The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya: Blu-ray Review
The Movie:
Found inside a shining stalk of bamboo by an old bamboo cutter and his wife, a tiny girl grows rapidly into an exquisite young lady. The mysterious young princess enthralls all who encounter her – but ultimately she must confront her fate, the punishment for her crime.
It’s been a good while since I’ve seen a Studio Ghibli film and after seeing The Kingdom Of Dreams And Madness I was newly excited about everything that came from that company. As soon as I saw this film waiting on my doorstep I couldn’t wait to pop it in. Immediately you see just how much love and care went in to making this film what it was. The hand drawn animation was so beautifully done it practically felt like you were viewing a painting in every frame. The most impressive part of it all was that all of the animated movements of the characters looked so fluid and realistic that it almost seemed like they were actual people. The story was somewhat confusing at first but soon enough what unfolded was such a beautiful and touching film that had me completely invested in every part of it the entire way through. There was so much emotion coming from the story and the thing that added to it even more were the voice actors. With great actors like Mary Steenburgen, James Caan, Chloë Grace Moretz and Darren Criss it became very easy to get attached to the characters and by the end of the movie I kind of got a little misty eyed. This is a film that everyone MUST see because of it’s presentation. Hand drawn animation is beginning to become a lost art form and after seeing this film I have a deep appreciation for it all over again. 10/10
Special Features:
Announcement of the Completion of the Film – From the sound of it it sounds like it would be just a quick thing but in fact this is in fact a 40 minute press conference that involves the cast and some of the crew from the film.
Isao Takahata and His Tale of the Princess Kaguya – An included DVD contains this 86 minute documentary that goes in depth of the creation of this film and actually makes a nice companion piece with The Kingdom Of Dreams And Madness.
