Studio Ghibli via GKIDS

[gwfb5]

Originally Posted by shinobipopcorn

There must be another underlying reason; after all Disney deemed Only Yesterday "un-family friendly" yet they still got the rights and held them hostage until GKids freed the film.

Probably because of all the talk about schoolgirls having their periods. ( Also, skirt peeping.)

Remember kids natural functions of the human body are EVIL!!!!

[Akibiyori]

Originally Posted by TheBoss062

Grave of the Fireflies apparently wasn't picked up by Disney because it wasn't family friendly. Heck, it probably took a lot of negotiating for Disney to acquire Princess Mononoke.

No, Grave of the Fireflies was distributed by a different company due to the duel release strategy of it and Totoro, so it has remained separate to this day although Ghibli has arranged to have it released as part of its own series of releases at home. It’s not part of the “package” deal that every other Ghibli theatrical film was so it’s up for grabs and others and ADV/Sentai have been on top of it the whole time.

Only Yesterday - had nothing to do with periods, some anime nerd probably came up with that on some forum and the crowd stuck with it because it’s so kool to hate on Disney (it’s that “I’m so mature-13-year old buying a big stack of Limp Bizkit and Korn albums” mentality.) Disney simply had no use for a film that couldn’t be marketed to their specific animated demo of families and/or young boys or girls. Takahata films sell poorly anyway and this film is squarely aimed at adult concerns, so Disney saw no angle to sell it.

Princess Mononoke is an adventure film. It’s highly popular and can be marketed towards younger people (if not young kids.) No wonder Disney would be willing to handle it.

[Shingster]

Yeah as daft as it seems Disney probably took a somewhat pessimistic view about the marketability of a film about a spinster looking back over her childhood whilst getting back in touch with rural life in a sleepy Japanese prefecture, it's a very uniquely Japanese film like all of Takahata's films, and not in the fantastical way that Miyazaki's films are obviously. There is a romantic element to it, but it's so underplayed in that typically Japanese way that it barely registers to your typical westerner. I love Takahata's Ghibli work, I think it's every bit as good as Miyazaki's output for the company, but I understand completely why it's only fellow serious, older anime fans who agree with me.

Disney know fantasy and adventure, that's their wheelhouse, they've never really understood slice-of-life and tend to shy away a little. Grave of the Fireflies, even IF it hadn't been sort of separated from the standard Ghibli "package" as Akibiyori points out, probably would have been passed on by Disney anyway because it's a film about children slowly dying an absolutely miserable death during WW2. I think that can be safely put in the "not in Disney's wheelhouse" category.

[TheBoss062]

Originally Posted by Shingster

Disney know fantasy and adventure, that's their wheelhouse, they've never really understood slice-of-life and tend to shy away a little. Grave of the Fireflies, even IF it hadn't been sort of separated from the standard Ghibli "package" as Akibiyori points out, probably would have been passed on by Disney anyway because it's a film about children slowly dying an absolutely miserable death during WW2. I think that can be safely put in the "not in Disney's wheelhouse" category.

The Wind Rises doesn't really fit the description of a fantasy adventure though. Is that why Disney never released From up on Poppy Hill and My Neighbors the Yamadas? The latter film finally got a blu-ray only recently after Disney released the DVD prior.

[gwfb5]

Originally Posted by Akibiyori

Only Yesterday - had nothing to do with periods, some anime nerd probably came up with that on some forum and the crowd stuck with it because it’s so kool to hate on Disney (it’s that “I’m so mature-13-year old buying a big stack of Limp Bizkit and Korn albums” mentality.) Disney simply had no use for a film that couldn’t be marketed to their specific animated demo of families and/or young boys or girls. Takahata films sell poorly anyway and this film is squarely aimed at adult concerns, so Disney saw no angle to sell it.

Princess Mononoke is an adventure film. It’s highly popular and can be marketed towards younger people (if not young kids.) No wonder Disney would be willing to handle it.

Now that I think about it, Only Yesterday is probably Ghibli's least marketable film at least for western audiences.
Though I still think the period talk played a big part in Disney not wanting to do anything with it.
At least Pom Poko had talking animals, slapstick, and creative visuals.

Honestly, Only Yesterday and Pom Poko are two of my least favorite Ghibli films, but they're by no means bad.

Originally Posted by TheBoss062

The Wind Rises doesn't really fit the description of a fantasy adventure though. Is that why Disney never released From up on Poppy Hill and My Neighbors the Yamadas? The latter film finally got a blu-ray only recently after Disney released the DVD prior.

I imagine the only reason Disney released The Wind Rises is that Hayao Miyazaki himself directed it.
His films are by far the studio's most popular/marketable, the films that aren't directed by him simply do not make as much money.

Why do think they always put "From the creators of (insert name of Miyazaki film here)" on nearly every Ghibli film that's not directed by Miyazaki?

EDIT: Or just any Ghibli film apparently.

[Shingster]

Originally Posted by TheBoss062

The Wind Rises doesn't really fit the description of a fantasy adventure though. Is that why Disney never released From up on Poppy Hill and My Neighbors the Yamadas? The latter film finally got a blu-ray only recently after Disney released the DVD prior.

At this point Miyazaki could probably make whatever type of film he wants and Disney will distribute it, The Wind Rises was marketable because... Miyazaki. TBH at this point Ghibli exposure in the west is so complete that any new production in the last five to ten years would be marketed and released by Disney, but they're not gonna be so eager to go back to the Ghibli back-catalogue and take a chance.

Pom Poko is VERY Japanese and mad as a bag of spanners, but it's also cute and funny and marketable to kids even if the adults may not like it. It's basically The Cat Returns of Takahata's ouevre in terms of who you can sell it to.

In terms of marketablity I wouldn't be surprised if Disney view it something like this (from BAD to Better):

Grave of the Fireflies
Only Yesterday/Ocean Waves (tie)
My Neighbors the Yamadas
Pom Poko
From Up on Poppy Hill
The Wind Rises

Then the rest of Ghibli's output is fine and dandy. The last two in this list get a free pass because of when they were released rather than the themes.

[Bandit Tajomaru]

Originally Posted by Shingster

Yeah as daft as it seems Disney probably took a somewhat pessimistic view about the marketability of a film about a spinster looking back over her childhood whilst getting back in touch with rural life in a sleepy Japanese prefecture, it's a very uniquely Japanese film like all of Takahata's films, and not in the fantastical way that Miyazaki's films are obviously. There is a romantic element to it, but it's so underplayed in that typically Japanese way that it barely registers to your typical westerner. I love Takahata's Ghibli work, I think it's every bit as good as Miyazaki's output for the company, but I understand completely why it's only fellow serious, older anime fans who agree with me.

Disney know fantasy and adventure, that's their wheelhouse, they've never really understood slice-of-life and tend to shy away a little. Grave of the Fireflies, even IF it hadn't been sort of separated from the standard Ghibli "package" as Akibiyori points out, probably would have been passed on by Disney anyway because it's a film about children slowly dying an absolutely miserable death during WW2. I think that can be safely put in the "not in Disney's wheelhouse" category.

Also Only Yesterday features a father that wouldn't let his daughter be a pop star. Which is very against the message that Disney channel is trying to promote. Looking back at all the me too garbage the father was right not wanting his daughter around show business people.

[hanshotfirst1138]

Originally Posted by gwfb5

Probably because of all the talk about schoolgirls having their periods. ( Also, skirt peeping.)

Remember kids natural functions of the human body are EVIL!!!!

OK, last time, from the top: sex is evil! You CANNOT teach young children about sexuality! They will have questions about something vital to their identity and literally necessary for the propagation of the species! No! Bad! Naughty! Violence is fine though, obviously. Violence never hurt anybody.

Originally Posted by gwfb5

It can admittedly be confusing, especially lately, with all the different releases from several different distributors.
Also, yes from what I have heard the Collected Works of Hayao Miyazaki box set, for whatever reason, omits any special features for the individual films.

I'm pretty sure I responded to you about this a day or two ago.

Apologies.

[horseflesh]

Originally Posted by horseflesh

Is there a kind soul who'd be willing to pick up any of the older releases (Only/Ocean/Poppy/Kaguya/Marnie) for me and send them on to me in Ireland?
I would of course cover all costs and shipping.
Amazon's stock seems to be slipcover-free.

Anyone?

[InuYashaCrusade]

Originally Posted by gwfb5

That could be the ugliest cover I have ever seen.

[gwfb5]

Yeah, it is a pretty awful photoshop job.
It certainly gives a new appreciation for the covers used here in North America.


Thankfully for UK collectors, the Blu-ray's cover looks much better than the UK DVD.

[kevin87]

Originally Posted by gwfb5

Thankfully for UK collectors, the Blu-ray's cover looks much better.

That's actually one of the few that look better honestly... Totoro and The Cat Returns are the other ones that look better IMO. I think the majority of the UK ones share the same image as GKIDS, but a few, like Earthsea and some of the Collector's Edition versions look much worse than what we get in the US.

The worst GKIDS cover is probably The Cat Returns. It doesn't fit in with the movie at all, the Studio Canal one is so much better and I just can't understand why GKIDS didn't copy that one. Even the Disney cover was better.

[BuckNaked2k]

Is it worth picking up the GKIDS Mononoke just for the better subs or does this release offer anything else? I currently have the version that came in the Zavvi SteelBook. Thanks.

[Dsneybuf]

Originally Posted by gwfb5

[Show spoiler]

It took me a while to notice two Hakus.

[svenge]

Originally Posted by BuckNaked2k

Is it worth picking up the GKIDS Mononoke just for the better subs or does this release offer anything else? I currently have the version that came in the Zavvi SteelBook. Thanks.

The literal subs are the sole difference when it comes to upgrading. If you're a dub-watcher there's no point in upgrading, and the precise opposite is true if you watch it in the original Japanese as God intended.

[BuckNaked2k]

Originally Posted by svenge

The literal subs are the sole difference when it comes to upgrading. If you're a dub-watcher there's no point in upgrading, and the precise opposite is true if you watch it in the original Japanese as God intended.

I watch every film I own in its original language with subtitles. Dubs are an abomination.

[Bandit Tajomaru]

Originally Posted by BuckNaked2k

Is it worth picking up the GKIDS Mononoke just for the better subs or does this release offer anything else? I currently have the version that came in the Zavvi SteelBook. Thanks.

The Zavvi Steelbook = the UK edition? You should already have the proper subtitles.

[BuckNaked2k]

Originally Posted by Bandit Tajomaru

The Zavvi Steelbook = the UK edition? You should already have the proper subtitles.

This one?

[JasonMichael]

Originally Posted by BuckNaked2k

This one?

Nice cover.

[Bandit Tajomaru]

Originally Posted by BuckNaked2k

This one?

That one is find. Only the North American Disney edition have messed up subtitles.