10 ms·

Having never seen any Studio Ghibli films before, I watched all of them in release order last month, Jan 2023. I'm so glad I did. With few exceptions, the films

by mttjj 4y ago

Having never seen any Studio Ghibli films before, I watched all of them in release order last month, Jan 2023. I'm so glad I did. With few exceptions, the films are masterpieces of cinema, not just animation. Nearly any single frame from nearly any of the films would make gorgeous wall art. I'd recommend anyone who is remotely interested in animation, Japanese films, or films in general to check them out. All but 2 (for licensing reasons) are available to stream on HBO Max. I believe they have both subbed and dubbed versions, though I preferred to watch with subs.

rahimnathwani 4y ago
I opened a couple of Ghibli movies on the HBO Max app just now, and the only audio and subtitle options were English.
- mttjj 4y ago
  I think HBO Max is weird in that you have to pick the options before you start the movie. I found I couldn't change languages from the audio track or subtitles options while the movie was playing. But I can 100% confirm that I watched all of the movies on HBO Max in Japanese audio with English subtitles. AppleTV 4K.
  - rahimnathwani 4y ago
    Thanks for the tip! https://i.imgur.com/nuRLkcH.png https://i.imgur.com/nuRLkcH.png The only way I can find to switch the audio track is by clicking the word 'English' on the description page (screenshot above), before hitting 'play'. This is really confusing because: 1. There's an option to change the language track once you're playing the movie, but it doesn't show the other option. 2. When you click that button, there's a helpful notification saying you can choose language in 'settings' (which isn't the case!). 3. The icon next to where it says 'ENGLISH' looks like a speech bubble, which to me indicates 'subtitles'. 4. I have to click the word 'ENGLISH' to switch to Japanese!
    - mttjj 4y ago
      Ah yes, I remember doing this dance at the beginning of January. As you've discovered, there are about two dozen UX violations with this procedure. Thankfully, I only had to do this once; all the rest of the films played in Japanese by default from then on.
- poulpy123 4y ago
  Why is it a problem?
  - nicoburns 4y ago
    The original versions of the films have Japanese audio, and you're missing out on that if you watch them in english.
    - HideousKojima 4y ago
      Also, at least on the Disney blu-ray releases, there were some notable differences between the English dub and the English subtitles. The most glaring one I ever saw was in Porco Rosso when Curtis says he's from Alabama in the subtitles but from Texas in the dub. The Japanese voice acting is also usually way superior, even though they hire quality actors for the dubs. For example, Gillian Anderson is a great actress but she doesn't do the character of Moro (in Princess Mononoke) justice, especially compared to the Japanese VA (Akihiro Miwa). See their voices compared at 4:19 https://youtu.be/1X4RWYsDs8A https://youtu.be/1X4RWYsDs8A
      - TremendousJudge 4y ago
        afaik the English dub literally changes the ending of Kiki's Delivery Service
        mytailorisrich 4y ago
        There are a lot of differences between the English and Japanese audio in Kiki. For instance, there are more silent periods in the original Japanese version, whereas in the (American) English version they almost stereotypically cannot stop talking. So it seems there was some cultural adaptation beyond simple translation.
        SECProto 4y ago
        > There are a lot of difference between the English and Japanese audio in Kiki Definitely. Jiji (the cat) has a totally different character if you listen to the dub vs the original Japanese. One of the few instances where I prefer the dub... but I think it's just because I watched it that way as a child. This article [1] is convincing me to go back and give the Japanese audio another try. [1] https://www.otaquest.com/anime-kikis-delivery-service/ https://www.otaquest.com/anime-kikis-delivery-service/
test1235 4y ago
Did any of them stand out to you in particular? Which was your favourite(s)? Any you didn't like?
- mttjj 4y ago
  My favorites were probably "Grave of the Fireflies" (warning: it's heavy and devastating), "Pom Poko" (very funny), "From Up on Poppy Hill", "Arrietty" to name a few. The fantasy-centered films are good, but my personal taste tends to lean towards the slice-of-life/coming-of-age films so that's why those were some of my favorites. The only truly "bad" movie of the bunch is their latest from 2020: "Earwig and the Witch". It's computer generated instead of hand-drawn but it looks like a computer generated film from the early '90s. Just ugly and uninspired. And the story was not good. It had promise but did absolutely nothing with it. Very disappointing film. Thankfully, it looks like their next release (summer 2023) will be back to the hand-drawn style.
  - kldavis4 4y ago
    fwiw, Earwig and the Witch, while produced by Studio Ghibli, was not a Hayao Miyazaki film (it was directed by his son) and was critically panned. Definitely one to skip.
    - ddoolin 4y ago
      And the elder Miyazaki walked out during the premier of his son's first feature film in an apparent expression of disgust at his son's creation. Not exactly a model father.
      - Shared404 4y ago
        As much as I love his films and their stories/values, the elder Miyazaki is definitely not the greatest of people. He was one of the first instances I can think of where I came to understand "don't meet your heroes". Edit: Never met him in person. Mostly meant 'meet' in a figurative sense.
      - 4y ago
FpUser 4y ago
Yes, for the most part Studio Ghibli's art is insanely beautiful.
omnibrain 4y ago
> Nearly any single frame from nearly any of the films would make gorgeous wall art. Studio Ghibli provides hundreds of stills for their movies on their website: https://www.ghibli.jp/info/013409/ https://www.ghibli.jp/info/013409/
Zababa 4y ago
I'd recommmend Mamoru Oshii's movies too, they are masterpieces as well.
baby 4y ago
Which one was your favorite :)? Mine is mononoke
- SamPatt 4y ago
  Porco Rosso or Castle in the Sky Spirited Away is amazing too

by mttjj 4y ago

rahimnathwani 4y ago

I opened a couple of Ghibli movies on the HBO Max app just now, and the only audio and subtitle options were English.

mttjj 4y ago
I think HBO Max is weird in that you have to pick the options before you start the movie. I found I couldn't change languages from the audio track or subtitles options while the movie was playing. But I can 100% confirm that I watched all of the movies on HBO Max in Japanese audio with English subtitles. AppleTV 4K.
- rahimnathwani 4y ago
  Thanks for the tip! https://i.imgur.com/nuRLkcH.png https://i.imgur.com/nuRLkcH.png The only way I can find to switch the audio track is by clicking the word 'English' on the description page (screenshot above), before hitting 'play'. This is really confusing because: 1. There's an option to change the language track once you're playing the movie, but it doesn't show the other option. 2. When you click that button, there's a helpful notification saying you can choose language in 'settings' (which isn't the case!). 3. The icon next to where it says 'ENGLISH' looks like a speech bubble, which to me indicates 'subtitles'. 4. I have to click the word 'ENGLISH' to switch to Japanese!
  - mttjj 4y ago
    Ah yes, I remember doing this dance at the beginning of January. As you've discovered, there are about two dozen UX violations with this procedure. Thankfully, I only had to do this once; all the rest of the films played in Japanese by default from then on.
poulpy123 4y ago
Why is it a problem?
- nicoburns 4y ago
  The original versions of the films have Japanese audio, and you're missing out on that if you watch them in english.
  - HideousKojima 4y ago
    Also, at least on the Disney blu-ray releases, there were some notable differences between the English dub and the English subtitles. The most glaring one I ever saw was in Porco Rosso when Curtis says he's from Alabama in the subtitles but from Texas in the dub. The Japanese voice acting is also usually way superior, even though they hire quality actors for the dubs. For example, Gillian Anderson is a great actress but she doesn't do the character of Moro (in Princess Mononoke) justice, especially compared to the Japanese VA (Akihiro Miwa). See their voices compared at 4:19 https://youtu.be/1X4RWYsDs8A https://youtu.be/1X4RWYsDs8A
    - TremendousJudge 4y ago
      afaik the English dub literally changes the ending of Kiki's Delivery Service
      - mytailorisrich 4y ago
        There are a lot of differences between the English and Japanese audio in Kiki. For instance, there are more silent periods in the original Japanese version, whereas in the (American) English version they almost stereotypically cannot stop talking. So it seems there was some cultural adaptation beyond simple translation.
        SECProto 4y ago
        > There are a lot of difference between the English and Japanese audio in Kiki Definitely. Jiji (the cat) has a totally different character if you listen to the dub vs the original Japanese. One of the few instances where I prefer the dub... but I think it's just because I watched it that way as a child. This article [1] is convincing me to go back and give the Japanese audio another try. [1] https://www.otaquest.com/anime-kikis-delivery-service/ https://www.otaquest.com/anime-kikis-delivery-service/

test1235 4y ago

Did any of them stand out to you in particular? Which was your favourite(s)? Any you didn't like?

mttjj 4y ago
My favorites were probably "Grave of the Fireflies" (warning: it's heavy and devastating), "Pom Poko" (very funny), "From Up on Poppy Hill", "Arrietty" to name a few. The fantasy-centered films are good, but my personal taste tends to lean towards the slice-of-life/coming-of-age films so that's why those were some of my favorites. The only truly "bad" movie of the bunch is their latest from 2020: "Earwig and the Witch". It's computer generated instead of hand-drawn but it looks like a computer generated film from the early '90s. Just ugly and uninspired. And the story was not good. It had promise but did absolutely nothing with it. Very disappointing film. Thankfully, it looks like their next release (summer 2023) will be back to the hand-drawn style.
- kldavis4 4y ago
  fwiw, Earwig and the Witch, while produced by Studio Ghibli, was not a Hayao Miyazaki film (it was directed by his son) and was critically panned. Definitely one to skip.
  - ddoolin 4y ago
    And the elder Miyazaki walked out during the premier of his son's first feature film in an apparent expression of disgust at his son's creation. Not exactly a model father.
    - Shared404 4y ago
      As much as I love his films and their stories/values, the elder Miyazaki is definitely not the greatest of people. He was one of the first instances I can think of where I came to understand "don't meet your heroes". Edit: Never met him in person. Mostly meant 'meet' in a figurative sense.
    - 4y ago

FpUser 4y ago

Yes, for the most part Studio Ghibli's art is insanely beautiful.

omnibrain 4y ago

> Nearly any single frame from nearly any of the films would make gorgeous wall art. Studio Ghibli provides hundreds of stills for their movies on their website: https://www.ghibli.jp/info/013409/ https://www.ghibli.jp/info/013409/

Zababa 4y ago

I'd recommmend Mamoru Oshii's movies too, they are masterpieces as well.

baby 4y ago

Which one was your favorite :)? Mine is mononoke

SamPatt 4y ago
Porco Rosso or Castle in the Sky Spirited Away is amazing too