Miyazaki at his best, a breathtaking adventure of a film

Rating: 10/10 (1 May 2003)

My conversion to the Miyazaki mind set is now complete. I suspect
this visionary genius, whose talents had rarely been given major
access to the average westerner until his glorious Oscar winning
Spirited Away, is capable of doing no wrong.
Castle In The Sky is a beautifully crafted joyride that reminds you
want its like to be young. The animation is undeniable superb and
the voice cast (of the English dubbed version) well selected.
However it is the sheer sense of wonder that gets you. Like
Spirited Away Miyazaki's scale of imagination is extraordinary. A
rare talent in adults.
For most people as you grow older the mundanities of life run you
down and help to destroy your imagination bit by bit. Some artists
are capable of taping into that childlike imagination and
recapturing some of the wonder and spectacle. I would argue that
in the film world Steven Spielberg, John Lasseter and (representing the slightly more mischievous child) Joe Dante are
among the best at this. Films such as E.T., Toy Story and
Innerspace, Indiana Jones, Monsters, Inc. and Gremlins provide a
landscape of adventure and fun, unbridled childish excitement.

Anyone who's ever enjoyed The Goonies as a child knows what
I'm talking about and still gets nostalgic at a cry of "hey, you guys"!
It's not the same if you experience it as an adult usually. That is
part of the problem with the new Star Wars films. So many people
who watched the original trilogy through the wide eyes of
childhood cannot see the same qualities in the new films unless
they access their imagination and childlike sense of awe, forget
what they know about criticism and technical specifications (like
effects etc) that they were blissfully unaware of in childhood and
look at these films as if they were a kid again.
The wonder of Miyazaki is that he seems not to be accessing
childlike qualities, but genuinely seems to still possess the
imagination of a pre-teen. Even more incredible is the way he can
channel this to his audience through his stories and imagery.
Castle In The Sky, like Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away and his
other films, contains characters and situations few could conceive
of. I do not want to give anything away of the story as it should be
experienced first hand to truly capture the overwhelming scale and
inventiveness.
Miyazaki is a genius. Castle In The Sky in superior to Princess
Mononoke but falls just short of his masterpiece Spirited Away.
Believe John Lasseter see them all. See My Neighbor Totoro,
Kiki's Delivery Service etc. Experience them all. Awaken the child
within you and count the days until Howl's Moving Castle (released
in 2004) with the desperate impatience of a small child. Enjoy.