1979
Directed by Hayao Miyazaki
SYNOPSIS
Master thief Lupin and two friends try to rescue a princess who's being forced to marry an evil count. Along the way, they try to discover the connection between the kingdom and a bunch of counterfeit money they previously uncovered... and a big treasure.
MY THOUGHTS
A fun and exciting thrill ride featuring the directorial debut of Hayao Miyazaki.
The film does lack many of the characteristics of Miyazaki's later works. His later films are mainly for children like Kiki's Delivery Service or My Neighbor Totoro. This film features a bit stronger language than those.
Many themes such as man and his relationship to nature and environmental issues are not present here. This is likely due to the fact that the film is based on a series of comic books that was turned into a TV series that Miyazaki worked on... and is not an original work of his.
The animation is also not as outstandingly detailed and beautiful as Princess Monoke or Spirited Away, but it fits the story fine and is still light years ahead of American TV animation of the 1980's.
The story moves at a brisk pace and there's never a dull moment. There's also a lot of humor to keep the mood light.
The American version lacks the star-power that Disney was able to assemble for his more recent work, but the voice actors fit their roles nicely.
The film is different from Miyazaki's later work but it shares the very enjoyable sense of fun and wonder of his greatest animated films.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment