Well, I'm certainly going to read that D WJ novel you mention, thanks
for the tip, Alison. Of his work I only know Princess Mononoke, which as
you say is wonderful. The most striking feature of this story/film is
that the heroine is an old woman for most of the time. Visually it is
stunning, the geography being based upon some area like the Jura, either
French or Swiss, with mountains & amazingly detailed towns, sort of
pre-WW1 , but in one (? it was dubbed in French & I missed some of the
explanatory bits so that I didn't quite grasp all the plot levels) of
the worlds there is war, with immense flying creatures as bombers
wreaking destruction & a host of other malevolent creatures. All the
important figures including the wicked are female, with the exception of
the magician-beast the heroine grows to love, the latter's boy
apprentice & the hopping scarecrow who pursues her to help her out at
dicey moments after she rescued him from mountain rubble - he turns out
to be...well, musn't spoil your fun. It's 2004 & was premiered at some
film festival; I suppose the French are the 1st to get it in their art
cinemas - the rest of the world will probably get it later (I read
reviews in the UK press about 3 months after seeing the film, as a
rule). I'll think about getting *Grave of Fireflies* - not too keen on
being emotionally devastated at the moment (this human cannot bear too
much reality, the particularly evil ramifications of which are crowding
in faster than I can deal with).
cheers
mj
Alison Croggon wrote:
>On 16/1/05 10:14 PM, "MJ Walker" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>
>
>>I'd like to direct your attention & I
>>suppose great enjoyment to a new use of the Eros/Psyche myth in the
>>great Japanese cartoon director Hayao Miyazaki 's *Howl's Moving
>>Castle* based upon a fantasy novel by Diana Wynne Jones (which I don't
>>know): an amazing & moving reflection on the awakening (and different
>>phases) of the female eros, with mirror stages aplenty & more
>>alternative worlds than *His Dark Materials*. It's certainly époustouflé
>>me - oh Beauty & the Beast! (beauty of the beast, beastly beauty, la
>>belle bêtise etc)...
>>
>>
>
>Hi Martin
>
>That's one Miyazeki film I don't know, nor do I know Diana Wynne Jones'
>story (though I know others of hers - she's fab, especially her Tough's
>Guide to Fantasy Land, which is hilarious). I'm a big fan, having been
>converted by Josh, who brought five dvds back from Japan. My favourite of
>those I have seen is Princess Mononoke, a masterpiece, where the gender
>politics are certainly very interesting. I'll have to look out for Howl's
>Moving Castle, it sounds great.
>
>An aside, also from the Ghibli studios but not Miyazaki, is an anime called
>Grave of Fireflies, which must be the most emotionally devastating film
>about war that I've ever seen.
>
>Best
>
>A
>
>
>Alison Croggon
>
>Blog: http://theatrenotes.blogspot.com
>Editor, Masthead: http://masthead.net.au
>Home page: http://alisoncroggon.com
>
>
>
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