Comparison of Studio Ghibli Blu-ray Releases

[disneywildcat]

Originally Posted by Lnds500

Forgot to thank you and update the first post! Thanks for all the info!

Just to clarify, these are subtitles, not dubtitles. And did you check the region coding on your player or is that what is stated on the box?

Yep, there are subtitles. The menu labels them as English subtitles for Japanese. I only viewed both movies in full with Mandarin audio and English subtitles and definitely the dialogue doesn't match all of the time.

I didn't check the region coding in the player. I only checked the case.

Originally Posted by jala12

Why not just get the HK release? Turning on/off the English subs are not a problem for it, not to mention it would be cheaper than the JP version.

I wouldn't recommend the HK nor the Taiwan releases for English speakers. Both of them don't contain the English dub. However, if you don't care for the English dubs, I would definitely recommend the Taiwan releases over the HK releases. although English subs are available only on the main feature and not the extras, they tend to carry over more extras than the HK releases (HK releases tend to only have the storyboards).

Sure, the HK releases have art matching the Japanese release, but the TW releases are interestingly packaged with a Chinese slipcover and then Japanese on the actual case itself. And it also appears that Deltamac handles the Ghibli releases in Taiwan on behalf of Disney, since the Disney logo is on some Ghibli releases in Taiwan.

Personally, I chose the Taiwan release over the HK release because Mandarin, not Cantonese, is my second language. Most of the HK releases carry only the Cantonese dub as the only other audio track available(although My Neighbors the Yamadas has Japanese, Cantonese, and Mandarin on its HK release).

I intend to stick with the US releases in the future since I am from the US and prefer watching the English dubs over the Mandarin dubs. But since I encountered My Neighbor Totoro in Mandarin when I was young, I wouldn't rule out importing the TW or JP releases if a US release doesn't happen like Only Yesterday.

[czzl]

Originally Posted by IdeaOfEvil

Also of note, when you play the English dub you can't turn off the Japanese subtitles because the option is greyed out on your bluray player's pop-up menu.

Originally Posted by Billy Moon

No, this is not true. Of course you can turn off the Japanese subtitles on the English language version. You just have to do it through the disc's pop-up menu. It can be accessed by pressing the "enter" button on the remote.

I can confirm that, at least on the Japanese Kiki bluray, you can turn off the Japanese subtitles while watching the English dub, through the pop-up menu.

I'm very happy with the Japanese bluray releases. Sure beats the US DVD.

The subtitles are influenced by the dub translation, but they differ in some key scenes, such as bedtime in Ursula's cabin. That's a tough scene to translate.

One minor complaint: I have yet to find a way to single-step through frames. Super-slomo will step through frames slowly, but on the DVD I can hit pause, then single-step through frames with the arrow keys on the remote. Is that due to a limitation of the disk, the format, my player (Panasonic BDT220)? Not sure.

[mojtaba]

Originally Posted by Lnds500

I doubt you'll see a noticeable difference in terms of quality IF they use the same source (no different colours/contrast etc).

The US version also has more extras.

I haven't found a comparison of the 2 yet.

Thank you so much.

[Shingster]

Just a quick question regards the guide and My Neighbor Totoro: Are you classifying the US edition as having the best transfer based purely on the average video bitrate?

If so, I'd strongly advise against it. You can't judge an encode by its bitrate, I've reviewed lots of Blu-ray discs in my time and while the average video bitrate is a good general guide, you can get fantastic encodes at lower bitrates if the people authoring the disc know what they're doing. The opposite is also true, I've seen encodes with averages of 35Mbps and upwards that still exhibit plenty of compression noise.

Plus the differences between the Jpn & US release bitrates is not gonna amount to much (34.6Mbps vs 34.96Mbps), and tbh I would expect Disney & ghibli to deliver a near-enough compression-free transfer at lower bitrates than 34Mbps anyway. I can only speak for the Jpn Blu-ray of course because that's all I own, but I don't recall seeing any compression noise in the transfer whenever I've sat down to watch it.

I guess my point is that a more general "common sense" rule should be applied to bitrates without any other evidence of video quality. IMO anything about 30Mbps & above should indicate a high chance you're getting a solid encode. Anything below and there's gonna be a higher chance of noise. Obviously this rule has to be flexible when it comes to higher runtimes though. A film over 2hrs is likely to require a lower average bitrate and a more thorough compression job from the people working on the disc.

[Lnds500]

Originally Posted by Shingster

Just a quick question regards the guide and My Neighbor Totoro: Are you classifying the US edition as having the best transfer based purely on the average video bitrate?

If so, I'd strongly advise against it. You can't judge an encode by its bitrate, I've reviewed lots of Blu-ray discs in my time and while the average video bitrate is a good general guide, you can get fantastic encodes at lower bitrates if the people authoring the disc know what they're doing. The opposite is also true, I've seen encodes with averages of 35Mbps and upwards that still exhibit plenty of compression noise.

Plus the differences between the Jpn & US release bitrates is not gonna amount to much (34.6Mbps vs 34.96Mbps), and tbh I would expect Disney & ghibli to deliver a near-enough compression-free transfer at lower bitrates than 34Mbps anyway. I can only speak for the Jpn Blu-ray of course because that's all I own, but I don't recall seeing any compression noise in the transfer whenever I've sat down to watch it.

I guess my point is that a more general "common sense" rule should be applied to bitrates without any other evidence of video quality. IMO anything about 30Mbps & above should indicate a high chance you're getting a solid encode. Anything below and there's gonna be a higher chance of noise. Obviously this rule has to be flexible when it comes to higher runtimes though. A film over 2hrs is likely to require a lower average bitrate and a more thorough compression job from the people working on the disc.

Here's how I judged the PQ.

I haven't seen a direct comparison yet, but judging from the screenshots between the two, the contrast and colour timing, it seems they are using the same master, similar to most of the rest of their releases. Same master, but slightly different bit-rate.

I agree with the rest of your post, but I wanted a system that would draw attention to the differences of each edition just by scrolling down the page casually. I know the 0,3 Mbps difference won't mean anything to practically anyone, but technically the US release is a superior and different transfer so there you have it. For all we know, a 35 Mbps transfer could not exhibit anything more than a 23 Mbps transfer to the average person. Which would you say is superior though? I would never label them equal. To tackle this, I decided to take the technical approach.

Take in mind that the colouring on each entry is just a guideline and subject to change etc. I've said it before that I would like to make a comparison myself if the opportunity arises and I haven't forgotten that. Until then though..

[Billy Moon]

You list the storyboards on most of the Japanese releases as "via Picture in Picture". I think this is a bit misleading, since all of the Japanese releases have actually the storyboards in HD, with an interactive PiP function, which lets you see the finished film in the small picture.
(The PiP image can be turned on/off and moved to any of the four corners of the screen while watching the storyboards, and is available in two sizes.)

I don't know how the storyboards are handled in other releases, though, since I only have the Japanese ones.

Also, I think I've already mentioned this somewhere, but these:
- Interview with Hayao Miyazaki
- Producer Toshio Suzuki and NTV Editor Toshio Tsuchiya Discussion
- NEWS ZERO Ponyo Spin-off Segment
have optional English subtitles on the Japanese Ponyo BD.

[Lnds500]

Originally Posted by Billy Moon

You list the storyboards on most of the Japanese releases as "via Picture in Picture". I think this is a bit misleading, since all of the Japanese releases have actually the storyboards in HD, with an interactive PiP function, which lets you see the finished film in the small picture.
(The PiP image can be turned on/off and moved to any of the four corners of the screen while watching the storyboards, and is available in two sizes.)

I don't know how the storyboards are handled in other releases, though, since I only have the Japanese ones.

Also, I think I've already mentioned this somewhere, but these:
- Interview with Hayao Miyazaki
- Producer Toshio Suzuki and NTV Editor Toshio Tsuchiya Discussion
- NEWS ZERO Ponyo Spin-off Segment
have optional English subtitles on the Japanese Ponyo BD.

Updating them now. Thanks for the info!

I only have a handful of the JP releases to check for myself (you can clearly understand which) and I based those on the Ghibli wiki which seems accurate at the time.

[manicsounds]

The UK releases have storyboards in the PiP box in the bottom right corner of the screen, not HD.

[Shingster]

Originally Posted by Lnds500

For all we know, a 35 Mbps transfer could not exhibit anything more than a 23 Mbps transfer to the average person. Which would you say is superior though? I would never label them equal. To tackle this, I decided to take the technical approach.

Whichever looks the best! It's the work done on the compression that mostly dictates the quality of the encode, not necessarily the amount of data flung at it. It's like saying one painting is better than the other because it was painted on a higher-quality canvas - it's the quality of the art itself you should be judging.

A classic example is even there in your guide: The UK BD of Ponyo has an average video bitrate of 27Mbps, 4Mbps higher than the Jpn/US releases, and yet there's quite a bit of noise in a few scenes of that release. Luckily people have been able to do a direct comparison, but if no-one had taken screengrabs or purchased the different releases you would have been left with video bitrates to go on, and you'd have labelled the UK release as the best quality.

IMO when you don't have first-hand reports from people who have viewed different releases side-by-side or there are no comparison screenshots available, you're better off not trying to make a judgement on which release is better than the other. Guessing based on technical specs alone just isn't accurate enough a system, I'd personally just leave the colouring system alone in that instance so I've got no chance of misleading anyone. But hey, it's your guide and you've done excellent work on it so you've earned the right to ignore the anal complaints of a techno-geek like me!

[insomniac013]

I wonder how the UK Grave of the Fireflies compares to the US. Does anyone know?

[manicsounds]

UK "Grave Of The Fireflies":

Disc 1: Blu-ray
The Film (Japanese credits, with Studio Ghibli logo at the start)
English or Japanese audio, white English subtitles for the Japanese audio

• Storyboards Picture In Picture
• Interview with Director Isao Takahata (17:39)
• Japanese Release Promo featuring Director Isao Takahata and Writer Akiyuki Nosaka (6:36)
• Historical Perspective Documentary (12:25)
•Interview with Film Critic Roger Ebert (12:07)
• 2 Deleted Scenes Storyboards
- Storyboard Video 1 (1:53)
- Storyboard Video 2 (0:38)
• Bonus Storyboards
- Single Shots (5:02)
- Catch (0:24)
- Water (1:21)
- Bombers (0:23)
- Bedroom (0:34)
- Hospital (0:29)
- Flashback (0:33)
- Food (0:28)
- Beach (0:36)
- Train (0:32)
• Trailers
- “Grave Of The Fireflies” (original Japanese trailer) (1:42)
- “From Up On Poppy Hill” (Disney/Studio Canal trailer) (2:24)
- “Ponyo” (Optimum trailer) (2:00)
- “Arrietty” (Studio Canal trailer) (1:46)

Disc 2: DVD
The Film (Japanese credits, Toho logo at the start)
English or Japanese audio, yellow English subtitles for the Japanese audio)

• Storyboards (Alternate Angle)

[manicsounds]

UK Kiki disc:

Disc 1: Blu-ray
The Film (Japanese credits)
English or Japanese audio, yellow English subtitles for the Japanese audio

(There are 2 English subtitle tracks but they are both identical)
The English audio is the modified Disney English dub: The songs are the original Japanese songs, Jiji's extra final line has been removed)

• Storyboards Picture In Picture
• Ursula’s Painting (2:32)
• Creating “Kiki’s Delivery Service” (2:26)
• Kiki And Jiji (3:26)
• Flying with Kiki & Beyond (2:49)
• Producer’s Perspective: Collaborating with Miyazaki (1:47)
• The Locations of Kiki (29:13)
• Behind The Microphone: Interviews with the English dub cast (4:59)
• 5 Original Japanese Theatrical Trailers (7:44)
• Studio Ghibli Collection Trailers (7:42)
“From Up On Poppy Hill” “My Neighbour Totoro” “Arrietty” “Laputa: Castle In The Sky” “Ponyo”

Disc 2: DVD
The Film (English credits)
English or Japanese audio, yellow English subtitles for the Japanese audio and SDH for the English audio

(The English audio is the original Disney dub, with the English songs and the extra line spoken by Jiji at the end)

• Storyboards (Alternate Angle)
• Ursula’s Painting (2:27)
• 5 Original Japanese Theatrical Trailers (7:35)
• Studio Ghibli Trailers (10:50)
"Nausicaa Of The Valley Of The Wind" "Laputa: Castle In The Sky" "My Neighbour Totoro" "Kiki's Delivery Service" "Only Yesterday" "Porco Rosso" "Pom Poko" "Whisper Of The Heart" "Princess Mononoke" "Spirited Away" "The Cat Returns" "Howl's Moving Castle"

[Lnds500]

So...

I've been doing some research since yesterday. I have updated Laputa and Only Yesterday for now. There is a high chance I will need someone with the JP releases to help me for some of the rest though.

I need someone who has Laputa to check the entry is fine and that I haven't missed anything.

Here's what needs fixing as of right now.

Nausicaa
Laputa
Only Yesterday
Kiki's Delivery Service
My Neighbors the Yamadas
Tales from Earthsea
Ponyo
The Secret World of Arrietty

Here's BEFORE and AFTER entries for Only Yesterday and Laputa

BEFORE

Only Yesterday

Extras:
JP: December 4, 2012, Packaging,

[Show spoiler]

Storyboards
Voice Over Script
Making Of "Only Yesterday" (1 hour TV special)
Trailers

Laputa

JP: Packaging (1, 2),

[Show spoiler]

Storyboards via Picture-in-Picture
Theatrical trailers
AR (afureko) recording script
Credit-less (non-teroppu) opening and ending sequences
TV CMs
Promotional videos

AFTER

Only Yesterday

Extras:
JP: Packaging,

[Show spoiler]

Storyboards (1080p)
Voice Over Script
Making of "Only Yesterday" (46:09, SD)
Trailers
- TV Spot 1 (1080p, 0:37), 2 (1080p, 0:37)
- Trailers 1 (1080p, 3:02), 2 (1080p, 3:19)
Sneak Peeks (From Up on Poppy Hill, Tales of the Night, The Secret World of Arrietty)

Laputa

Extras:
JP: Packaging (1, 2, 3),

[Show spoiler]

(these need to be checked!)
Recording script
Storyboards (1080p)
Credit-less opening and ending sequences (1080p, 4:57)
Promotional Video (480i, 12:37)
Trailers
- TV Spot, Theatrical 1, Theatrical 2 (1080p, 4:41)
Behind the Studio (1080p, 8:40)
- The World of Laputa (1080p, 0:00 - 2:18)
- Creating Castle in the Sky (1080p, 2:19 – 6:00)
- Character Sketches (1080p, 6:01-8:40)

manicsounds thanks a lot, everything will be added shortly

[80sfanboy]

Can anybody confirm if the US and UK copies still come with Slip covers? Has someone recently bought them?

Hi,

All UK Studio Ghibli Blu-Ray/DVD Combo releases come with slipcase sleeves, with the exception of the following notes:

- Nausicaa Of The Valley Of The Wind (which was never released with a slipcase sleeve at all, as it was the first UK Blu-Ray release for a Ghibli film)

- Ponyo On The Cliff By The Sea (released in two editions: a normal, slipcased Blu-Ray release, and a Limited Edition Digipack release)

- Arrietty (ala PONYO, thus released in two editions: a normal, slipcased Blu-Ray release, and a Limited Edition Digipack release)

- From Up On Poppy Hill (will be released in two editions: a normal, slipcased Blu-Ray release, and a Limited Edition Digipack release)

UK Purchasers should also be aware that Studio Canal who have now taken-over from Optimum Home Entertainment, have made a boo-boo with the numbering.

The recently-released KIKI'S DELIVERY SERVICE is numbered "5" on the slipcase spine and cover artwork sleeve too. So is WHISPER OF THE HEART. In fact, KIKI is correctly numbered, and WHISPER isn't

UK purchasers who want a new, correctly-numbered (with 11) Slipcase Sleeve for WHISPER need to log on to Facebook, and send a private message to "StuidoGhibliUK" with your name, address, and phone number, and when new and correctly-printed replacement sleeves become available, Studio Canal will send them out to you free-of-charge.

Non-UK owners, will need to contact "StudioGhbiliUK" via their Facebook page, and see whether they are willing to ship replacement slipcase sleeves out to non-UK addresses.

Hope this helps you all out.


Pooch

Hi,

If you watch the "Behind The Microphone" extra, you'll notice Disney spell Jiji's name completely wrong - as Gigi! Bloody Disney! Utter cretins with no respect for the film!


Pooch

[MifuneFan]

I'm not sure how many would be interested, but the novel "Howl's Moving Castle" is part of Amazon's Daily Kindle deals for just $1.99. I just bought it. I hear it's a little different from the movie, and some say it's a lot better. Just thought I'd give people the heads-up in case they wanted to read it:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product?ASIN=B008LV8TSU

[Lnds500]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

I'm not sure how many would be interested, but the novel "Howl's Moving Castle" is part of Amazon's Daily Kindle deals for just $1.99. I just bought it. I hear it's a little different from the movie, and some say it's a lot better. Just thought I'd give people the heads-up in case they wanted to read it:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product?ASIN=B008LV8TSU

It's $7,99 right now

[MifuneFan]

It still shows $1.99 for me. I don't know if you have to be in the US to see that price or something.

[Lnds500]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

It still shows $1.99 for me. I don't know if you have to be in the US to see that price or something.

That must be it.

International Kindle users: here's how Amazon is screwing you