Your Favourite Studio Ghibli Film

[JWRosser]

So recently I've been working my way through the Studio Ghibli films...and I love them all!
I haven't watched many of them yet - so far, Spirited Away, Princess Monoke, My Neighbour Totoro, Castle in the Sky, Grave of the Fireflies, Howl's Moving Castle and Whisper of the Heart.

I'm sure there are a lot of fans out there - so my question is to you which is your favourite and why?


I'm finding it very hard to pick.
I watched Grave of the Fireflies a couple of nights ago, and it's still left me feeling a little depressed. It was weird - as I was watching the film, I didn't really think too much of it...but looking back, it's very powerful

Spoiler

particularly Setsuko's death, and when you realise it was her ashes in the tin

. Even writing about it makes me feel a little sad.

But then I also love the magic and innocence in My Neighbour Totoro. It's just so lovely. Or the epicness of Princess Monoke.
But, all in all, I think that my favourite (though I have loved all of the ones I've watched so far) is Spirited Away. It's just...fantastic I thought. Such brilliant imagination, great characters, and interesting story.

 

[telocaster]

Grave of the Fireflies... dat feel

OT: Castle in the Sky. I find the animation and the overall visual composition to be amazing.

 

[xshadowscreamx]

howls moving castle for me..maybe because it was my first

 

[SckizoBoy]

Once again... Grave of the Fireflies is the best movie I honestly do not like watching.

My Neighbor Totoro is not just my first and favorite Studio Ghibli film, it was my first film period, I saw it when I was very young.

That said, it holds a special place in my heart.

Yup, me too, and the Cantonese dub (which I saw first) was pretty good. Original, even better.

The irony is that the two films mentioned herein were released as a double bill... eeeesh...

 

[King of Asgaard]

Grave of the Fireflies is the only one to make me shed tears, so I'll go with that.
But seriously, that ending is made from the depressed tears of quadruple amputee orphans.
Fun fact: when it first came out in Japan, it was coupled with Ponyo in theatres.
Imagine all the children going to see the uber-adorability of Ponyo, then going to see GotF afterwards.

 

[fix-the-spade]

The Castle of Cagliostro!

Mainly because of it's pure absurdity (and the presence of an anti-tank rifle), then Princess Mononoke for it's unflinching nature.

I've seen most of them (not Ponyo and not Metropolis, yet) and I prefer the more escapist ones over the darker ones on he whole, Castle in the Sky's another favourite. Grave of the Fireflies is... nasty.

 

[CrazyJew]

Howl's Movin Castle, if only because I was promised a dance to "Merry-Go-Round of Life" by this lady.

 

[Dark marauder]

Grave of the Fireflies is the only one to make me shed tears, so I'll go with that.
But seriously, that ending is made from the depressed tears of quadruple amputee orphans.
Fun fact: when it first came out in Japan, it was coupled with Ponyo in theatres.
Imagine all the children going to see the uber-adorability of Ponyo, then going to see GotF afterwards.

It was coupled with totoro not ponyo and I think Spoony said it best "Fireflies is the best movie I would never want to see again". OT: I would have to say my favorite is Spirited away just because it was the only one I saw as a child.

 

[King of Asgaard]

Grave of the Fireflies is the only one to make me shed tears, so I'll go with that.
But seriously, that ending is made from the depressed tears of quadruple amputee orphans.
Fun fact: when it first came out in Japan, it was coupled with Ponyo in theatres.
Imagine all the children going to see the uber-adorability of Ponyo, then going to see GotF afterwards.

It was coupled with totoro not ponyo and I think Spoony said it best "Fireflies is the best movie I would never want to see again". OT: I would have to say my favorite is Spirited away just because it was the only one I saw as a child.

Really, Totoro? I'm not doubting you, I'd just like a link to where you got that. I like getting my facts right, you see.

 

[keiji_Maeda]

Im going with ´My neigbour Totoro. I've only seen it twice or something, but there's something particularly appealing about the omive in itself. The innocence, the pure and unadultered joy, the feeling of youth and adventure that it transmits over the cultural borders and straight into the fuzzy part of you soul. Blew my mind when i heard the "Shadow theory" about it

GoTF, wonderfully beautifull and appaling in it's frankd description of the horrors of war. It's great though.

Throwing "Panda pa panda", it's just so...cute. And this is from an adult-ass male in accounting. It's vibrant, innocent and completely absurd. But very appealing to the shriveled up mirtful side of me.

 

[Little2Raph]

My favourites were Castle in the Sky and Spirited Away. I also have a soft spot for Porco Rosso.

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

Spirited Away, it had a more involved story than Totoro, although all the films have a lot of whimsy (except Grave of the Fireflies)

I didn't like Grave of the Fireflies for the same reason a lot of people do like it, it was so depressing... I can see why they showed it as a double feature with Totoro.

Also... why no love for The Cat Returns?

Spoiler

 

[Scarim Coral]

Honestly it's hard to choose!
I tend to favour these films the most-

Spirited Away
Laputa: Castle in the Sky
Kiki's Delivery Service
Whipster of the Heart (You GOT to see this!)
Porco Rosso/ Howl Moving Castle

Also... why no love for The Cat Returns?

While I do think that was the best non Hayao Miyazaki animation but I was let down that despite it was a spirital sequal to Whisper of the Heart per say (since that film feature the Baron aswell) the fantasy part (the cat world) was nothing like in Whisper of the Heart which was gorgeous (the main character written fantasy).

 

[ZehMadScientist]

Man, Grave of the Fireflies... Making my eyes sweat and all that... Damn it...

Either that or Howl's Moving Castle. Damn Ghibli is brilliant.

 

[Lilani]

I've never seen Grave of the Fireflies, but according to this thread I should...

Anyway, I think I like Howl's Moving Castle the most, overall. I just love the music and characters, and the way the magic works is so much fun. And the story is run by the characters, not the plot, which is something I very much appreciate in a story. Spirited Away would be a close second, though.

 

[Ryu-Kage]

The Ghibli films I have seen are Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, Nausicaa, Howl's Moving Castle, Grave of the Fireflies (in English), Tales of Earthsea (I think, not 100% sure, but whatever I saw was pretty bad), and Ponyo.

Princess Mononoke is not just my favorite Ghibli film (out of the ones I've seen), but it is probably the greatest environmental film I have ever seen. Most films like this (like Pocahontas, Ferngully, and Avatar) tend to portray the nature as this amazing thing that is just so wonderful and loving, and it can do no wrong. It is holier than thou. And the human / industrial side is portrayed as an evil force that may not necessarily have a reason for trying to destroy nature other than "because it's fun". Basically, movies like this tend to portray them as Captain Planet villains. Gag me with a spoon.

While Princess Mononoke does seem to lean a little more on nature's side, it is leagues more fair to both sides than most of these films. Lady Eboshi, the woman in charge of Iron Town, is responsible for causing the rampage of the boar-demon that curses Ashitaka's arm. She has the rather human motive of trying to establish her power before the emperor. However, Iron Town is also a safe haven for many of its citizens. Many of the women were prostitutes before, but Lady Eboshi gave them a new life in Iron Town. Even the lepers are given a chance to work and live here. None of the citizens aspire to destroy the forest, necessarily; they're just happy with the lives they now have and even will try to defend Iron Town when other warriors attack it.

As for the natural side, it is portrayed with a sense of majesty, with all of the large, talking animals that may decay into demons and speak our language. But just because the forest's creatures are great does not mean they are fluffy and nice. The wolves (and San) in particular will strike against the humans, even if the ones that they attack aren't the same ones that invaded the forest. One scene has the wolves attacking a caravan that's just trying to transport rice. So much for the do-no-wrong nature of Pandora.

The main characters is actually pretty interesting, too, despite claims to the contrary. Ashitaka (the main hero) is among the last of a tribe that has been driven to near-extinction by warlords feuding over land. And now, he is going to die from the curse on his arm. He doesn't pursue peace between the people of Iron Town and the spirits of the forest because it's the right thing to do necessarily. Ashitaka wants to lift the curse on his arm, because if he doesn't, then he (and his people) are going to die. So, if conflict between these two sides is what stands in the way of curing him, then by the Deer God he's gonna try to get them to compromise. This is also interesting because although he is human, he doesn't hail from the world of humans involved in the conflict. In a way, he is very similar to San / Princess Mononoke. San is a human girl that was abandoned by her parents when they met up with the wolf goddess. San was subsequently raised by the wolf goddess and now fights for the Forest. San is not a wolf herself, but she was raised by them. So even the wolf goddess admits that San doesn't truly belong neither the human world nor the world of wolves. (Why, yes, I have been watching JesuOtaku. )

It's just... such a fascinating movie to watch. It really is. Mainly because it's nowhere near as black and white as other movies like it, instead living and thriving in a big gray area (or as I prefer to put it, a multi-faceted color pallete).

 

[malestrithe]

Yeah, Grave of the Fireflies. I loved it the first time I watched it, but now I can't see it anymore.

Kiki's Delivery Service is my favorite Ghibli movie.

 

[Navvan]

Grave of the Fireflies by far. I have never been so moved by anything in my life (animated or otherwise). It is made to make you curl up into a ball and weep tears of endless sorrow. Its something I'd recommend everyone watch once during their life.

Grave of the Fireflies is the only one to make me shed tears, so I'll go with that.
But seriously, that ending is made from the depressed tears of quadruple amputee orphans.
Fun fact: when it first came out in Japan, it was coupled with Ponyo in theatres.
Imagine all the children going to see the uber-adorability of Ponyo, then going to see GotF afterwards.

That is almost correct, it was paired with the My Neighbor Totoro [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Neighbor_Totoro]. Ponyo wasn't released until 20 years later (2008). Still it makes for an interesting combination.