Psychocandy
10-09-2005, 05:04 PM
I saw this along with Serenity and A History Of Violence today. I didn't know going in whether or not the version screened would be dubbed or subbed. Unfortunately it was dubbed. Fortunately the quality of the vocal talent ensured that this did not, as it so often does, ensure total disaster. Emily Mortimer and Jean Simmons both acquitted themselves well as young and old Sophie respectively. Christian Bale was likewise impressive as Howl (I didn't actually realise it was Bale until the end credits). Billy Crystal was, however, a bit annoying as the fire demon.
Visually the movie was absolutely gorgeous. Full of colour and spectacle. Some scenes were so alive with detail that it makes a mockery of anyone who would claim that traditional animation techniques should now be spurned and cgi become it's successor. I'm not against CGI. The Toy Story movies and Shrek 1 & 2 are marvellous examples of the wonders that can be created with CGI. But, especially in the movies of Miyazaki, there's something pure about the methods used to create such startling images.
As for how this compares to recent Miyazaki gems like Mononoke and Spirited Away. It doesn't quite achieve the state of almost perfection he succeeded in unleashing with those two movies. Both those movies were solid 10 out of 10 flicks for me. This is only worthy of 9 out of 10. Still an absolute must for fans of animation. Can't wait to see the movie with the original Japanese audio.
Visually the movie was absolutely gorgeous. Full of colour and spectacle. Some scenes were so alive with detail that it makes a mockery of anyone who would claim that traditional animation techniques should now be spurned and cgi become it's successor. I'm not against CGI. The Toy Story movies and Shrek 1 & 2 are marvellous examples of the wonders that can be created with CGI. But, especially in the movies of Miyazaki, there's something pure about the methods used to create such startling images.
As for how this compares to recent Miyazaki gems like Mononoke and Spirited Away. It doesn't quite achieve the state of almost perfection he succeeded in unleashing with those two movies. Both those movies were solid 10 out of 10 flicks for me. This is only worthy of 9 out of 10. Still an absolute must for fans of animation. Can't wait to see the movie with the original Japanese audio.