When Marnie Was There

I've described Studio Ghibli as being hit-and-miss at times with their output and no where is this more evident when they try their hands at teenage or young adult drama. Whisper of the Heart was a sweet and understated character piece while Ocean Waves is an absolute slog. It is a relief then to report that When Marnie was There is a wonderful, if small way for the studio to depart from feature film production. As with Whisper it finds its feet by focusing on one incredibly sympathetic character and taking her through a fanciful, emotional journey that leaves her the stronger for it.

When we first meet Anna she is isolated and vulnerable. Suffering an asthma attack during an art session where its made visibly clear that her problems are for more psychological than physical. Even if her quiet apology of 'I cost you more money' doesn't give her emotional state away the animation on her melancholy expression does. Her awkward running from fellow teenagers, her slouched or outright curled posture all gives the impression of a person riddled with anxiety.

So it seems only natural that Anna becomes attached to an ethereal and mysterious young girl who is also isolated, albeit in a ghostly marsh-house across the lake,  There's very little in the bond between Marnie and Anna, merely the mutual feeling of being unable to connect with the outside world. In fact Marnie becomes so quickly attached that it seems almost sinister but soon becomes clear that there is something much larger bonding the two.

The ups and downs of Marnie and Anna's friendship takes the form of a series of misadventures from crashing her parents elegant parties to exploring a haunted silo. The latter of these becomes so intense, so dramatic, owing to a sudden storm that all of Anna emotional conflict is painted on the waves. This is Ghibli's animation team operating at their peak with the violent movement of clouds, lightning and rain seamlessly with a distinctive physicality. Like all the best animations the atmosphere is something you could almost feel.

But it isn't just the charming animation that draws audiences to Studio Ghibli. Marnie guides Anna through her emotional conflict in a way that is typically fanciful and endearing, acting as an outlet for all the emotions that she can't express to her well-meaning relatives. Whether knowingly or not she provides Anna with scenarios that test her resolve, awkward social situations, confrontations and ultimately Anna's fear of abandonment. In doing so Anna becomes better equipped for the challenges that keep her from living and she emerges the richer for it.

It all builds to one major twist that provides a deep emotional gut-punch. In all its years Ghibli has never lost the ability to pluck at the heartstrings and in doing so they allow a story of friendship overcoming fears to end full circle.

Miyazaki Spirited Away to Retirement

I was going to use today, one day before the DVD release of Star Trek: Into Darkness, to discuss my opinion of the film which has evolved somewhat since its release. However this story takes prescedent as it will easily have the most significant impact on film as a whole. The story in question? Today, September 1st 2013, it was announced that Hayao Miyazaki, co-founder of the seminal Studio Ghibli and the director of some the most popular and endearing children's films of the last decade is to retire.

The news which came from Studio Ghibli head Koji Hoshino was met with stunned silence when revealed at the Venice Film Festival. The festival is to screen Miyazaki's eleventh, and now I guess final, film The Wind Rises. It's fitting then that the film neatly encapsulates the two subjects which most fuel  Miyazaki's passion and which have been woven throughout his work, for better or for worse. His love for flight and aviation and his hatred of war. 

The Wind Rises is about Jiro a young Japanese boy who dreams of flight and goes on to be a flight designer during World War Two. Refreshingly for a film about realising ones dreams the central conflict comes from losing out to simple competition not from external influences that hinder the path to being the best. And like Oppenheimer, like even Orville Wright himself, Jiro lives a life of regret at the suffering his works brought.

As mentioned the theme of war has permeated many of Miyazaki's films at Studio Ghibli. Ashitaka's quest against the weapons manufacturer Lady Eboshi in Princess Mononoke to Porco Rosso's past as a fighter pilot. Sometimes I feel this is a detriment to his work, like in Howl's Moving Castle where the war serves as little more than set dressing. Presented without cause or distinction of the two sides crippling our ability to empathise with Howl for doing what he can to protect the innocent. Though this is far from my sole problem with the film.

Whether Miyzaki's legacy will be to encourage universal pacifism or the preservation of the natural world remains to be seen. What is indisputable is that his contribution to Japanese Animation has not only produced some of its most compelling works but burst it onto mainstream western culture. Walt Disney releasing Princess Mononoke paved the way for future Ghibli films now released and arthouse cinema's and children's screenings across the west. That last point I think is one component of Ghibli's success, for all the depth added by theme and mythology they still work remarkably well as children's film.

My Neighbour Totoro is, for me, the best example of this. Led by two, incredibly sympathetic leads and set across the beauty of Akita Prefecture serving as the backdrop. The story is almost nonexistent as two young sisters try to come to terms with their mother suffering a severe sickness, finding respite in Totoro, the playful spirit of the forest. It's the profound sadness that makes the joy in their adventures with Totoro so palpable and the simple but distinct visual design of the spirit is what has made him a cult icon.

If I'm being honest though my favourite is and now always will be Laputa: Castle in the Sky. What can I say, I'm a sucker for adventure and similar to Miyazaki I've always has a fascination with airships. Airplanes may be the statistically safest way to fly but that doesn't stop your heart racing on takeoff. And that's what Laputa does, it whisks you away at high velocity then settles to let you get comfortable before taking its turns. It's a unique, funny and thrilling adventure that I can watch time and time again.

Studio Ghibli will not end with Miyazaki. That has never been a prospect. Recent addition to the team Hiromasa Yonebayashi debuted with The Secret World of Arietty which neatly embodies everything great about a Studio Ghibli film. Isao Takahata, who directed the heartbreaking Grave of the Fireflies continues to work with the studio. With his 5th Ghibli film The Story of Princess Kaguya currently in production. And of course there is Miyazaki's son Goro. Yes, his freshman outing Tales of Earthsea was met with a mixed critical reception, harshly earning his the Japanese equivalent of the Razzies. But From Up On Poppy Hill has fared much better with its plot closer to Ghibli films outside the fantasy genre like Only Yesterday.

Yes Ghibli will continue without Hayao Miyazaki's contribution but there is a sense that film will be poorer for it. He opened the west up to not only Japanese animation, which already had a dedicated albeit fringe following, but to worlds of splendor and hope. For the last year I have considered becoming an English language teacher in Japan. It is a desire brought about by the beauty the Ghibli films have shown me. Because of Miyazaki I want to walk up the Tama hills and along the safflower fields of Yamagata. And if I do I'll keep an eye out for Totoro.