Anime Colony: Laputa: Castle in the Sky

Exclusive review: Inu-Yasha:
Rumiko Takahashi's (Ranma 1/2, Maison Ikkoku, Mermaid Tales) new hit TV series in Japan

  Rating: PG
  U.S. Distribution Rights: Disney
  Genres: Fantasy, Family

Laputa: Castle in the Sky (Movie)
Alternate Title: Castle in the Sky

Description: Sheeta is a little girl on the run from pirates and government officials, who want the secret of her "levitation stone" and Laputa, the floating Castle, for their own purposes. After falling from a flying ship, she meets Pazu, a young orphan boy who tries to help her escape. Their actions lead them through many trials and eventually the true secret of Sheeta's past and Laputa itself.

Overall Grade: 96% (A)

Reviewer #1: Kane Tung
Episodes reviewed: Subtitled

Grade: 96% (A)

Although most people may argue with me on this point, I have to say that Laputa: Castle in the Sky is the most "Miyazaki" of all the director's creations. What do I mean by that? Well, Miyazaki's movies are never really about beginnings or ends. It's about heart and this movie, more than any other of his movies, is most about heart.

From the start, as Sheeta falls from the sky and music begins playing, the imagery and sounds perfectly envelop you with the spirit of what the entire movie is about: adventure and yearning. Hard-working, loyal Pazu and innocent Sheeta seems to be the culmination of character development Miyazaki has been doing over the years, from Future Boy Conan to Lupin III: Castle of Cagliostro. The other characters are developed just as well and the pirates, especially, are fun, dynamic, and hilarious.

Miyazaki's love for all things that has to do with flying really show through, as you see wonderful scenes and designs of flying ships, storm clouds, and finally, the flying lands. This is a beautiful anime that should not be missed.

Note:

In the US's release of this version, they have eliminated the name "Laputa" from the title and story, because "Laputa" means "prostitute" in Spanish, and Spanish is the #2 language in the U.S.

Reviewer #2: Clyde Adams III
Episodes reviewed: Movie; Subtitled and Dubbed

Grade: 96% (A)

Castle in the Sky is an epic fantasy adventure, full of action and thrills, images of great beauty, grandeur, and sadness, and a moving musical score by Jo Hisaishi. As in many of Miyazaki's films, the viewer follows the characters from ground level, to the depths of mines and dungeons, to high in the sky.

The orphan girl, Sheeta, is the target of pirates and military schemers because of her heritage, a heritage of which she herself is barely aware. She is seen, correctly, as the key to the enormous wealth and power of the semi-legendary floating city of Laputa.

One of the most beautiful scenes is in the mines, where Sheeta and her friend and champion, the orphan boy Pazu, are shown the glowing veins of levitation stone in the cavern walls.

It is hard not to see Sheeta's hidden power as a symbol of the untapped power of the subconscious mind. In one of the movie's most powerful scenes, Sheeta, imprisoned in a military fortress, musingly recites a charm from her childhood, in the Laputian language. To her and everyone's astonishment, a broken Laputian robot deep in the fortress' dungeon revives itself. The robot lays waste to the fortress trying to reach Sheeta and protect her.

Laputa itself, the once magnificent city in the sky, is a poignant, depopulated ruin. Overgrown with vegetation, its maintenance robots breaking down one by one, its most notable feature is a huge monument to the dead. A splendid civilization, tragically and irretrievably lost.