ElanSubdued
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Aidan, Moro (i.e. ShaktiSama), PlayfulWhenUsed, and Everyone;
Precursor: This is largely a reply to Aidan. However, Shakti, Playful, and everyone else may be interested.
I've not seen Ponyo, but am very interested in this film. To date, pretty much everything from Miyazaki has caused me to think and re-think on multiple levels. Even films like Castle In The Sky and Kiki's Delivery Service (which perhaps share less of Miyazaki's common themes and indeed so by design) have their moments. Spirited Away possibly achieved greatest honors of any Miyazaki film to date, but My Neighbor Totoro and Princess Mononoke are my favourite of his works - Totoro, because never before has the world been so lovingly and gorgeously revealed through the eyes of two, young sisters; and Mononoke, because all of Miyazaki's themes regarding war, nature, love, and complex motivations (characters demonstrating multifaceted qualities - successes and failings, positive and negative traits) come together in such microscopic and epic ways.
Were I to give but a single nod to a Miyazaki film, it would be hard to choose between Totoro and Mononoke, but I think Mononoke would get my vote. Apart from all its other, fine qualities, Mononoke has a truly amazing, orchestral score. To appreciate the film in all its splendor and beauty, one must watch the Japanese dub. In the original, silence and the score are used to great effect. Unfortunately, the English dub is too "chatty" (with extra dialog and narration added by the English producers) and at times doesn't leave room for the viewer to fill in their own thoughts and emotions. The opening is a good example of this wherein an English narrator explains much of the initial context and folklore. Conversely, in the Japanese original, the scene is devoid of narration and the score and sounds of the forest are left to set the stage, and set the stage they do in a most haunting, truly beautiful, and ultimately tragic way.
Unrelated, but worth mentioning: to anyone who hasn't seen Grave of The Fireflies, this is a profoundly moving film that everyone should see, regardless of whether they appreciate animation or not. Paraphrased from Wikipedia: "Grave of the Fireflies is an animated film written and directed by Isao Takahata, with animation and production work by Hayao Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli. It is an adaptation of the semi-autobiographical novel of the same name by Akiyuki Nosaka, intended as a personal apology to the author's sister. Some critics (most notably Roger Ebert) consider it to be one of the most powerful anti-war movies ever made. Animation historian Ernest Rister compares the film to Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List (saying 'it is the most profoundly human animated film I've ever seen')". I concur. It could be argued that certain, self-imposed circumstances mar the film's effectiveness. Despite this, I place Grave of The Fireflies in the ranks of the greatest films ever made. It's a very emotionally and intellectually effecting piece of film making that garners even more depth when watched a second time (because only then do certain pieces of the story come into context). Brilliant on first watching and even more so on repeated viewings.
Elan.
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