There are many things that make the animated films of legendary writer/director Hayao Miyazaki beloved. They include his penchant for narratives that focus more on relationships than conflict, complex three-dimensional female characters, and beautiful imagery. But if I had to pick one thing that made his films truly unique, it would have to be the… Read more »
Tag: children’s film
Mamoru Hosoda: Best of Both Worlds
Fantasy and science fiction have always offered an incredible amount of possibility to storytelling. When you have rules and worlds you can make up and change at the whim of a keystroke it can be easy to get lost in the nuts and bolts. There’s nothing wrong with this, of course. Some very good films… Read more »
Beyond Miyazaki: The Breadth of Japanese Animation
The first feature-length anime (slang for Japanese animation) that I saw, as opposed to TV shows such as Dragon Ball Z or Cowboy Bebop, was a Hayao Miyazaki film. He has directed some wonderful anime films which have been primarily aimed at children, such as Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) and My Neighbor Totoro (1988). I expected… Read more »
Dramatic Details: Jiří Trnka’s Puppet Performances
In 1963, aspiring Japanese animator Kihachiro Kawamoto traveled from Japan to Prague to study stop motion animation under Czech animator Jiří Trnka’s direction. According to an interview for Midnight Eye, the young Kawamoto sent Trnka a letter “and waited for over 6 months” for the reply and an invitation to come to Prague to learn… Read more »
Don Bluth’s Sustained Melancholy
Ed. note: contains spoilers for The Land Before Time. It was with a certain trepidation I revisited the films of Don Bluth. It’s probably been over 20 years since I first saw his classic films, including The Secret of NIMH (1982), An American Tail (1986), The Land Before Time (1988), and All Dogs Go to… Read more »
Monthly Movie Round-Up: August
Every month A Place for Film will bring you a selection of films from our group of regular bloggers. Even though these films aren’t currently being screened at the IU Cinema, this series will reflect the varied programming that can be found at the Cinema, as well as demonstrate the eclectic tastes of the bloggers…. Read more »