This is a major news, and unfortunately a very sad one: Hayao Miyazaki the genius Japanese director has announced today that "the Wind Rises" will be his last animated movie and that he will stop directing animated movies.
Hayao Miyazaki, acclaimed all over the world not only by his long time fans and audience but also by all animators from wherever they are including at Disney and Pixar, "God" of John Lasseter, 2003 best animated movie Academy Award winner is undeniably one of the greatest director of animated movies of all time.
His last movie "Kaze Tachinu" - "The Wind Rises" in english - is currently in competition at Venise Film Festival where the movie was acclaimed after the screening. Miyazaki, 72, couldn't attend Venise film festival but he announced that a press conference will be organized soon in Japan where "The Wind Rises" is already released and a huge success.
"The Wind Rises" told the story of a plane engineer who really existed - Jiro Horikoshi - who designed the famous war plane Mitsubishi "Zero" who was used by Japan air army during WW II. When he was a child Jiro dreamed to fly and to design planes inspired by those of italian plane engineer Italo Caproni. Because he couldn't be a pilot due to his myopia he ended in 1927 in the engineer division and became one of the most brilliant plane designer in the world. He then fall in love with Nahoko, a young woman whom he previously met when he saved her life when he was a teen.
Hayao Miyazaki who was inspired by a novel of Japanese writer Tatsuo Hori recall in the two hours movie a big part of 20th century Japan history: the 1923 earthquake at Kanto, the big depression era, the deadly tuberculosis epidemic and the entrance of Japan in World War II.
"The Wind Rises" will be released in Europe and in the U.S in 2014 and appears to be an epic animated movie. I may be wrong but i have the feeling that Miyazaki did here something close to David Lean's epic and romantic movies set in historic events like, for instance, "Doctor Zhivago". As a huge fan of Miyazaki myself i can't wait to see "The Wing Rises" and below you'll find the trailer.
If you've never watched any of Miyazaki animated movies you MUST see them. All of them are masterpieces and my favorites are "Spirited Away" - for which he received the Berlin Film Festival Golden Lion and the 2003 best animated movie Academy Award - or "Princess Mononoke" among many others of his animated features. To have a genius of this altitude announcing that he will not direct anymore is a great loss - it's just like if Stanley Kubrick was still alive and announces that he will not direct anymore.... Hopefully, his Studio Ghibli will probably continue to produce animated movies but no one can replace a genius director like Miyazaki was.
Pictures and video: copyright Studio Ghibli
Would Disney buy Studio Ghibli now? Studio Ghibli would be a great asset. Disney already distributes their movies and Bob Iger is probably still in a buying mood.
ReplyDeleteJesus Christ, i hope NOT! In this case it would be a very very bad idea... May be it will be a great asset but "assets" are not everything in life and there are more important things... And in this case chances are that Disney would sooner or later destroy what makes the magic of Ghibli. That's why Miyazaki has always been wise enough to never do a deal with Disney which goes over simple distribution.
ReplyDeleteBut, anyway, i think that Disney will not buy Ghibli, at least for now, so there is probably no immediate danger...
Bying Ghibli would make no economical sense for Disney. Besides, the owners would probably not even consider selling the studio. Unlike so many western countries, japan is extremely reluctant when it comes to foreign influence - in other words, bying a Japanese company is extremely difficult, and could turn into both a financial and a public relations nightmare. Although top brass at Ghibli used to work for Disney, Disney itself will not be so stupid as to assume they could run a Japanese studio - the last time they were arrogant enough to think the world is just the backyard of the US, they came up with projections and assumptions about European audiences and build Euro Disney - we all know how that ended, in financial terms... (although I am still happy that they spent way too much on Euro Disney, since, after all, the result was the most beautiful theme park ever created).
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