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Anime

Princess Mononoke Released On DVD 131

Posted by CmdrTaco from the keep-your-eyes-peeled-for-posessed-boars dept.
Christopher Cashell writes: "The critically acclaimed Anime film by Hayao Miyazaki and Ghibli studios, Princess Mononoke, has been released on DVD. The DVD release was initially delayed due to the public outcry when it was discovered that the original Japanese dialogue wouldn't be included. In this case, the effort from people writing Miramax paid off, as this release does include Japanese language tracks. This movie was reviewed on Slashdot when released in theaters. More information on Princess Mononoke can also be found here." and on AnimeFu (fwiw, that is Kurt The Pope & I's anime review site, check it out if you're curious). My copy hasn't arrived yet (Express.com fails me once again. When they stopped being DVDExpress, their UI went to poop, and now I have to wait weeks for titles.) but I hear they really did this disc up right; they've even got Gaimen's subtitles or Miyazaki's original script subtitles. I'm excited to see this disc. And hear Gillian Anderson again. I got to see the movie in an old local artsy theater. What a great movie.
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Princess Mononoke Released on DVD More

Princess Mononoke Released on DVD

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  • Strom Riders ... wasn't that hot I thought. Great disappointment after the great wu xia films of the 80s and early 90s. It really did look like the director was substituting computer graphics effects for good, tight choreography.

    I'm eagerly looking forward to Crouching Tiger though :)

  • One day, I am going to die and rot. My possessions won't mean shit, then. Whether I enjoyed Blade Runner played off my personal copy on DVD, or off a licensed copy, or streaming off a broadband network, my corpse won't care. I don't care now. Ownership doesn't make my dick hard. The experience does.

    In rich societies, we worry about shit like this because we have the leisure time to indulge our own selfishness and neurosis. Tell a Hindi who makes $25 monthly that you are pissed because you can't copy your DVD and he will punch you in the face (at least, he should).

    Manufactured crisis and problems shouldn't get this much attention on Slashdot, or anywhere else, for that matter. I'm not anti-materialist, or a communist, but it makes me sad to see so many spoiled little wankers wetting themselves over what is, ultimately, inconsequential bullshit. Maybe it fills some deep need in their lives. Maybe we all need to feel victimized occasionally. I don't know; but it sure is fucking pathetic.

  • Re:Buy this and you are giving $$$ to Disney and M (Score:3)

    by steveha ( 103154 ) on Thursday December 21, 2000 @12:01AM (#545914) Homepage
    Buy this, and you are giving money to Disney. True.

    But I seriously doubt the effectiveness of a boycott. If all the anime fans boycott the Mononoke DVD, will that block the DeCSS lawsuits? No, but it will probably convince Disney to import more Power Rangers next time instead of more Miyazaki-san.

    Disney isn't a monolith; it's made up of various groups. The part of Disney that decided to import Mononoke and release it on DVD should be rewarded. I'm not happy with any part of Disney that sends money or lawyers to the MPAA to attack DeCSS, but it's hard to punish them by refusing to buy Mononoke on DVD.

    If you would like to own this but you feel bad about supporting MPAA even indirectly, may I suggest that you send a contribution to the EFF [eff.org] when you buy a DVD. Feel free even to send a letter to Disney telling them you did this.

    Princess Mononoke on DVD with a clean transfer and Japanese language and two English subtitles tracks? Yep, I'm gonna buy that.

    steveha

  • These two very different movies, if I remember correctly, were released together - as a double feature. I sure hope 'Totoro' came after 'Hotaru'. I wonder what the initial audience reception must have been like? What did the kids think? Think of it- The story of two young children sharing wonderful adventures with adorable, fuzzy woodland creatures in the idyllic setting of postwar rural Japan, contrasted with a look at the final days of two young children, newly orphaned by war, as they slowly starve to death alone in the aftermath of incendiary raids that destroy their city. Could Disney pull off something like this? Could they get away with it?

    To get back on topic, I'll add that I'm glad to see that Disney/Miramax didn't quite succeed in screwing this one up all the way, and I hope to see a not-quite-completely-butchered DVD release of 'Laputa' (my favorite) in the near future.

  • And another thing. When the BBC [bbc.co.uk] showed Akira, they did their own well-written subtitles. But when I got the subtitled video version several years later (not from the BBC), it was pandering to the US market with Big Dumb Words For Big Dumb People and completely ruined the film.
  • Damn, this brought back some trippy memories :p

    Totoro was the first full-length anime that I saw, my 6th-grade nihongo no sensei showed it to the class, I vowed to watch it again if I ever picked up crack and/or acid ...

    I think it scarred me for life.

    About Mononoke though, great movie, better in japanese than in english, the local artsy theatre showed it in _both_ languages, how leet is that? ^_^
  • I'm a person who can speak Japanese and Canadian-English fluently, Aye. (Long story short my parents are Japanese but I was born and raised in Montreal).

    I don't understand everybodys obsession with the japanese language track. Princess Mononoke was hard enough to follow in Japanese even if you know the language, why struggle to read subtitles and try to understand the language. I understand that some English dubs suck big time, but which is better understanding the story, or asthetics???

    I also totally disagree that watching Mononoke in Japanese is a way to learn about contemporary Japanese culture. The culture portrayed in Mononoke is a mishmash of Japanese time periods and a number of other things added. Anyone who thinks that Mononoke is an accurate picture of Japanese culture of anytime is gravly mistaken.

    I'm not against the Japanese dub being included, don't get me wrong I just don't understand why its so important. So please tell me why.

  • So now DVD is OK all of a sudden? (Score:5)

    by lightspawn ( 155347 ) on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @04:31PM (#545919) Homepage
    So DVD is evil and nobody should ever use it as long as CSS and region encoding are employed, but the moment a movie's out which you like, you just rush and get it?

    I will never buy a DVD with CSS. If that means I'll never be able to watch another movie for the rest of my life, so be it.

  • realism in breast anatomy? in ANIME?

    it wouldn't be anime anymore if that existed ;) thanks for making me laugh, though!

  • Grave of the Fireflies
    Thanks, that's exactly the movie I was thinking of.

    The mother dies of 3rd degree burns after their town is firebombed and the father is a casualty of war. There is a scene where they see the Hiroshima blast from afar, but they're not directly involved.
    But yes, it's on the short list of Most Depressing Movies Ever
    ---

  • Ah, you know it as "Hotaru no Haka" [hawaii.edu]. So sad... Poor Seita & Setsuko! ;_;
  • For Christ's sake. None of you speak Japanese, so why do you want a Japanese soundtrack? In fact, how do you even know you've got a Japanese soundtrack? For all you know, that noise you hear could be a pair of Disney executives saying "fuck you, DMCA rules, intellectual property forever, round-eyed fuckers" in Korean.

    Think about this. You are, quite literally, whining over the fact that comebody dared to dub .... a cartoon. A fucking cartoon. It is stupid enough to whine about subtitles vs. dubbing when the context is a film with actual actors, where there is a variety of nuance to the performance which might be lost in translation. To do the same thing over a cartoon, worse, a specific style of cartoon which erases facial details and animates to the crudest, jerkiest standard possible, is purely asinine. Or do you think that the little flat people provide all the voices themselves?

    Jebus Christmas, this is the dumbest fucking obsession in the whole "geek" pantheon. Far worse than Star Trek. The only people stupider than the anime obsessives are the fucking neopagans, and that's saying something.

  • well now, I happened to be at suncoast browsing for just the right x-mas gift when I caught sight of this lonely copy of Princess Mononoke in the anime dvd section.

    REALLY! it just called out to me :)

    perfect timing for a release, it was worth the wait!

    zerodvyd
  • Maybe it's because I saw it in Japanese, but I didn't get it at all. If you want to see something interesting, go watch My Neighbor Totoro.

    There's another movie that I liked too, about a boy and his sister who lost their parents in the Hiroshima blast and ran away to live in a small cave. It's a real tear-jerker.

    Lauren
  • Anime? exciting....right...I want some more linux stories! i don't understand this anime stuff! /me heads over to animefu.com to understand it more.

  • But who can deny that the greatest anime of all time is, in fact, Rurouni Kenshin?
  • I still remember seeing that in a theatre near here...the walls were almost falling in...and the popcorn tasted like styrofoam...but it was a good movie...
  • Okay, here's a good demonstration of WHY we like Japanese soundtracks:

    What's your favorite movie? Okay, now then, imaging that movie being completely rewritten... Still with me? Okay, now imagine all the voices being redone with completely different voices, often completely inappropriate for the characters in the film... Every single nuance of the previous acting is lost, certain feelings given by a scene are lost, the original good writing is lost in the editing room rewrites...

    What's the difference? Okay, raise your hand if you've seen Akira... Anyone? Good... Ever see the original version, as well as the dubbed version? Most of the dialogue is changed, and in other cases, the voice acting (they should learn to emphasize on the ACTING part) is completely wrong...

    How else do movies suffer? Watch any kung fu movie from the 1970s... There's one good example...

    Another example: Imagine Darth Vader having his dialogue rewritten by the folks who write Barney, and the voicing performed by Pee Wee Herman...
    "Luke, I'm your daddy! I think you need a hug, you have a boo-boo!"

    Of course, the irony here is how many people here are into programming, coding, etc etc etc, they'll respect someone who spends months hacking and handwriting the code behind DeCSS, but spit on people who draw anime, or animation for that matter... This shit takes forever to do, people, even when you have a studio with 50 min wage earners drawing cel after cel after cel...

    And no, Flash doesn't count...

    Guess the trolls here value talent when it benefits them directly, but then again, brains aren't everything...

    (and many of us have had access to the tapes traded, which had the original soundtrack with subtitles as well, so we'd know the difference)
  • You're thinking of Grave of the Fireflies. _Very_ different kind of movie from My Neighbor Totoro. Though they were both made by Studio Ghibli (Totoro by the great Miyazaki, Grave by Takahata). For a lot of really good information about all Studio Ghibli films, check out www.nausicaa.net [nausicaa.net]
  • Grave of Fireflies directed by Isao Takahata.
  • Grave of the Fireflies is very sad. I have it on DVD.
  • Grave of the Fireflies

    Thanks, that's exactly the movie I was thinking of. I (again) saw it in Japanese and couldn't remember the translated name.

    Dancin' Santa

  • There's another movie that I liked too, about a boy and his sister who lost their parents in the Hiroshima

    That was "Barefoot Gen". I only saw half of it. Very intense. I saw it at a party and one guy was sobbing out loud. I need to get that on DVD too. Along with "Storm Riders".

  • I've always been torn between Nausicaa and Laputa, which is a story of a city in the sky, for Miyazaki's best. Mononoke's success in America is mostly due to its story's compatability with mainstream (if liberal) American cartoons, combined with the fact that it has been released now, after anime has become increasingly more popular. But I really want to see DVDs available for all Miyazaki's work, not just Mononoke. What can we do to convince American companies to release them, aside from buying up every Monoke we can get our hands on?

  • I'd have to say that I can deny it. ;-)

    The greatest Anime ever is actually another one by the guy who did Princess Mononoke, Hayao Miyazaki. It's called Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind.

    Many of us consider Nausicaa to be Miyazaki's masterpiece. It's simply amazing. Check out nausicaa.net [nausicaa.net] for more information on Nausicaa, and the rest of Miyazaki's films.

  • This is the craziest anime mud i've ever seen. It's got princess mononoke scenes and everything. Just click Here [wox.org]
    ---

  • Buy this and you are giving $$$ to Disney and MPAA (Score:4)

    by isaac ( 2852 ) on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @04:44PM (#545938)
    Just wanted to remind everyone considering this purchase that the dollars you spend on this Disney-marketed DVD will be used to lobby congress for longer copyright terms and legislation restricting what you can do with hardware/software you have legally purchased. As a bonsu, your dollars will also prop up the ongoing lawsuits against programmers and journalists accused of the heinous crime of spreading knowledge.

    Don't buy it, don't go see their crap in theaters, don't watch their TV networks, don't give them your own money and time only to let it be used against you!

    -Isaac

  • Do all releases of the dvd have the japanese track? I saw it at Best Buy tonight before reading the /. story and didn't buy it because the 'special features' section on the back said "French Language Track" or something similar, but made no mention of a japanese track or subtitleing..
    It also mentioned something called a "Featurette", can anyone explain to me what exactly that is?

  • Japanese version (slightly) better (Score:3)

    by jkottke ( 13651 ) on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @04:52PM (#545940) Homepage
    I somehow got my hands on a copy of the movie on Sunday, three days before the official release and have watched it twice so far, once with the English dub and once with the Japanese dialog and subtitles.

    On the one hand, the literal English translation of the subtitled version is better than the spoken English version. It "sounds" more Japanese and is truer to the spirit of the film. The English dialog, tailored for a mainstream audience and to match the lip movements of the characters, seems hokey and forced in comparison.

    On the other hand, if you are unfamiliar with the movie, reading subtitles interferes with viewing the great cinematography. The film is very pretty, and it's a shame to be reading when you should be enjoying the scenery.

    Bottom line: the Japanese language version is much better, but first time viewers might want to view the English language version so they can follow the movie and see the stunning visuals more easily.

    Also, for an excellent review of the film (from an animator), check out Don't Miss Miyazaki's Epic [epinions.com] (contains some spoilers).
  • If you have South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut on DVD, play it... Select "French" from your language menu... This is a PERFECT example of the evils of dubbing... The kids' voices don't even match (sounding instead like nasal Frenchmen trying to sound like kids, instead of pitch modulation being used to alter the voice)...

    If you still can't figure it out, just listen to Asses of Fire's Unclefucker song, and get a good giggle...

  • How To Buy DVDs if you hate the MPAA (Score:5)

    by raygundan ( 16760 ) on Thursday December 21, 2000 @04:34AM (#545942) Homepage
    There's a lot of talk in this article about how buying a DVD is supporting the MPAA/DVD-CCA mess, and that as such you should boycott DVDs. I agree entirely with this sentiment, but not with the action taken. Don't let their stupidity take something you enjoy out of your life-- you can buy DVDs and still feel all warm and fuzzy by doing the following:

    1. Make sure you've got the tools to do whatever you want (legally) with your DVDs. DeCSS, speed ripper, a region-free drive, etc...

    2. Buy used DVDs whenever possible. Most movies I want to buy have been available for long enough that there are 10,000 copies of them on ebay for next-to-nothing. Used DVDs pay no additional "a$$hole tax" to the MPAA.

    3. If you really want to get a new DVD (in my case, I ordered Mononoke in advance), make a matching donation to the EFF. Do this everytime. If the movie costs $25, send $25 to the EFF. This way, while the movie studio is making a bit of profit from the movie, the EFF is getting the full amount to use in their fight. (Thanks to the slashdot poster who suggested this many months ago-- I think it's an outstanding idea!!)
  • But there are ways to enjoy entertainment without lining the pockets of those who would use such funds to diminish our rights. Sticking to your principles is admirable, but does not necessarily mean a total deprival of movies for the rest of your life.

    The way I see it, it's about money. If I keep my money from flowing the direction of the MPAA, I compromise nothing by watching a movie. I currently own about 40 DVDs. 25 or so I got used, and the rest are not affiliated with the MPAA. No evil money. I saw Princess Mononoke in the theatre, but I paid for a ticket to an independent film showing at the same multiplex. No evil money.

    It comes down to creativity, and an eye on the ball. The MPAA doesn't declare victory if you enjoy their movie. They claim victory when they capture revenue because of it.

    -- ShadyG

  • It was only shown for one night in a cinema here, and was sold out weeks ahead. I was told that it was shown for less than ten sessions in all of Australia - shown at film festivals over the duration of the Olympics.
    The only way to see it here will be on DVD, but not legally, because of region locking. The distributors are likely to hold off in this region for a few years, since there hasn't been a cinema release.
    Only the big movies are on DVD in this region.
    It's possible to get a machine without the locking, but if the distribution system was fixed there wouldn't be a need for the region locking in the first place.
  • I got mine... I got it from buy.com. They tried to deliver it on the 16th, but apparently I wasn't home :-( So now it's stuck in my leasing office and they close at 6:00PM everyday and I don't get home early enough from work... *sigh* But it's here!!! Wheeeeeeeeeee!
  • I may not be the most fluent speaker in the world, but I'm learning, and it is nice to be able to get a japanese-speaking movie that will play in my DVD player so I can get a little practice.

    You are also rather rude for no discernable reason other than that you don't seem to like anime much. Not a problem-- there are a number of things I don't like as well.

    My recommendation is to not buy anime. For the rest of us, though, having a choice is good. Do you like having a choice between operating systems? Me too. Choice bewteen types of movies? Same here. Choice as to what language I can watch them in? Apparently, you're not concerned-- but why shouldn't there be a choice for the Japanese speakers among us anyway?

    Watashi-wa nihongo no gakuse desu, yo?
  • I still think Nausicaa [nausicaa.net] is a MUCH better flick. Mononoke is great. I watched it many times in the theater and have the DVD in hand, but I still find myself drifting back to watch Nausicaa on an old crappy fansub I bought years ago.

    Nausicaa is being released on DVD in Japan around 9/2001, but that will not do much good here. But on the bright side, they don't get Mononoke on DVD until 11/2002.^_^
  • Is it just me, but do most anime fans (all the ones I know) seem to treat the medium as nigh-unto a religion? Suggest that Mononoke Hime was not that great a movie, and one is liable to be lynched. Hey, anime making it in the mass market stream -fantastic, I'm all for it. But this movie is simply not the greatest thing since sliced bread, and I see the relative lack of critical discernment in the anime-literati as a BAD THING (tm) for its widespread acceptance. I saw Mononoke Hime in the original Japanese (w/subtitles) on the big screen. But the movie itself, while having stunning visuals, was IMVHO a letdown.
  • Many anime fans really hate the poor-quality dubs that came over to the States. I much prefer subtitled anime, as even though I cannot understand what is being said (except for a word or two here and there) the inflections of the voices are far superior to the translations. Additionally, the "kewaii" little girl characters simply don't work with English voices, under any circumstances.
  • I don't think that buying a small-release DVD like this is going to affect the MPAA or Disney in any way.

    Disney didn't even manage to break even on the theatrical release. They spent about four million dollars on the English version, and only made about 1.2 million (at last check) on the release. They're already around 2.8 million in the hole already. Buying the DVD won't stop the millions they lost on the production of the English soundtrack to this movie.

    Besides, this one time the fan community actually got Disney to do what it wanted. The Japanese track was requested, along with better translated Japanese subtitles, and here it is. If you don't buy it, you're telling Disney to flat-out-ignore us.


    --

  • Re:So now DVD is OK all of a sudden? (Score:4)

    by swordgeek ( 112599 ) on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @05:05PM (#545951) Journal
    Agreed, although I'm not so sure about never buying a DVD with CSS. Whether or not I do, I'll make sure that anyone who asks can get access to deCSS, LiVID, and any other 'illegal' decryption programs. In fact, ANY illegal programs, including PGP and "Catcher in the Rye." Oops, that last one wasn't a computer program--can't imagine how it popped to mind.

    Honestly, I think the "kill CSS" fight is already lost.

  • I, for one, am VERY happy that slashdot mentioned this... I've been waiting for it to come out for a *very* long time, and I had no idea of the whole back story.

    And let me say that I'm VERY proud of the Mouse for listening to its customers... most Anime fans are NOT easily pleased, but the review seems to be extremely favorable.

    Is this the MOST appropriate thing on slashdot? Well, probably not, but if you'll notice, it's "news for nerds" not "news for Linux users". ;) And there's a lot of us nerds out there that have been waiting for a chance to get this DVD. ^_^

    Oh, and before I forget, this is a REALLY GOOD movie... so if you don't understand what the fuss is all about, go rent it...

  • "As a bonsu..." (Score:3)

    by tswinzig ( 210999 ) on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @05:07PM (#545953) Journal
    Is that Japanese for "bonus"?
  • First of all, the movie industry makes the majority of their money off of after-theatre sales. (meaning videos, DVDs, and product tie-ins)
    A pocket-change loss of less than $3 million isn't going to even touch them.

    Secondly, the point was about taking a stand. It's simply a matter of taking a stand against DVDs with CSS, regional coding, and the MPAA all entrenched in them.

    Of course, if you want to make a stand, you should refuse to buy the DVD, and then WRITE (on paper!) Disney & co., letting them know WHY you're not buying something they've done a very good job of. (and also that if they quit this stupidity, you'd support them)

    Remember DIVX.

  • "kewaii"

    [pedanchikku]
    kawaii [mv.com]
    [/pedanchikku]

  • the operative lesson here is that comments are scored by anime-fans. :)
  • I agree about original language being better. I always buy subtitled editions when available. Occasionally a good dub comes out. Armitage III Poly Matrix is good, I've seen several of the original Armitage videos in Japanese so I do have a basis for comparison. However, Ranma for example is at best an acceptable dub, and don't even get me started on how badly DIC fucked up Sailor Moon, even ignoring their most senseless censorship. Its also good sometimes to watch in a foreign language you don't understand w/o subtitles. A couple of my hentai are from Japan(VHS) and I've seen the vast majority of Sailor Moon, some of Ranma, some of Key the Metal Idol, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind(don't get me started on how badly they raped the manga- good manga shitty anime). You'd be surprised how much you understand. Its like you understand what they say without understanding any of the words. Add in a tiny knowledge of common pleasantries in that language and the series FAQ so you know whos who... even something you've never seen a version of in your native language can be cool.
  • "For Christ's sake. None of you speak Japanese, so why do you want a Japanese soundtrack? In fact, how do you even know you've got a Japanese soundtrack?" I don't speak a lick of french, italian, spanish or german but, like most people, I know when it's being spoken. Also, many of us do read and speak Japanese. I'm sure you knew and understood that when you made this post. Though, posing ludicrous asseretions in the form of questions often does an excellent job of diverting attention from your baseless argument. "Think about this. You are, quite literally, whining over the fact that comebody dared to dub .... a cartoon. A fucking cartoon." Mononoke is not a cartoon. It is an animated film. Please see your local dictionary for clarification. "It is stupid enough to whine about subtitles vs. dubbing when the context is a film with actual actors, where there is a variety of nuance to the performance which might be lost in translation." As stated above, this is a film. An animated film which was originally voiced with as much emotion and nuance as any hollywood production. "To do the same thing over a cartoon, worse, a specific style of cartoon which erases facial details and animates to the crudest, jerkiest standard possible, is purely asinine." It's plain to see that you are basing your opinions on the preconceived notion of "a cartoon" rather than the actual subject matter... Princess Mononoke. Cartoons are crude by definition whereas Mononoke and anime in general are anything but. As pure fps go most anime would rank quite low but animation is an illusion and anime happens to be an exceptionally efficient illusion. Of course, Mononoke isn't most anime. Mononoke employs very delicate and intentional motion blurring, distoration or exaggeration to illicit a sense of intense motion in few frames. The same film employs a wonderfully complex scene in which countless vines, stems and buds of all kinds sprout from the ground then bend twist and intertwine with each other at 24-30 fps. True, anime rarely puts a focus on facial expressions. Emotions are more often expressed through the eyes or voice. "Or do you think that the little flat people provide all the voices themselves?" Huh?
  • "For Christ's sake. None of you speak Japanese, so why do you want a Japanese soundtrack? In fact, how do you even know you've got a Japanese soundtrack?"

    I don't speak a lick of french, italian, spanish or german but, like most people, I know when it's being spoken. Also, many of us do read and speak Japanese.

    I'm sure you knew and understood that when you made this post. Though, posing ludicrous asseretions in the form of questions often does an excellent job of diverting attention from your baseless argument.

    "Think about this. You are, quite literally, whining over the fact that comebody dared to dub .... a cartoon. A fucking cartoon."

    Mononoke is not a cartoon. It is an animated film. Please see your local dictionary for clarification.

    "It is stupid enough to whine about subtitles vs. dubbing when the context is a film with actual actors, where there is a variety of nuance to the performance which might be lost in translation."

    As stated above, this is a film. An animated film which was originally voiced with as much emotion and nuance as any hollywood production.

    "To do the same thing over a cartoon, worse, a specific style of cartoon which erases facial details and animates to the crudest, jerkiest standard possible, is purely asinine."

    It's plain to see that you are basing your opinions on the preconceived notion of "a cartoon" rather than the actual subject matter... Princess Mononoke.

    Cartoons are crude by definition whereas Mononoke and anime in general are anything but. As pure fps go most anime would rank quite low but animation is an illusion and anime happens to be an exceptionally efficient illusion. Of course, Mononoke isn't most anime.

    Mononoke employs very delicate and intentional motion blurring, distoration or exaggeration to illicit a sense of intense motion in few frames. The same film employs a wonderfully complex scene in which countless vines, stems and buds of all kinds sprout from the ground then bend twist and intertwine with each other at 24-30 fps.

    True, anime rarely puts a focus on facial expressions. Emotions are more often expressed through the eyes or voice.

    "Or do you think that the little flat people provide all the voices themselves?"

    Huh?
  • Watashi-wa nihongo no gakuse desu, yo?

    nande '?' tsuketa, no? Are wa shitsumon ja nai, deshoo.

    Odoroiteru Santa-san
  • Cool! I managed to get a little walking nekobus... that thing is so creepy.

    Speaking of creepy:

    "HOW ARE YOU GENTLEMEN!!
    ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US. YOU ARE ON THE WAY TO DESTRUCTION. YOU HAVE NO CHANCE TO SURVIVE MAKE YOUR TIME. HA HA HA HA ...."

  • Let me see if I can follow your logic... (Score:5)

    by tswinzig ( 210999 ) on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @05:17PM (#545962) Journal
    You're going to stop watching movies, possibly for the rest of your life, to spite CSS. Not to spite the DVD format, but CSS.

    In other words, you are letting CSS control your viewing habits. You are letting the DVD industry take away something from you that you love: watching movies.

    The irony here is so thick, I'm practically choking on it. CSS is supposed to control viewing habits, and you are letting it work! If you really want to protest CSS, you will encourage your friends to crack it. You will lobby Congress and the Senate to overturn CSS-friendly legislation. You will make copies of DVD's, encode them as 3ivx, and write them to CDROM's.

    But quit watching DVD movies? Let them control my viewing habits? Why? Why take away something I love to do? Why cut my nose to spite my face?
  • Do all releases of the dvd have the japanese track?

    Yes. There should have been a red decal on the outer plastic that mentioned the Japanese audio track. Miramax (Disney) was originally going to release the movie without it, so the covers may have already been printed.

    It also mentioned something called a "Featurette"

    It's one of those little 10 minute (approx.) promotional space fillers you sometimes see on HBO and the like. There are clips of interviews with assorted voice actors and a little bit of background info.


    --

  • i've talked with a few people who have seen the japanese version (import), but have not seen the US version (it didn't come to any theaters around my area). they've talked about the fact that since this is a Disney release (not Miramax), then it might be edited for content. my friends mention one scene that involves a sword, blood, and a disembodied head.

    so, to anyone who has seen both versions, is the US release the same? or watered down for the kiddies (well, as watered down as PG-13 gets anyways)?
  • Ah... I can see a humongous anime thread coming on =)

    While Rurouni Kenshin is indeed quite an excellent anime series, I don't think it ranks up there with MY favourite anime of all time: BERSERK. Oh man, I don't even wanna get started on this one. If you've seen it, you'd know! Take my word for it, this is one series you do NOT want to miss.

    Then there is the Rurouni Kenshin OAV. Though it ranks behind Berserk (IMO), it is still indeed superb. It takes you on an emotional roller coaster, many times over before the end of this beautiful 4 episode OAV. Definately recommended.

    Ok, I could spend all day and night reiterating every single anime movie/series that I'd recommend people see, but I'll just sum it up in two simple, yet powerful words: anime rules! :)

  • On the other hand.... (Score:5)

    by zeromusmog ( 260817 ) <zeromusmog&gmail,com> on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @05:22PM (#545966) Homepage
    You're perfectly free to not buy the DVD, but think about it. Never in my life have I seen a big corporation listen to its fans like this before... sure, they might have thought they were gonna lose money if they didn't listen, but they went against their business instincts to not give the customer what they want. I believe that deserves some merit.

    Second, it looks like they actually did a good job on this. Companies tend to like to crap out on Anime DVD jobs; pretty much the only decent Anime you can get is from companies that specialize in Anime. Also, Mononoke Hime is a dang good movie. The fact that they even brought it to America in the first place is worth of credit.

    So, while you have some good reasons to buy the move, I have some good reasons to buy the movie. As a longtime Final Fantasy and RPG fan, I appreciate it when a company finally listens to their customers (HOW many times were we promised FFV?! >_<)

    Evil? Maybe. Monopolistic? Possibly. But my "purchacing vote" goes for listening to us when we complained, even if that isn't "the Slashdot way".
  • While it is one of the greatest, I cannot say it is the greatest. (Even though it's where I took my name from some four odd years ago.)

    Now, it is impossible to define "the greatest", but I must say that my personal favourite is Slayers.

  • Re:Japanese-language tracks are a good thing (Score:5)

    by Mononoke ( 88668 ) on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @05:25PM (#545968) Homepage Journal
    I'm not against the Japanese dub being included, don't get me wrong I just don't understand why its so important. So please tell me why.

    Mainly because Japanese voice actors can actually act. The Japanese version of Mononoke was performed by some of the best voice actors in the industry. The title character in the English version was performed by someone who had never voice-acted before. I could hear the difference, and I can't even understand the Japanese tracks.


    --

  • Re:Let me see if I can follow your logic... (Score:3)

    by isaac ( 2852 ) on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @06:10PM (#545969)
    In other words, you are letting CSS control your viewing habits. You are letting the DVD industry take away something from you that you love: watching movies.

    Umm, it's about balance. I love watching movies much less than I love being true to my ideals, and much *MUCH* less than I love my freedom.

    It's not CSS that's controlling my viewing habits - it's my conscious choice not to give up my time and money to those who are actively selling our freedoms up the river in exchange for a rigged, anti-competitive marketplace. Fuck that shit.

    -Isaac

  • I bought it, but my dollars went to the guy that makes sure that there is plenty of paper in the demo printers in the "computer" department.

    Darn, maybe I shouldn't have bought at Best Buy.


    --

  • A group of kids are playing a new sport they just invented. They are proud of the game for its innovation and its depth, they know it is revolutionary. They have been playing and enjoying it for some time when another child walks catiously up to the group.

    "Can I play?" He asks the group, smelling some popularity to be gained. He isn't interested in developing the game further or teaching more kids to play it for the sake of the game; no, he is interested in it because he thinks he can become popular by playing it. So by extending the game he can become even more popular. The group knows this, but realize that not everyone is interested in the game just for the game, so they let him play.
    "Sure" One kids says, and the group agrees. They teach him the rules and how to play and soon they are all playing.
    This happens for a bit until the game is huge and still growing. The originators of the game are estatic, when one of the non-originators gets hurt saying "I don't like how this game is played, I'm changing the rules"
    "No!" The originators protest, but the complaintant obtains a adult supervisor.
    "Now kids, if people get hurt you shouldn't play the game like that; here, change the rules to this" The adult says, wagging their finger.
    The originators are saddened and protest in vain, "But its our game, if they don't like it, they don't have to play!"
    The adult says "You have to listen to me!"
    The originators are perplexed and ask why.
    The adult responds "Because... you do!"

    So trends like this continue, the game being changed by new comers who really have no right to change the game. And the complaintants changed the rules, and became popular, and they lived happily ever after...

    So children, does this remind you of any current situation? Yes, you in the back... Yes! that's right, it reminds me of the internet, DVD technology, MP3 tech., etc. too.

    That is how I percieve things, it is full of holes and isn't really a complete thought, and of course I could be wrong. But I can't understand how the Disney and other groups give themselves the right to change the rules! If you're getting ripped off or whatever, then don't play the game.

    just my opinion,
    minus
    --
    minusthink [Code poet or super hero? (you decide)]
  • I will never buy a DVD with CSS. If that means I'll never be able to watch another movie for the rest of my life, so be it.

    They kill trees to create that paper you wipe your ass with. I think you should never take a crap for the rest of your life.


    --

  • They're the same. There are a couple of "gory" shots, but they're very short either way. It's not watered down at all. The only differences are some of the translation, but the visuals and soundtrack are identical; no cut scenes or anything. The translation differences are small enough to ignore, and mostly involve cultural changes.

    Miyazaki's Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind was released in an "Americanized" version that truly was terrible compared to the original, having nearly a third of the movie cut, and words not even vaguely close to the original story. However, Disney will be redoing and rereleasing it (the original Americanized version wasn't done by Disney). I hope they do as good a job as they did with Princess Mononoke.
  • If, perchance, you're actually boycotting DVDs and MPAA members because you disagree with the law that they lobbied through, get off your ass and attack the law on the battleground where it matters-- Congress. Your boycott is ineffectual and your voice unheard until you do. Go call your elected representatives. Daily. Meanwhile, quit urging people to join you in a futile struggle and then assuming a holier-than-thou posture when they fail to. Some of us recognize a flawed battle plan and the resulting lost cause.


    Hey, you don't know me. It's all about the law. In fact, I just moved across the country to gain residency in California for the express purpose of applying to law school (much easier to get into the *excellent* law schools at Berkeley and UCLA as a resident), specifically because this shit pisses me off. I've written more letters than I can remember to my representatives and senators, going back to when the DMCA was still Orrin Hatch's baby and not yet law of the land.


    The struggle is not futile - it just has to be taken to the people. I know Disney doesn't miss my money alone, but I can't attack them with one hand and feed them with the other (if that makes sense).

    -Isaac

  • Miramax is owned by Disney, and is used to release stuff that would sully the Disney name. Kinda like Hollywood Records; serves the same purpose for Disney for music.
  • You do have some points. Maybe I was reading too much into some bits, like when he kills the boar thing and gets a nasty death curse. I was getting this "Oh, he raised his hand in violence so now he's going to be punished." Maybe it's just the whole Boulder CO hippie vibe getting to me. And the movie just screamed "Why can't we all just get along?" at several points, which is so Dharma and Greg it's not even funny. Of course, I have a very low hippie tolerance too, and was highly suspecious that Disney mangled the film in the translation. *shrug*
  • If you like the more pastel, gentle anime style of Mononoke, check out Totoro, by the same director. it's a childrens movie, but the art is amazing. Has a nice story, too.
  • Actually, the original Japanese voice actors for Mononoke Hime didn't do much anything else. (except Shimamoto Sumi - voice of Toki - who had a bunch of other minor roles) They were good, but you can't say they are "some of the best voice actors in the industry." The American voice acting was surprisingly very good (except Clair Dane - San). They were done by REAL actors instead of some random bum(s) off the street. I am not trying to say that American dub is better than Japanese dialogue. I am just saying that the Japanese voice acting isn't one of the best. And the American dub is pretty good. (There is a reason why, in Japan, they re-released Mononoke Hime with American voice acting with Japanese subtitles.)
  • Bad, bad english habit (yo always makes me think "you know?", but of course, isn't a question). No japanese points for me today. :( Did I muck up anything else?

    I have quite a ways to go, but I'm working on it. :)
  • Comment removed based on user account deletion
  • I'm not against the Japanese dub being included...

    No one even considers using big Hollywood stars to dub over foreign movies like Il Postino when they're released in the US. Why are animated films so much different?

    For anyone who didn't know this already: dialogue isn't normally "dubbed into" an animated movie. The original voice track is recorded before the cels are drawn. The animators then fit their work to the actors' voices. Because of this, the voice cast plays a big role in defining the characters and the feel of the movie.

    In dubbed translations, this is no longer the case. The writers have to compromise between accurate translation and good lip-synch. The actors can't just act naturally; they also have to pay attention to the exact motions of their already-animated characters. And even if they compromise everything to make the new dialogue fit the original animation, the lip-synch still won't be as good.

    Reversing the favored animation process makes a big difference in the finished product, especially in a movie like Mononoke Hime, in which the original writing and acting was truly top-notch.

  • As the one who wrote the article originally featured on Slashdot [slashdot.org] indicating Disney intended to leave off the Japanese audio, I felt obligated to finish by writing a review of the DVD [themestream.com].

    The capsule for those who don't wish to click through: great DVD, great features (which other anime translators could learn from), great movie.
    --

  • I saw about 30 of these at Costco yesterday if anyone wants them.
    ---GEEK CODE---
    Ver: 3.12
    GCS/S d- s++: a-- C++++ UBCL+++ P+ L++
    W+++ PS+ Y+ R+ b+++ h+(++) r++ y+
  • Perhaps the other movie you mentioned is the Miyazaki film "Grave of the Fireflies"? But, if my memory serves me right, the kids lost their parents in a firebombing. Though I can't be sure... haven't seen it in a while. Anyway, all Miyazaki films seem to be good (totoro, mononoke, grave of the fireflies, laputa, kiki's delivery service, etc., etc.)

  • Actually, it means "Vengefull Ghost Princess". "Sacred Cow" would be '(something or other) Ushi'

    As far as the movie itself goes, I enjoyed it. One of the reasons you see a relative last of critical discernment in the anime-literati, is that most of the crap just dosen't get exported. Yes, Anime really does follow the 90% rule. Have you ever seen Tenshi Ni Naruman or Crayon Shin-chan? No? Be happy, they won't be getting released commercially in North America. Be very happy. (I'm still having traumatic flashbacks from seeing Tenshi Ni Naruman, and that was over 6 months ago. *shudder*)

  • where did people send their complaints about Mononoke?

    The whole story is at Nausicaa Net [nausicaa.net]


    --

  • Comment removed based on user account deletion
  • Um... it _is_ a Miramax release. I haven't seen the original Japanese version, but according to anime sites I've seen it's not been edited at all. There are indeed scenes of decapitation, severed limbs, etc.
  • Condemnations from shitty service aside, the way express.com screwed over LowTax over SA [somethingawful.com] biased me against them. I work right next to chinatown so I don't need their service anyways. I'd link to it but since the redesign nothing is where it's supposed to be.
    "Me Ted"
  • Actually, one of the the major reasons I liked Mononoke is that it wasn't just Fern Gully with lots of blood and gore attached... if you'll notice, the movie didn't say "Forest Good, Humans Bad". Lady Eboshi wasn't a villian; the Forest God was more of a villian than she was... <SPOILER>the real villain is that guy in the hecka-cool geta sandals.</SPOILER>

    So, being a former "nature freak" in Elementary school, then coming to my senses later and realizing that hardcore, Earth First-style environmentalism is a crock of crap (we'll be fine as long as we make a good effort to conserve stuff) - I voted for Republicans and Libertarians on my first ballot last month - I can give this movie two "balanced thumbs up". The movie doesn't say either humans OR nature is evil, they just get caught in a pointless, stupid war.

    Liberal, Conservative, Libertarian, or Autoritarian... well, all of those except Authoritarian, we can all agree that fighting wars for no reason is a Bad Thing(TM). That, really, is the lesson of Princess Mononoke.
  • They do not see the Hiroshima blast. They live in the Oosaka area, hundreds of kilometers away from Hiroshima.

  • Princess Mononke (Score:4)

    by nurikochan ( 247910 ) on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @03:46PM (#545998)
    I generally like anything by Miyazaki, but I need to point out several things about this disc. (First one to buy it on release day at the local Borders)

    Just because the Mouse did this release does not mean that they slaughtered this movie. I couldn't be happier with the video quality, which is one of the best transfers I've seen for an anime. All the colors stay at their right levels, including all of Miyazaki's breath taking forest scenery.

    Both audio tracks came off well, even though I'll personally only be watching this in Japanese w/ English subtitles, hey, it has both captions and good literal translation subtitles!

    Go out and buy it today. You won't regret it, even if you aren't an anime fan.
  • Maybe that says something about bodybuilders, or, at least, the bodybuilders in question.
  • Dude, Miyazaki didn't "rape" his own manga for the anime. He didn't even have most of it written at the time he made the movie, so when it came time to end it, he had to throw something together. In fact, even he wasn't necessarily too happy about how it turned out, but it caused him to put more serious thought into the whole thing and thus write the remainder of the manga to suit his thoughts better.

    Now if you're talking rape, you're talking what the American dubbers did when they turned it into Warriors of the Wind. That's why it's taken this long for any Miyazaki stuff to make it over here at all.
    --

  • Express shipped me my Mononoke DVDs on the 18th, so I got them on the 20th. At just under $20 each, counting shipping and the $5 coupon I used. I'm happy with 'em.
    --
  • Not really. Much like in Euripidean tragedy, there really is no villain. All the characters have complex motives stemming from altruism or self-interest--even the Lady Eboshi, who from a simplistic glance would seem to be the "villain," has some practices that are downright humanitarian. (To say more would be to spoil the movie.) Ashitaka, the protagonist, must not help one side "defeat" the other (though both sides try to convince him to aid them), but to strike a balance between both.

    Don't let the cover throw you; this is no Fern Gully.
    --

  • Actually, the original Japanese voice actors for Mononoke Hime didn't do much anything else.
    Actually...

    I seem to recall hearing that Akihiro Miwa (Moro) is actually a reknowned character actor whose stock-in-trade is characters of questionable gender.

    Yôji Matsuda (Ashitaka) was, among others, Asbel in Nausicaa, and in fact IMDB lists his first credit as being in 1974.

    Yuriko Ishida (San) has been working since 1987, when she voiced a character in MADOX-01.

    Most of the others have credits going back at least several years, and some into the 1960s or 50s. Nothing I've ever heard of, but at least it shows they've had plenty of work in their native land.

    (except Shimamoto Sumi - voice of Toki - who had a bunch of other minor roles)
    Well, if you can call playing the title character in Nausicaa, Clarice in Castle of Cagliostro, Tomomi and Mei's mother in Totoro, Ginrei in Giant Robo, and characters in various other well-known anime including Iczer One, Urusei Yatsura, and Ruroni Kenshin "a bunch of minor roles." I wouldn't.
    They were good, but you can't say they are "some of the best voice actors in the industry."
    Well, they certainly seem to be frequently employed voice actors, at least.
    The American voice acting was surprisingly very good (except Clair Dane - San). They were done by REAL actors instead of some random bum(s) off the street.
    No arguments there.
    I am not trying to say that American dub is better than Japanese dialogue. I am just saying that the Japanese voice acting isn't one of the best. And the American dub is pretty good.
    Well, I think think the quality level of the Japanese version is a matter of personal opinion. Since I don't actually speak Japanese, I don't know if I can judge that well. But it did use an experienced cast.
    (There is a reason why, in Japan, they re-released Mononoke Hime with American voice acting with Japanese subtitles.)

    Indeed there is--and that reason is that the Japanese seem to have an obsession with the English language; they think it's "cool" (or "kewl," as the case might be) to use it anywhere they can--even if it doesn't always make a lot of sense [engrish.com].

    This is also why English dubs of films like Macross: Love, Do You Remember and Megazone 23 Part II were actually commisioned by the Japanese. I myself have a bootleg VHS copy of the Megazone, with Japanese subtitles all along the bottom.
    --

  • in which the kids and their mom have to flee from their firebombed house (in Utsunomiya, I think, near Osaka) to the countryside? I watched it in Japan years ago and would love to see it again, but I can't for the life of me remember what it was called. The visuals were exquisite.
  • Well, the LiViD / DeCSS folks wanted to make it so MORE people could watch and enjoy DVDs. That the MPAA are being dickheads about it doesn't take away from the fact that movie fans should be able to enjoy their movies!

  • Re:Let me see if I can follow your logic... (Score:3)

    by sugarescent ( 30924 ) on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @07:56PM (#546023) Homepage

    You are letting the DVD industry take away something from you that you love: watching movies.

    He never said he loved watching movies. He just said that if he couldn't watch movies because of his boycott on CSS, that's the price you pay for standing up for something.

    But quit watching DVD movies? Let them control my viewing habits? Why? Why take away something I love to do? Why cut my nose to spite my face?

    They're not controlling your viewing habits at all. It's a conscious choice on your part to not watch DVDs.

    Getting changes made requires sacrifice. People have been throw in jail in order to change things. People have been killed in order to change things. Not being able to watch movies on DVDs sounds pretty pale in comparison.

    Are you willing to do anything about what you believe to be right? Do you believe that CSS is a bad thing? Then stop supporting it while you lobby your Congressperson to overturn CSS-friendly legislation.

    You are writing your Congressperson, aren't you?

    -sugarescent

  • Why is Star Wars on DVD any more (or less) relevant than Mononoke on DVD, or a review on The Emperor's Groove, or a review on Extreme Programming?

    So if you want a vote... Me! I care!

    Geek dating! [bunnyhop.com]
  • I haven't gotten my hands personally on the DVD (though I did see the movie in the theaters), but I plan too very soon. However, I have talked to two of my friends that have it and they say it is excellent. One of them commented "that dvd is the new reference for how anime dvds should be made" and he's a rabid anime fan so I'm inclined to go along with that.
  • Actually, in most anime, the film actually is animated before the voices are recorded--just the opposite of how it is in the west. The Japanese don't have as much attachment to lipsynch. I don't know if Mononoke was done that way or not, but I do know that the animals' speech wasn't terribly lipsynched at all in either language. :)
    --
  • I like the way a friend of mine put it in a discussion today: "Boycotts fail because no group that's crazy enough to stage a boycott and stick to it is large enough to have an effect that way." Remember when they held a rally in Washington and about 15 people showed up?

    I think that a lot of the people who are boycotting are doing it just so they have an excuse to make a lot of noise and act all deprived, and rant at people who aren't. i.e., "suffering for their art." And other than that boycott, they aren't doing a damned thing to try and fight it.

    There are more constructive ways. Use them.
    --

  • Remember DIVX.
    DIVX isn't the same thing. DIVX failed not because of some righteous boycott, but because the general public just plain didn't want the damn things.

    The general public does want DVDs. Twelve million, maybe thirteen or fourteen million, have already sold. It shows no signs of slowing down. Boycotts just aren't gonna do it.
    --

  • Crouching Tiger was great! I live in L.A., where it came out last Friday, and I saw it that night. It had great fights and an actual plot with actual acting. Michelle Yeoh was really good in it, I thought. And it had the coolest fight scenes I've ever seen.
  • I think a major part of it is related to the mood/setting desired. Having the Japanese audio helps get that anime "feel" for many, in a similar way that various visual and audio styles in American movies set the mood, though somewhat different. For many, watching anime is more of an experience than just about whatching a good story well done. The Japanese audio helps with that. And most anime fans know enough Japanese (a small handful of words) to match the audio to the subtitle, but couldn't possibly follow without the subtitle. And besides, many of the english dubs suck, though Mononoke is supposedly fairly good (haven't seen it).

  • Nice movie, too bad DVD has no extras. (Score:3)

    by kobotronic ( 240246 ) on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @10:56PM (#546038)
    I picked up my copy of Princess Mononoke at the local Best Buy. There were about 20 copies left this afternoon, so I don't think there'll be much panic finding copies before christmas.

    I first saw the feature in the theater when it was out in limited release earlier this year. I was awed and impressed by the complex story and the depth and richness of the beautiful animation.

    Miyazaki [nausicaa.net] deserves much praise for his unique artistic vision. Here's a guy who can tell and visualize fantastic stories and entertain kids and grownups both without pandering or patronizing. I'm not really a big fan of anime in general, but you absolutely don't need to be, to appreciate this beautiful movie, and several others by the same director. His comic books are equally expressive and intelligent.

    I had never heard the japanese language version, but I didn't like the English dubbed voices. They seemed inappropriate. Billy Bob Thornton and the voice of San were both completely wrong for the movie. I'm glad that Miramax included the original japanese language track on this DVD [amazon.com], even if I don't yet understand a word they're saying - that's what the subtitles are for. :) (There's naturally also the English dub track on the disc.)

    The proper way to enjoy a movie like the film maker intended is to hear the voices of the original actors. You get appropriate inflections of the voices, you get lipsync, and you give the screen actors the dignity of not having half their performance erased and dubbed over by anonymous local actors.

    Remember the scene from European Vacation with the Griswalds in Paris, where they watch an american movie on TV dubbed to French? That's how I feel about dubbing in general.

    My English and German is pretty decent for a non-native speaker of either language, and I picked up both initially by watching movies in those languages, with subtitles. The more I watched as I grew up, the more I learned. Kind of like language lessons and entertainment at the same time. :)

    I'm very thankful that it is not customary in my country to dub movies. It seems awfully emberrassing to hear the lines of well known screen actors spoken by nobodies with totally wrong voices.

    The most important point about choosing sub over dub, is that once you begin to understand the language of the movie, perhaps thanks to the subtitles, you also 'get' the words spoken unfiltered by the translator's subjective interpretation or clumsy attempts at converting humor and untranslatable cultural references to your own language.

    The DVD format allows the inclusion of multiple language, video and subtitle tracks, so at this point there's really no excuse to release a foreign language film to an U.S. audience with only the dubbed version included, when you can let the viewer choose which version to watch.

    As for the subtitles, there's two English tracks to choose from - a literal translation from the spoken Japanese, and Neil Gaiman's translation of the screenplay. They're not so subtly different, since Gaiman had to fit words in that meant the same, but could be spoken in English in the same time and rhythm of the faster multisyllabic Japanese. Sometimes meaning was lost in that translation.

    The literal japanese track makes the most sense even if it's kind of stiff. It's nice that they provided both tracks .. it is unfortunately still not universal standard practice among DVD makers to provide an English language subtitle track on all movies - it's really helpful to the hearing impaired to have the subtitle track going on the screen, even if you speak the language and can hear most of the dialog. Whenever there's a word you missed, you can just read the subtitles. And sometimes for whatever reason you might want to watch a movie with the sound off and just go by the subtitles. The flexibility of DVD in this regard is great.

    The 5.1 digital surround sound track has identical mix on the Japanese and English versions, and it sounds GREAT. The surround effects used to great effect in the forest scenes, are scary-realistic. Even on my modest system the sense of being in the middle of the forest with things brushing through the undergrowth, was very powerful. There's mesmerizing moments of deep silence followed by subtle sound effects accenting the fluid, immersive screen action.

    The picture on the disc is of nice quality, great color, super sharp detail and no digital compression artifacts to see, even in dark scenes. The widescreen presentation is anamorphic, i.e. the full vertical NTSC resolution, all 550 lines or so, are used to contain the widescreen image on 16:9 TVs.

    Other than these amenities, Miramax didn't spend too much time and money on this release. Simple static menus, for what they're worth, and no extras except for the US theatrical trailer and interviews with the voice actors of the English dubbed version. It's a little bit insulting that they only thought to provide these interviews as if Billy Bob Thornton as gravely miscasted voice actor is any kind of authority on this Miyazaki masterpiece. I would much rather know about the film makers and how the movie was made, stills and special effects and storyboards and so on. But there's nothing like that on the disc.

    I rank the movie among my 10 favourites, but the Miramax DVD is nothing more than mediocre; about on par with the disappointing Blade Runner DVD.

  • If you don't care... (Score:5)

    by evanbd ( 210358 ) on Wednesday December 20, 2000 @04:14PM (#546039)
    stop whining and go turn it off in your settings page! I turned off a couple topics, but mostly I like to just skim the ones I don't find interesting, because most topics eventually produce something interesting. So turn the Anime topic off if you don't care, and if you sort of care then accept that you won't want to read the whole thing. no need to read past the headline.

    *sigh* I know, I know, don't feed the trolls...

  • Not in any attempt to be stupid, but who's voice did she cover? I haven't seen it in a while...

    Moro, the big bad mother Wolf; But her voice was mangled by a vocoder or some similar device.
    ---

  • All the info on the Voiceovers, and staff can be found here: http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/mh/credits.html [nausicaa.net] Gillian Anderson plays Moro the Wolf. She's easily recognizable, even behind the reverb effects.

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