Hayao Miyazaki & Makoto Shinkai

Hayao Miyazaki, you can say he is the super star of animated film directors, so much so that disney directors and animators have looked at his films for inspiration since the 90s. I can say personally he is one of my favorite directors. Nearly all his films are relaxing and yet entertaining, the worlds are unique, and beautiful, the characters strong and cna always inspier those who watch the films, and many can relate to them, including myself on a few. He is a die heart environmentalist, and anti war activist. His personal beliefs on both are seen in many of his films, war and environmental themes a lot of times are at the side lines in his films if not the back bone of the plots in many. He is well known for being one of the few Japanese directors who choose to have every strong female characters in his films, no super teen boy hero with a giant robot here. Some of his more resent films have captured the eyes of audiances outside of Japan and even one this century Spirited Away won an Academy Award for best animated Feature, is the first of any Japanese animated film to win that award in the United States, it also won the Golden Bear during the Berlin International Film Festival. Though my personal favorite is Howl's Moving Castle, though I do love the Europian feel to it so sadly thats how it wins so many brownie points.

My favorte of these films are Kiki's Delivery Service, Spirited Away, Castle in the Sky and Howl's Moving Castle.





*list of films*
Future Boy Conan
The Castle of Cagliostro
Sherlock Hound
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
Laputa: Castle in the Sky
My Neighbor Totoro
Kiki's Delivery Service
Porco Rosso
Princess Mononoke
Spirited Away
Howl's Moving Castle
Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea

Makoto Shinkai, he is considered perhaps the next Miyazaki by some, however his films seem to be hit or miss for me. Unlike how I like nearly all of the Miyazaki films thus far, Makoto only two of the three films I've seen of his I've enjoyed. Though that is suprisingly high for me since I dislike a majority of over all films I see of any kind. Makoto has a tendency of going to insane detail with his films, only problem is unlike Miyazaki, Makoto abuses computer technology rather than Miyazaki's more classical hand drawn work which he uses on a majority of shots, only to use computers to aid on visuals and motion like a few Disney films during the 90s. In fact his first released film Voices of a Distant Star was nearly competely made on his Mac Computer, best part is he did nearly ever single bit of work on that film to, all but the voice acting for the female character of course, which was his wife.

My favorite films by him thus far are Voices of a Distant Star, his 24 minute long short film, the film that launched his career in fact and 5 Centimeters Per Second, both films make a person feel extremely lonely, and even the 24 minute film can hit nearly anyone with a deep sence of sadness if not tears.

Voices is on youtube, the complete short film.


This one oddly I didn't like all that much. Makoto tried too hard to make the story more than just about the characters and I personally thought it was a failure.


Perfection! My favorite of all the films of his I saw thus far. Just the trailer makes me want to shed a tear, the music and the calm voices in the sad tone.

Huh, interesting. I've heard of Spirited Away and The Castle of Cagliostro before, but none of the others.

I'll have to look into this guy.

Originally Posted by Gambino

Huh, interesting. I've heard of Spirited Away and The Castle of Cagliostro before, but none of the others.

I'll have to look into this guy.

but none of the others

but none of the others

It's a good choice you're making. Surprised you haven't heard of any of the others, this guy is REALLY famous.

Originally Posted by Thanatos

Surprised you haven't heard of any of the others, this guy is REALLY famous.

Well, I'm not exactly an expert when it comes to anime.

Not yet, at least.

Rule 1: An anime isn't good until you yourself watch it and judge, I learned this painfully, bought DVD box set of something everyone said was great, then i watched it and was like.

Oddly anime is an english term, just they use it in Japan now oddly to, people used to call it Japanimation... dunno what nut started calling it anime, but it stuck in the english world, and then some how magically transported to Japan and since it was so cutish of a word it stuck there to. lol

One of those great songs in animated movie history, has a waltz feel to it.


Really all the Miyazaki films are well worth watching, many of which have a totally different theme to them, some are anti war, some are kind of a love story, well most have some love storish to them. Some are about Enviromental things. Basic moral to a fantasy tale. Some are hit and miss for different people. Like I'm the only person I know personally who likes Howl's Moving Castle more than Princess Mononoke, I just found it a tad too violent for a Miyazaki film. Most of his films are really family friendly which is the nicest part, you can get your kids to watch it with you.

Originally Posted by Corleone

Well, I'm not exactly an expert when it comes to anime.

Not yet, at least.

Well...we'll just have to fix that....lol

Yes I absolutely adored Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle....so cute and funny too.....

Paying close attention to the style, author/artist, and the plot *characters too* are essential to becoming an expert

For instance...I know the voice actors of most of my favorite characters....like in Naruto...Itachi *Crispin Freeman* Also the voice of Ebisu....it all depends...I even have him on myspace...lol

Blown away by Howl's Moving Castle and went out and got princess mononoke and spirited away an excellent experience.

Please check this guy out he is a genius. I have all his movies & have watched them many times over infact not but an hour ago I watched Spirited Away. I love the detail in the color and characters.

The first Miyazaki film I saw was Spirited Away, and I found the movie brilliant! A true inspiration... heart warming and surreal. Since then I've only seen two other Miyazaki films (Not from lack of effort)

The 2nd I saw was KiKi's Delivery Service, and once more I must say Miyazaki did not disappoint.

Tonight I finished My Neighbor Totoro, a cute film, I loved it and Miyazaki has defiantly earned a place among my favorite...

I here Ponyo On a Cliff By The Sea comes out around August in American theatres... I'd prefer to hear it in Japanese and read subtitles, just in case I miss some stuff from the dubbing but regardless I look forward to seeing the film.

I don't like animation much but I caught Princess Mononoke one day and it blew me away.

Originally Posted by Markas

I don't like animation much but I caught Princess Mononoke one day and it blew me away.

You must remember though it is animated it doesn't make it any less than a live action contemporary drama. It is just Japan took a different road in movie making, for a while it was actually cheaper to make an animated film than a live action film in Japan, CG technology was still new, and the best someone could make when animation started taking off in Japan was Tron... Japanese directors didn't have the budgets you see many American film directors getting, and the lack of none asian Japanese speaking people in Japan made the location, and time periods of their films restricted to Japan. If any director wanted to make a film based in Europe, or some fantasy film based in a none Asian world, it was near impossible without making it an animated film. Now that CG animation has taken off you still see people in Japan who stick to hand drawn animation, it has grown into a art form there. No different from any other form of cinema. It is hard to phathom that a cartoon can be more than just some random kiddy flick, but I think in the late 1980s the international community officially accepted Japanese animation as an official Art Form, as there was nothing else like it anywhere in the world.

I know a few well know actors and directors who were marvaled by the first films they saw. Director James Cameron, and actor Patrick Stewart for example, actually Stewart voiced his first role on a Japanese animated film not to long ago in fact, being someone who prided himself with the roles he gets more so than how much money he makes doing it Stewart is a very good actor in that reference, he praised the film when he watched it before he voiced for it, he never saw one before and was very suprised.

Part 1 of the Film Patrick Stewart voiced in, based in the turn of the century, England. Very glad they used English voice actors/actress to voice the english edition of the film.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

You must see Lupin the 3rd in The Castle of Cagliostro the movie is simply brilliant.

Grave of the Fireflies is also a really good film by Studio Ghibli (the production company for all of Hayao's work), but it is so depressing that I have only watched it once.

Pom Poko is fun but really weird

I really liked I can hear the sea as it reminded me about the time I lived in Japan and about being a teenager.

Originally Posted by Wild Bill Kelso

Grave of the Fireflies is also a really good film by Studio Ghibli (the production company for all of Hayao's work), but it is so depressing that I have only watched it once.

Pom Poko is fun but really weird

I really liked I can hear the sea as it reminded me about the time I lived in Japan and about being a teenager.

Grave of the Fireflies was originally shown on a double-bill with My Neighbour Totoro, as it was felt that the idiosyncratic Totoro held no popular appeal, whereas Grave of the Fireflies was valuable as an academic piece. More fo that story can be found at the Ghibliwiki. Pom Poko was by the same director as Fireflies, Isao Takahata. who also directed the hilarious My Neghbours the Yamadas. Strangely though, despite the excellence of Ghibli's catalogue, the film that I enjoyed the most at the cinema was Whisper of the Heart (I've seen all the Ghibli films from Nausicaa to Spirited Away on the big screen).

Something else that should be pointed out is the manga for Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind.

You lived in Japan I wish I could nice place.

What about Katsuhiro Otomo? Didn't he direct one of my favorite movies of all time?

Originally Posted by Arto Bedrosian

What about Katsuhiro Otomo? Didn't he direct one of my favorite movies of all time?

That film was over rated, I personally like Steamboy far more.

Strange though, personally I perfer Hayao Miyazaki's early products (pre-2000)...

Miyazaki is freaking amazing. Kiki's Delivery Service was one of the first good anime movies that I saw on TV. I agree with HH87 that his pre-2000's works are the best; I'd even go as far to say that his pre-90's works are his crowning achievements, but then there's Princess Mononoke in 1997. XD

Originally Posted by MaximiIian

Miyazaki is freaking amazing. Kiki's Delivery Service was one of the first good anime movies that I saw on TV. I agree with HH87 that his pre-2000's works are the best; I'd even go as far to say that his pre-90's works are his crowning achievements, but then there's Princess Mononoke in 1997. XD

She can never beat Nausicaa!!!

Damn, did you read the manga of Valley of Wind?? That is really awesome!!!