Customer Reviews

Castle in the Sky

5 star:		(76)
4 star:		(26)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Is it just me, or do those very words, without even knowing what they refer to, contain a whimsical, imagination-inspiring power to them?

"Castle in the Sky" is by Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki, who I've come to believe is one of the most masterful storytellers alive today, and maybe of all time. It begins with a young girl, Sheeta, drifting down from the sky into the arms of a young miner named Pazu. From there begins an incredible adventure as these two search for answers to the girl's origins while running from both air pirates as well as mysterious agents. I don't intend to reveal much of the plot here, but suffice it to say, this movie reignited the feelings I used to have as a child when watching such classics as "The Wizard of Oz" and the "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" (which I also just recently purchased on DVD.

The movie was created several years ago, but was recently brought to America, with a wonderful redubbing into English, thanks to Disney Studios. If you're looking for visuals like the mind-blowing, computer simulations in recent Disney hits such as "Finding Nemo", this isn't it. However, if you're a fan of traditional cel animation, this film may be one of the best ever produced. Miyazaki's attention to detail, his ability to bring these two dimensional characters to life, is awe-inspiring.

For me, the greatest thing about this movie is that it's reminded me of the kind of fictional magic I hope to create myself one day, and makes me wonder if it's too late in my life for me to become an animator. The bad thing about seeing a movie like this, is that I know that I could never produce anything nearly as beautiful.

Fortunately for me, if I ever get the opportunity, I'm just stubborn, determined, and delusional enough to give it a shot anyway.

After some investigating (and an erroneous online review) I was stupidly given to believe that this re-release had been properly English subtitled with corrected Japanese translations (for those interested in watching the film in it's original language) but alas, after forking over the additional funds for this, my third version of this film on DVD (having previously purchased a rather nice "Studio Ghibli" collection DVD box set as an Asian import (with truer subtitles but with a lot of, "Engrish" translations and miss-synced or flash past text) and the previous Disney release) I was ticked to discover that the subtitles where still dubtitles (it is very evident from the beginning of the film as the pirates keep referring to their leader (an old cantankerous woman) as "Mama", but the word never appears in either the subtitles or English audio dub).

So if you where hopping (like me) that this re-release would have fixed this issue, then prepared to be disappointed :(

BTW: the three star ratting is due to the lack of proper subtitles, as the film itself is worth 5+ stars.

This movie was one of my favorites. It looked great, especially for a movie done in 1986. The extras weren't that exciting, but who would buy a DVD just for the extars? It's the movie that really counts, and it's here that Castle in the Sky really shines. I especially liked watching it in Japanese (Pazu sounds really funny). Definately worth every penny.

This is the newest edition of one of the most classic of all Studio Ghibli films. Disney first issued it back in 2003 as a dvd set, then re-issued it in 2010 as another dvd set with a changed English sound track that more closely resembled the music on the Japanese track. Normally this is a good thing but in the case of Castle in the Sky; the Disney folk had done such a wonderful job of enhancing the sound track that many Otaku consider it better than the 2010 redo. However, if you haven't heard the original, you'll be quite happy with the 2010 redo since the 2003 English track was never offered as an extra.

This BD/combo pack is the third edition of this classic and basically duplicates the 2010 dvd set while upping the ante to a high definition video and audio bluray. Once again, the English 2003 track is not offered as an extra. All further comments are for the bluray.

Video is enhanced to a true 1080p, 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Castle has never looked better. The colours shine and like all Ghibli films, the detail is amazing. It really looks impressive for a film that was made back in 1986.

The English dub has also been enhanced from the dvd's Dolby Digital 5.1 track. My BD player shows it as a DTS-HD 5.1 Master audio. Strangely my Denon receiver shows it as a DTS-HD 6.1 master audio. Either way, it's very impressive. The japanese sub gets slightly boosted from DD stereo to DTS-HD 2.0 and the french track remains the same with DD stereo.

I won't go into great details on the plot as you can read any of the other reviews for that. Instead note that it's the typical boy meets girl who's being chased by villains and lots of action follows. And being a Hayao Miyazaki movie it's one of the best examples of the genre. In many ways it reminds me a lot of George Luca's Raiders of the Lost Ark. Lot's of action and daring escapes and two hours of never boring fun. If you've never seen a Studio Ghibli film from Disney before then you're in for a treat. And if you have, then this is one of the better one's and is a definite buy! I just wish they had included both the 2003 and 2010 English tracks!

J. A.

Pazu is an orphan who works for the owner of a mine and one night after everyone has left he sees something falling from the sky. He runs up to a platform and sees that it's a young girl floating down from the heavens. Just as he tentatively reaches out to catch her, almost as if she weren't real, she stops floating and falls heavily into his arms, almost knocking him off the platform himself. The girl's name is Sheeta and she is on the run from the leader of this organization who wants to get his hands on a crystal Sheeta got from her grandmother and keeps on a necklace. Pazu decides that he'll help Sheeta escape both the man and an unruly gang of pirates who are also after the crystal. This back and forth chase leads everyone to a mythical castle in the sky. Pazu's father got lost in a storm surrounding the island and Pazu has been preparing to go find the floating castle that his father was searching for.

This is a wonderful film. There is action, adventure, romance, and suspense. It's both whimsical and grounded at the same time. The movie is about a dream of a floating castle, but that fantasy and whimsy is brought down to earth by greed and power. The characters are wonderful and I enjoyed the dynamic between Sheeta and Pazu. A wonderful film for all ages.

Steampunky airships, robots, sky pirates and an ancient city that floats in the sky -- even if it weren't a brilliantly-written movie, Hayao Miyazaki's "Castle in the Sky" would be a glorious experience. And fortunately this simple gem of a fantasy movie is triumphant in every way: vibrant animation, outstanding writing, and a brilliant mix of fiery action, comedy and a teeny bit of romance.

After pirates raid an airship, a young girl named Sheeta escapes and falls from the ship... only to float down slowly to the ground, courtesy of a glowing crystal on her necklace. A miner boy named Pazu catches her and takes her home, and the two kids immediately become fast friends... but then the same sky pirates, working for their crabby mom Dola, have come searching for the crystal and Sheeta.

It turns out that Sheeta's crystal is made of aetherium, a super-awesome mineral that powers the mythical floating city of Laputa, which the pirates are searching for. Pazu has a special interest in this city, since his father claimed to have seen it but was ridiculed.

Unfortunately, the pirates aren't the only ones after Sheeta. Both kids are apprehended by military forces led by the ruthless Muska, who has found a tangible relic that proves Laputa's existence -- an ancient robot that fell from the sky. Now Pazu must join forces with Dola and her bumbling sons to rescue Sheeta and find Laputa -- and if he doesn't stop Muska quickly, he will use Laputa for his own evil ends.

"Castle in the Sky" is the sort of movie that a lot of people try to make, but only a rare few can actually pull off -- a richly imagined fantasy world with likable characters, and a powerful message about caring for the earth (which thankfully avoids being preachy). Not only does he succeed, but Miyazaki makes the whole thing seem effortless, weaving these themes together with a solid plot is both complex and refreshingly simple

He also does an excellent job juggling comedy (Dola's goofy sons), a hint of romance, and a heavy dose of action -- lots of aerial battles, explosions, gun chases high-speed chases, and one harrowing scene where a broken robot follows Sheeta through a burning fortress. The script (both in English and Japanese) is written well with plenty of amusing moments ("Make your shirt explode!"), but also striking, moving ones, such as Sheeta's final monologue to Muska about the people of Laputa.

The animation deserves a special shout-out -- it's rather simple and somewhat old-fashioned in style, but Miyazaki crafts a world of sunlit cliff-clinging villages, shadowy ruins full of roots, and shimmering seas under a vast swirling storm. And it's in exquisite bright colors that make it seem to have been painted on glass.

Sheeta and Pazu are both likable, pure-hearted heroes for this story -- one a young girl troubled by her ancestral past, and one a hardworking boy determined to save her (and salvage his father's reputation). The gang of pirates are a fun bunch once they've left the "villain" zone, and Dola is a gloriously vivacious, gutsy old lady. And Muska makes an excellent villain for the piece -- amoral, intelligent, and honestly believing himself superior to others.

"Castle in the Sky" is a truly enduring anime classic, a beautifully-animated tale of friendship, adventure and fantastical splendor. Do not give this a miss.

I particularly recommend this one for those who liked Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind.

You can look forward to all the beauty and originality of other Miyazaki films, but with more focus on some of the things that are largely overlooked in the other animations. You will find some pretty intense fight scenes in this one, involving some scary machines and airships, as well as pirates and government conspiracies.

My only disappointment for this movie was the lack of depth in the exploration of Laputa. I would have loved to learn more about the inner workings of the construction and society, but I'm sure the movie would have to become a documentary in order to satisfy my curiosity. If you want action, choose Laputa- if you want depth, choose Nausicaa. Then, if you like one, get both!

This is probably my favorite movie of all time. I love it because it portrays a mix of fantasy and reality. Every time I watch it, I feel like I've been transported to their world. I don't own it yet but I do want to buy it soon. If you like anime, you will love this movie, I guarantee it. Other movies I would definitely recommend are Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle. Hope you like this movie as much as I do!

This review is based on the Disney version of the movie, voiced by James Van Der Beek, Anna Paquin, Cloris Leachman, Mark Hamill and others. The basic premise is extremely simple - it's the old good vs. evil, science vs. nature scenario, but the animation and imagination is so cool that it looks much more complicated than that.

In case you were wondering, this is not based on the book "Castle in the Air" by Diana Wynne Jones. "Castle in the Air" is the sequel to "Howl's Moving Castle", which was also done in anime by the master Miyazaki. "Castle in the Sky" has roots in the story of "Gulliver's Travels" where Swift wrote about a flying city named Laputa, upon which this film is based.

Sheeta is a young girl, now an orphan, who was given an amulet by her mother before she died. It seems that lots of people are after the amulet, and after Sheeta is taken aboard an airship by creepy Government agents, the ship is attacked by a family of pirates. During the fracas, Sheeta falls from the airship, and it becomes apparent that the amulet is much more than a nice piece of bling-bling. She is rescued by a young boy named Pazu, who is also an orphan and works as an assistant to a mining engineer.

Both the pirates and the army are going all-out to get their greedy hands on Sheeta, and we learn that she is a vital link to finding the mythical floating city of Laputa, which is said to be packed with both treasure and advanced technology, securely hidden within a huge storm cloud.

The main characters, other than Sheeta and the heroic Pazu are Colonel Muska, a secret agent with huge ambition, Dola, domineering matriarch of the Pirate clan, and the General, leader of the armed forces.

Although more than two hours long, this action-packed family movie is never boring, but it does contain some amount of violence.

Amanda Richards

This is a wonderful movie. The story is enchanting, with fantastic flying machines and cities in the air. The land and air are full of strange and mysterious people who range from the kind and good to the power hungry evil types. What is especially nice about the characterizations in this film is that only a few are wholly good or wholly evil, most are a mix and are trying to work out their place in the plot of the story.

The story opens with an action sequence without any explanation about what is happening. This causes us to focus our attention and to try and figure out what is going on and what all these strange people and machines are. In some ways it seems like a 1930s serial, in others futuristic, and in others ancient myth without connection to the world in which we live.

While this isn't as beautiful as "Spirited Away" or even "Princess Mononoke", it is still head and shoulders above nearly everything you see passing as an animated movie nowadays (with a couple of exceptions). My kids encouraged me to get this DVD and they enjoyed it immensely. I expected to like it, but enjoyed it more than I expected.

Miyazaki has a unique imagination and has a powerful ability to use his wonderful images to tell the story in delightful and beautiful ways that go beyond conventional live action movies - no matter the special effects budget - or even most animation. Watching his stories is a special experience that I am grateful to him for sharing with me.