I was naturally really excited when I heard about the new Miyazaki movie last year, and disappointed when I found out it wouldn't be released for another year in America. I forgot about it for a while, till a few weeks ago when I suddenly remembered and Michael had downloaded the Japanese version. We also went and saw it in English yesterday in theatres.
Miyazaki movies have always been really magical for me. They contain this epic adventure and always have a character or two I relate with. The last big movie, Ponyo, certainly didn't disappoint, and I used to watch My Neighbor Totoro as a child at the cabin my grandparents used to have. There are several Miyazaki movies that weren't as big that I haven't seen yet, but I vow I will.
The Secret World of Arrietty, if you haven't looked into it or seen it yet, is based on a classic tale called The Borrowers. Borrowers are very tiny people who mooch off of us giant people in a hardly noticable way. This is a story that's been done before; it was a book first and has since been made into at least one other film in 1997 and several TV movies. (Fun fact, in this 1997 adaptation Tom Felton played the youngest borrower.)
Although Miyazaki's adaptation definitely had his own flair thrown into this story, I was actually a little disappointed. I knew the story, and so I guess I was expecting Miyazaki to twist it somehow. There are differences for sure, like less borrowers and a not as sinister "villain," but overall it was missing something. I think it was that epic flair that's usually in my favorite Miyazaki movies. It was honestly a little bit boring at times, and you didn't get to see nearly enough of the Borrowing world with such a small family and only one outside Borrower. Maybe I was expecting too much, but with Miyazaki's reputation I really didn't think so.
As usual, there are annoying difference between the Japanese and English translations. The English voices were weird and they added unnecessary dialogue and even changed a few lines that personally I thought were important. Amy Poehler did the mothers voice and I think that bothered me the most. She's a comedian, and they tried to make her funny, but in the Japanese version she's a bit more worn down and humble. It just really bothers me when they do that sort of thing with foreign movies.
Don't get me wrong, it was a darling film and I did enjoy it, but not quite as much as I thought I would. I'm sure it's great for young children who don't know the story yet. I guess I was just too old for this one :( I look forward to Miyazaki's next project!
No comments:
Post a Comment