Tsunderin: At long last we come to the end of our very, very long month. Why, it seems like only a year ago we started reviewing these movies. Ah, how time flies.
Today, we’re taking a look at Goro Miyazaki’s second directorial attempt in the Ghibli roster. With memories of Earthsea ever lingering in our minds—or at least my mind—we were more concerned with the pacing and general narrative of From Up on Poppy Hill than we were with other movies. Of course I wanted Goro to do well, but he had much to improve on. Did those five years between films help him? Let’s find out.
So a while back, I reviewed this trailer. It was all in Japanese without subtitles. And if you remember that post, you’ll remember that it pissed me off to no end when I couldn’t find any version of it with English subtitles. But thanks to Tsunderin, I have finally found an English version. Of course, then again, in my last review, I did say that the English trailer should die a horrible death for not existing at that time. But, hey, what the hell?
Here it is, regardless.
As a whole, I love everything that Studio Ghibli puts out. The animation is always very well done, and the characterization is, too. From Up On Poppy Hill doesn’t quite fit in with the genre that I tend to go for, but it doesn’t look to be any less fulfilling. It seems to have a lot of internal conflicts in it for the main protagonist, especially considering that she’s still signaling her father’s ship, even though he’s passed away. The boy she meets, whom I think may be her long-lost brother according to everything I’ve read about this, doesn’t really make a huge appearance in this trailer. And that’s a bit of a shame, because I’d like to hear more about that relationship.
What I mostly love about Hayao Miyazaki films is that female protagonists are done remarkably well. They seem like real people with real motives. And though some of them tend to be very similar in many ways, they are very easily likable, and they have real conflicts that they need to overcome. I have no doubt that the same will happen here.
So don’t forget to check out this movie as soon as you’re able to.
I really hate this trailer. I hate it so much. Why, you may ask. Well, the answer is simple: I cannot seem to find a single subtitled or dubbed version of this damn thing anywhere. And thus, I was left to translate the thing myself, and knowing my luck, the English version will probably be released sometime after I’m done writing this, but this is the one I saw, and it’s the one I’m reviewing.
Fuck you, English trailer, you and your nonexistence!
Oh, yeah, and I also love how the incredibly loud music starts to play right as the boy, Syun (or Shun), starts to say something really important. That made translating this sooo much easier.
Of course, what he says sort of terrifies me, but that might just be because Tsunderin and I recently got done reviewing an incest fic.
Apparently, Syun and Umi, the girl, are siblings, which begs to question whether or not there’s romance between them before discovering the truth. I hope not, and considering that this is a Studio Ghibli film, it’s probably safe to watch in that regard.
For those of you who don’t speak Japanese or have any understanding of the language, which is probably most of you, I’ll do my best to translate this thing. Please keep in mind, however, that translating Japanese to English always kept my grade down in college. I can hear things in Japanese and know what they mean, but not how to say them in English, so here goes.
Umi begins the trailer by asking Syun to tell her what’s bothering him. After pulling out the photo, Syun says that Sawamura Yuuzi is a true image/portrait of himself, and that it’s absolutely an amazing [insert some word neither Tsunderin nor I could find anywhere here]. When Umi asks what this all means, he responds that it means they’re siblings.
Looking up the story plot on Wikipedia, Umi and Syun meet while cleaning up a Culture Club to stop it from being destroyed, and slowly discover that they are indeed brother and sister and how their parents met and fell in love.
I’ll definitely be checking this movie out, but then again, I’ll go to see anything made by Hayao Miyazaki—except for the Secret World of Arrietty, because I already saw that when it was called the Borrowers. But here’s hoping for another epic movie, and may the English version of this trailer die a horrible death should it exist.
Today, we’re taking a look at Goro Miyazaki’s second directorial attempt in the Ghibli roster. With memories of Earthsea ever lingering in our minds—or at least my mind—we were more concerned with the pacing and general narrative of From Up on Poppy Hill than we were with other movies. Of course I wanted Goro to do well, but he had much to improve on. Did those five years between films help him? Let’s find out.
Lady Geek Girl and Friends 