Studio Ghibli: Porco Rosso this Thursday on Film4 at 11am

I think every anime fan goes through a ‘Studio Ghibli’ phase at least once. After the major success of Spirited Away across the globe, the studio and its co-founder Hayao Miyazaki were officially put on the radar of Western movie lovers. Not long after, the back catalogue, as well as all future releases of Studio Ghibli, … Continued

When I was around nine years old, I saw a beautiful and imaginative foreign-looking film which went by the name of ‘Laputa: The Flying Island’ on terrestrial TV. Unaware of the fact that it was anime, the images of the flying machines, mountain villages and stunning scenery stayed in my memory ever since and for … Continued

Set in the distant past of feudal Japan, Princess Mononoke starts with a young tribal prince named Ashitaka who becomes cursed when he kills a demon in order to protect his village. Because of this he leaves his home behind to travel to the distant forests of the west in the hope of finding a … Continued

Ponyo is the eighth film that Hayao Miyazaki has directed for Studio Ghibli. For a lot of anime fans the reading of this review can end there. It’s another Miyazaki film, and that’s enough to warrant buying the DVD or Blu-ray. If you’ve made it this far then maybe you’re sitting on the fence as … Continued

When high school student Haru saves a strange-looking cat from being run over by a truck she is understandably surprised when it turns out that it can talk. After voicing its thanks the cat promises to reward her for her kindness, at which point her life becomes very interesting indeed. It transpires that the cat … Continued