Didn't love it as much as other Miyazaki films, but that might not be the movie

Rating: 7/10 (31 August 2013)

At his best, Miyazaki makes me indescribably happy with wonder. That's why I love his movies. I consider movies like My Neighbor Totoro and Spirited Away to be, in essence, bottled happiness.
But as with most great artists, different people will appreciate different things. One of Miyazaki's most popular films, Princess Mononoke, is my least favorite, because it's more about violence and drama than mystery and ethereal splendor.
Castle in the Sky falls more in the Mononoke action adventure category, and as that, it's a pretty good move, exciting, well paced and visually imaginative and generally fun.
I was less excited by this movie than others by Miyazaki,and that might be because it is very actiony, with lots of shooting and things blowing up, and that's not what I love by Miyazaki. But it might be something else.
I started watching this movie with my girlfriend late at night, and for the first hour I thought it was terrific. But we got sleepy, and didn't watch the rest of the movie for a few days. Which means the problem might not be anything more than a loss of dramatic momentum owing to my seeing the movie broken up. Or it could be that the second hour really is weaker. I don't know. I did see this movie once before, and it didn't stick with me the way other Miyazaki films have, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't have liked it better this time had I seen it in a single sitting.
In other words, you can't put too much stock in this review, except to the extent that I can stand by my belief that this is an enjoyable movie. I just can't say if I would have enjoyed it more in different circumstances.