Despite the patronage of Disney and John Lasseter, the work of Hayao Miyazaki has never quite made the impression abroad that it has in its native Japan, where his films number among the all-time biggest grossers: in the U.S. 2009’s “Ponyo” is his most successful film, despite the raves given to “Princess Mononoke” and “Spirited Away.” At the same time, it has at least been demonstrated now that there is an audience for both his films and those of his professional home, Studio Ghibli, and it’s now common for those films to get a U.S. release, even if Miyazaki himself isn’t at the helm.
The latest such film is “Arrietty,” an adaptation of Mary Norton‘s “The Borrowers” novels, about the title character, one of a race of tiny people, who befriends a human. The film marks the debut of long-time Ghibli animator Hiromasa Yonebayashi, is produced by Miyazaki himeslf, and picked up great reviews on its release in Japan last year: arguably more so than Miyazaki’s two last films. Total Film has landed a trailer (which seems to have originated from Twitch), and it certainly looks promising: typically beautifully animated, and we’re sure that Ghibli fans won’t want to miss it.
Interestingly, the trailer is for the film’s imminent U.K. release, which will be in both subtitled and dubbed format, the latter featuring a different cast to the U.S. version, led by Saoirse Ronan, Mark Strong and Olivia Colman (the U.S. will get Amy Poehler, Will Arnett and Carol Burnett). It lands in Britain on July 29th, with the U.S. version following on February 17, 2012. Watch it below.
I really don\’t like the accent of the actress who does Arriety. Ew. Just sayin. : (
Yeah, Ghibli is really only good when it\’s Hayao Miyazaki or Isao Takahata at the helm. They bring their unique and fascinating sensibilities to their films that can turn simple ideas into masterpieces. When Ghibli makes movies without either of them as directors (except for the beautiful Whisper of the Heart), they usually end up very bland and forgettable.
It\’s rather disappointing. In fact, it made me re-evaluate Ponyo which had such a wilder side. Arrietty is too bland (especially for kids).