soompi forums > Ponyo On The Cliff By The Sea

lee-chan

Jul 16 2008, 11:42 PM

Japan's Miyazaki returns to pencil in new anime film

Oscar-winning Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki releases his first full-length film in four years this weekend, dropping computer graphics for his pencil to tell the story of a fish-girl and the sea.

"Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea," which the reclusive 67-year-old both wrote and directed, will hit screens at cinemas across Japan on Saturday after weeks of intense media interest.

Inspired by the 19th-century fairy tale "The Little Mermaid" by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, the story centres around a tiny fish-girl, Ponyo, who rides a jellyfish to escape her home in the sea.

She meets a five-year-old human boy, Sosuke, who vows to protect her, but Ponyo is taken back to the sea. Desperate to be a human and live with Sosuke, Ponyo heads to land again with help from her sisters.

Miyazaki is one of Japan's biggest cultural exports. His last film, "Howl's Moving Castle," broke opening box office records at home in 2004 before winning a cult following in Western and Asian nations.

Miyazaki, who had used computer graphics since "Princess Mononoke" in 1997, decided to shun hi-tech effects in his latest film.

"Our experience told us that what you can do electronically doesn't impress people much. We decided to go fully with pencils... That's our strength," he said in a recent interview with Japanese public broadcaster NHK.

The film used 170,000 hand-drawn pictures to animate characters and objects, a record number for a Miyazaki production.

It took one and a half years for 70 staff to draw the pictures, according to Studio Ghibli, which has released his works.

The film also uses numerous other manually drawn pictures as the background -- with the succession of screens creating a slightly jittery atmosphere to the film.

"All things in the world are moving. I became an animator in order to move everything in the world. It's not only human characters that move," Miyazaki said.

"Not only grass vacillates; the ground can move, too. I think delicate fluctuations give life to our production," he said.

"The world is a living thing. Small children know it," he said.

But Miyazaki, saying he wanted to create a visual world for children, regretted that children lost their way of seeing the Earth as they grew older.

The director said he has been working to "create a world that five-year-olds understand."

"Five-year-old kids do not think with reason but rather they understand the true nature of the world instinctively," he said.

In a message posted on the Ghibli website, Miyazaki said the upcoming film "animates the sea not as background but as a main character."

The film marks a firm return to the film world by Miyazaki, who has said repeatedly in the past that he wants to retire.

The 2004 release of "Howl's Moving Castle" was met by speculation that it would be Miyazaki's last film, raising concerns in Japan for the future of the lucrative animation industry.

Miyazaki's second to last film, "Spirited Away," won the Academy Award in 2003 for best animated feature, Japan's first Oscar for a full-length work in nearly half a century.

He received a Golden Lion award from the Venice international film festival in 2005 for lifetime achievement in cinema.

credits from MSN News

I hope this film will be as good as the others. I'm excited to see this. Its been awhile since I saw Hayao's film

Misao

Jul 17 2008, 08:33 PM

YEAHH!! i love hayao miyazaki's films! <33 i can't wait for his next movie. =) i watched the movie that his son made.. the one with the dragon, but it didnt have that enchanted feeling.. like hayao's films.. and wow i didnt know howl's moving castle was his last film. T_T that was such a great movie..

JING-JING

Jul 17 2008, 08:47 PM

I want to see this movie. I've been waiting for this ever since the dubbed version of Howl's Moving Castle was released. Hayao Miyazaki's films are the best!

Trailer: http://youtube.com/watch?v=zpQ2NCSMHWY

retarded_sponge

Jul 17 2008, 08:57 PM

Goddd this looks so ridiculously cute/adorable/endearing/etc.
Oh Miyazaki, you can never do wrong<3

<3goesDOKIDOKI

Jul 17 2008, 11:39 PM

wow the art is cutesier than i expected
i wonder if the whole film is like that? well miyazaki can do no wrong. im definitely interested in watching this
the story reminds me a bit of the little mermaid hehe

Drusilla

Jul 22 2008, 11:09 AM

Awwwww, so cute! I'm definitely looking forward to this one..Studio Ghibli makes the best children's films and I've already got the Ponyo song stuck in my head.

disgruntled_ricecooker

Jul 23 2008, 06:26 AM

The general premise of the story is meh to me and the character designs look kind of generic to me. I hope Miyazaki still has that personal touch that makes his movies enjoyable.

s3imaDen

Aug 18 2008, 05:10 AM

i've just watched this, this is really a cuuuteeeee anime~~~
although it has no climax (to me), but i like the whole result

talks about family love etc... heheeehe
its a sweet anime

Misao

Aug 18 2008, 06:16 PM

^ =0 how did you watch this? is it out online yet? or you watch it in japan.. haha

JING-JING

Mar 24 2009, 11:52 PM

QUOTE

Ghibli's Ponyo Dated for August 14 in U.S. Theaters
posted on 2009-03-24 13:45 EDT

Latest film from Oscar-winning director Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away, Totoro)

Walt Disney Pictures has announced that Ponyo, the latest film from Academy Award-winning director Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, My Neighbor Totoro), will open in American theaters on August 14. The story follows an ordinary boy named Sosuke (Frankie Jonas) and his friendship with Ponyo (Noah Cyrus), a goldfish who wishes to be human. The other castmembers include Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Tina Fey, Cloris Leachman, Liam Neeson, Lily Tomlin, and Betty White.

Ponyo is the English release name for Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea, which Studio Ghibli and TOHO released in Japan on July 19 of last year. It became Japan's highest grossing film of 2009. Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall, and Steve Alpert are producing the English-language dub, while Miyazaki himself and John Lasseter (Pixar's Toy Story, Cars) are executive producers.

Source: AWN via AnimeVice, ANN

summerdamsel

Mar 25 2009, 01:01 AM

Watched this already
Its a signature Miyazaki film
Pretty cute but I guess its geared more towards kids
I was a bit disappointed cause I loved Howl's Moving Castle and Spirited Away a lot
There seems to be something lacking with its ending
Its too abrupt for me

hybrid_marionette

Mar 25 2009, 04:11 PM

YAY XD I love these movies !

polaris

Jun 7 2009, 06:24 PM

I love Miyazaki films. This one looks so cute! Kind of looks more toward the genre of "My neighbor Totoro"

I cant wait to watch this.

fantasian

Jun 13 2009, 06:34 PM

i watched this the other day. and definately signature miyazaki - there's no real bad guy.

the characters were endearing as always, but the story didnt draw me in that much.

lilcrash

Jun 13 2009, 10:35 PM

I watched it awhile ago, didn't really like it much although it was cute.
My favourite ones are still Spirited Away, My neighbor Totoro & Whisper of the heart~

JING-JING

Jun 23 2009, 03:01 PM

Walt Disney Pictures has released the movie trailer for the American redub of Ponyo.
http://www.apple.com/trailers/disney/ponyo/

1SwtDeception

Jun 24 2009, 10:07 PM

Interesting cast of voice actors.

It's definitely a cute movie.

xxrainbowsun

Jul 11 2009, 04:42 PM

QUOTE (LovinBlackCoffee @ Mar 25 2009, 02:01 AM)

Watched this already
Its a signature Miyazaki film
Pretty cute but I guess its geared more towards kids
I was a bit disappointed cause I loved Howl's Moving Castle and Spirited Away a lot
There seems to be something lacking with its ending
Its too abrupt for me

I watched this movie too, I agree that it's geared more towards kids and the ending.
I have yet to watch this movie dubbed.

haha

It was extremely simple as far as the storyline goes, but it was cute none the less.

If kids were like how we were back then, then they would love this movie.. but since most shows are now animated with computers and look more 3D, I doubt that lots of kids would like this movie unless they are interested in the enviornment, etc.

xPURIN

Jul 13 2009, 05:00 PM

watched it~~
i like spirited away better.. .
but it was very sweet~~!

kuwon

Aug 23 2009, 02:51 PM

i want to watch it, but i rather not see the dubbed one.
honestly i dont think disney should have taken over teh project.
not offend anyone, but im not a big fan of the jonas brothers or miley cyrus,
but for this movie, the little siblings of both of them will be the main characters...
will have to see the result of this.

xoxoknlove

Aug 23 2009, 04:16 PM

watched it yesterday (:
it was beyond cuteeeee~
it made me smile and giggle all the way through!

but i do sorta agree that his other movies were better XD

CorruptedSilence__nomore

Aug 23 2009, 10:39 PM

Me and my sister got free tickets to go watch the preview of it not too long ago but they wouldn't let us watch it because the theatre was full which we thought was a bunch of bs. So we came home and watched it from our computer LOL.

I thought this was really cute. Hayao Miyazaki tends to do that with his works that are more for kids LOL. (My Neighbor Totoro anyone? XD) But nevertheless, I really enjoyed it like I usually enjoy his films. Though the ending for me was a bit...I don't know how to explain it. I just didn't really felt like it was a good ending. It wasn't horrible but it didn't give me a fulfilling feel if that makes any sense XD

strawberry.llamas

Aug 24 2009, 06:56 PM

QUOTE (CorruptedSilence__nomore @ Aug 24 2009, 02:39 AM)

Me and my sister got free tickets to go watch the preview of it not too long ago but they wouldn't let us watch it because the theatre was full which we thought was a bunch of bs. So we came home and watched it from our computer LOL.

I thought this was really cute. Hayao Miyazaki tends to do that with his works that are more for kids LOL. (My Neighbor Totoro anyone? XD) But nevertheless, I really enjoyed it like I usually enjoy his films. Though the ending for me was a bit...I don't know how to explain it. I just didn't really felt like it was a good ending. It wasn't horrible but it didn't give me a fulfilling feel if that makes any sense XD

haha it makes perfect sense. A pet peeve of mine is when the ending doesn't satisfy. Like it could be so much better!

But I was pretty satisfied with the ending of Harry Potter.

but then again...i'm a sap for happy endings :3

watching this tomorrow...by myself -__- (keke i'm a loner)
i'm excited~

(^__^)v

Aug 24 2009, 08:39 PM

I saw this movie today.
It was so cute and funny.
The only thing I was disappointed was the ending.
I thought it moved a little too fast, even though the
movie is 1hour and 40 min long.

I think I liked howls moving castle the best, but I think I was
a little disappointed with that ending as well. >.>

strawberry.llamas

Aug 26 2009, 05:58 PM

QUOTE ((^__^)v @ Aug 25 2009, 12:39 AM)

I saw this movie today.
It was so cute and funny.
The only thing I was disappointed was the ending.
I thought it moved a little too fast, even though the
movie is 1hour and 40 min long.

I think I liked howls moving castle the best, but I think I was
a little disappointed with that ending as well. >.>

haha howl's moving castle was my favorite as well. hohoho especially since the dubbed version, Howl was played by Christian Bale.

and the ending was okay, i just didn't like how it ended like a looney tune episode.

Gah, I watched the dubbed version, so annoying hearing, "SOSUKE! SOSUKE! SOSUKE!"
annoying voice

hahaha.

ChouChou

Aug 29 2009, 04:28 AM

i really enjoyed this movie, very cute
i do agree that it's not as good or as thought-provoking as his other ones
but it was good nontheless
i don't think it's meant to be too complicated anyways
just innocent and fun

and i never watch the dubbed versions
totally ruins the movie in my opinion

dianannsano

Aug 30 2009, 07:55 PM

Watched it with my sister and friend about 2 weeks ago. I must say that I was expecting a little bit more. It was cute, funny and simple though. I still love Howl's Moving Castle and Spirited Away more.

Plus, nothing beats the theme song (in Japanese). It's soooo addicting!!!

YUKI.N

Sep 4 2009, 01:48 PM

QUOTE (kuwon @ Aug 23 2009, 10:51 PM)

i want to watch it, but i rather not see the dubbed one.
honestly i dont think disney should have taken over teh project.
not offend anyone, but im not a big fan of the jonas brothers or miley cyrus,
but for this movie, the little siblings of both of them will be the main characters...
will have to see the result of this.

I agree with every word you said...

12345671

Sep 5 2009, 05:31 PM

love the japanese version (:
sorry but those two stupid annoying kids ruined it for me
urghh and i dont care if im being mean x3

`LOVELYESQUE!

Sep 5 2009, 09:26 PM

I watched the Japanese subbed version the other day and to be honest, I was a bit dissapointed. In my opinion, it wasn't a total masterpiece like Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle ): But I must say...Ponyo has the cutest voice in the original version! And the interactions between Soskue and Ponyo are just adorable ♥___♥

xdeathberry

Sep 5 2009, 09:33 PM

Omg. SO CUTE.
I was excited when it was coming out in theaters in America.
Haha. I was like, "SCORE! Finally. Miyazaki gettin' some recognition here!"

I saw it dubbed. It was pretty cute

Although, originals are almost always better. lol

After forcing myself not to think about who the actual voice actors are, I enjoyed it a lot. haha

garnet07

Sep 22 2009, 01:39 AM

HUH?!!! Other Ghibli movies already came out in the US before Ponyo. My favorite Ghibli movie will always be Kiki's Delivery Service ... heck I even like the dubbed version with Kirsten Dunst's voice (and that's saying a lot since I tend to hate dubbed animes) . But then again, it's the only Ghibli movie I watched dubbed.

Ponyo is such a cute movie. It's not supposed to be action packed like Mononoke or Spirited Away but it has a unique story all on its own. I loved the ending scene when Ponyo kissed Sousuke and became a human again .

RAINii

Sep 22 2009, 11:42 AM

me and my boyfriend watched this together
it was really too cute
not too much ~ a carefree movie
all his movies are good tho ><

MEIYEE

Sep 24 2009, 08:55 AM

^^Yeah, but Ponyo's pretty much the only Studio Ghibli movie that Disney really tried to advertise (probably cause of the voice actors they had for Ponyo...

)

polaris

Sep 24 2009, 07:40 PM

Anyone know any clubbox that has this dubbed or subbed?

.:daRkwinGs:.

Oct 5 2009, 06:40 PM

im like in love with this movie....
it is soo cute and free...
another good one like the others.

JING-JING

Oct 19 2009, 08:00 PM

The U.S. DVD release date for the film is March 2010.

Source: Frank Marshall's Twitter (status), ANN