magic Knights Rayearth
Typical Magic Girl TV show...
Some high school girls are transported to a magical world where
they have to save it from destruction.
I like it because the world is based upon will -- if you believe it hard enough, it can happen!

Kumo no Youni Kaze no Youni / Like the Cloud, Like the Wind
About a new emperor who needs to marry to hold the seat of the throne,
and a young girl who applies to compete to become his new bride.

Rail of the Star
About a Japanese family escaping Korea after the occupation during WWII.
A true story.

Hadashi no Gen / Barefoot Gen
A true story about a boy who survives the Hiroshima Bombing.

Honneamise no Tsubasa / Wings of Honneamise
About the first man in space on an alternate Earth.
The take-off rivals Apollo 13!!

Roujin Z
About a geriatric machine that goes on a rampage of the city -- with an old geezer still in it!

Perfect Blue
Amazing who-done-it about a pop star who strives to be an actress,
and the scary realities of being stalked by a fan...

Ghost in the Shell
Famous Blade-Runner-like movie about a woman cyborg-cop
trying to figure out what defines Self.

Xiaoqian / "Little 'Pretty'" / Chinese Ghost Story
Based on the live-action trilogy, this movie is about a tax-collector
that unknowingly falls in love with a ghost...
 

Macross Plus
About a contest of sorts between two competing plane-mech designs...
which pits two former friend pilots together...
Worth the price of admission just for the Sharon Apple concert scenes!!

Fushigi Yuugi / Mysterious Play
Another Magic Girl TV show, but it has a lot of depth to it.
Two girls find an anchient Chinese book in the library.
Reading it is an incantation.
If you finish it, it will come true.
One girl gets lost in the book, and the other girl reads to find out what happens next!

Dragon Half
The most ridiculous, bizarre, fast-paced show I've ever seen!
Half-human, half-dragon, Mink is in love with a rock star...
who's also a dragon killer!
 

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