My neighbor Totoro (1988) vs the iron giant (1999)

[revoltub]

My neighbor totoro is about some girl who befriends some giant fat...cat rat or something.

The iron giant is about a kid who befriends an iron giant or something.

Which film do you prefer.

 

[Woldog]

Totoro is a masterpiece. Iron Giant just has a sad ending.

 

[Strychnine]

My Neighbor Totoro and it's not even close.

 

[KeithHackneyballpunch]

Iron Giant for me...

never would I have thought a cartoon would make me bawl like a little bitch.

 

[Slick_36]

Been on a hardcore Ghibli kick lately and I own Totoro but wasn't pulled in enough to finish it on my first go around. I got the Iron Giant too based on all the hype I've heard over the years but haven't watched it yet either.

I'll have to check them both out soon and come back to this thread.

 

[Kal-El]

Spirited away crew

 

[revoltub]

Spirited away crew

Kiki's delivery service. Never seen spirited away

 

[soggyfist]

I need to get down to watching the Miyazaki films one day

 

[GergreG]

Totoro. I prefer Spirited Away and Ponyo though.

 

[Slick_36]

I need to get down to watching the Miyazaki films one day

100%. The guy is a true master of his craft, everything has meaning in his work, and even better you can see the change in his perspective over the years, especially when coming back to his most pervasive themes.

I've noticed everyone seems to have a different answer of what their favorite film of his is, and I've seen every single one mentioned at least once.

For me it was always Princess Mononoke, it's his darkest and most mature film, set in a historically inspired feudal Japan, but really tackling the revolutionary change of technology and culture that Japan had experienced in the Meiji Restoration and the Japanese economic miracle after WWII. Reconciling the Nietzschian idea of the death of good being a cost of human progress as we embrace a scientific world views, from a uniquely Shinto perspective.

I recently watched Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind for the first time though and was blown away, it's now a tie for me. It's his first original film and you can see the same environmentalist and anti-war themes. If Mononoke is the beginning of an industrial revolution that leads to the modern day, Nausicaä is the end of the apocalyptic age our modern day is leading to. They compliment eachother perfectly and I'd recommend those two without hesitation.

He focuses a lot on making stories for girls, but aren't necessarily limited to girls. So you got coming of age stories like Kiki's Delivery Service and Spirited Away. But Porco Rosso focuses on masculinity in the time of European fascism. Usually he's breaking gender roles in natural ways. You see a lot of strong badass chicks that aren't the fetishized femme fatale that we're used to. As an adult man, some of these movies can be harder to relate to on the surface, but don't let that stop you from trying another movie of his if you don't connect to one you hear is great.

 

[Kal-El]

Kiki's delivery service. Never seen spirited away

Exact opposite to me, never seen kikis delivery service but I had it next on my list, will have to check it out. I enjoyed howls moving castle too, but spirited away was my first experience with Ghibli and it blew me away. I really enjoyed Totoro all the more when I realized that nothing much really happens, its just a really sweet and nostalgic trip into childhood.

 

[revoltub]

Exact opposite to me, never seen kikis delivery service but I had it next on my list, will have to check it out. I enjoyed howls moving castle too, but spirited away was my first experience with Ghibli and it blew me away. I really enjoyed Totoro all the more when I realized that nothing much really happens, its just a really sweet and nostalgic trip into childhood.

I will watch spirited away. You watch kiki's delivery service. I should watch both because I only remember about kikis the flying bicycle and that it was good.

 

[Slick_36]

Exact opposite to me, never seen kikis delivery service but I had it next on my list, will have to check it out. I enjoyed howls moving castle too, but spirited away was my first experience with Ghibli and it blew me away. I really enjoyed Totoro all the more when I realized that nothing much really happens, its just a really sweet and nostalgic trip into childhood.

I will watch spirited away. You watch kiki's delivery service. I should watch both because I only remember about kikis the flying bicycle and that it was good.

Kiki's and Spirited Away are like Nausicaä and Mononoke, almost the same movie but from nearly opposite perspectives which really shows in how they're presented.

I loved the themes of both, but Spirited Away was way more appealing to me in general. Kiki's Delivery Service is entirely about flight yet is maybe the most grounded of his movies, which ironically could also be said about the Wind Rises. Kiki's did tap in to a world of nostalgia though, so it's subdued setting isn't without intent.

 

[FyrFytr998]

Iron Giant..

peace out..

 

[Slick_36]

Totoro. I prefer Spirited Away and Ponyo though.

I've seen a lot of people shit on Ponyo but I personally loved it. I saw it as a pretty strong parallel to autism, intentional or not. Only thing holding it back is it's so directly aimed at kids that it can seem immature, but there's a lot of things kids would never pick up on until they're adults. It was Miyazaki trying to get away from his cynicism and get back to that youthful optimism again though, bringing his career full circle in retirement. He just never could stay retired lol.

 

[GergreG]

I've seen a lot of people shit on Ponyo but I personally loved it. I saw it as a pretty strong parallel to autism, intentional or not. Only thing holding it back is it's so directly aimed at kids that it can seem immature, but there's a lot of things kids would never pick up on until they're adults. It was Miyazaki trying to get away from his cynicism and get back to that youthful optimism again though, bringing his career full circle in retirement. He just never could stay retired lol.

I just think it's an interesting and original movie with its concepts. The animation on the storm scene is pretty cool and overall I found it visually pleasing. Totoro is my children's favourite so maybe seeing it so/too often has swayed my opinion.

 

[Doomer]

My Neighbor Totoro

 

[moreorless87]

100%. The guy is a true master of his craft, everything has meaning in his work, and even better you can see the change in his perspective over the years, especially when coming back to his most pervasive themes.

I've noticed everyone seems to have a different answer of what their favorite film of his is, and I've seen every single one mentioned at least once.

For me it was always Princess Mononoke, it's his darkest and most mature film, set in a historically inspired feudal Japan, but really tackling the revolutionary change of technology and culture that Japan had experienced in the Meiji Restoration and the Japanese economic miracle after WWII. Reconciling the Nietzschian idea of the death of good being a cost of human progress as we embrace a scientific world views, from a uniquely Shinto perspective.

I recently watched Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind for the first time though and was blown away, it's now a tie for me. It's his first original film and you can see the same environmentalist and anti-war themes. If Mononoke is the beginning of an industrial revolution that leads to the modern day, Nausicaä is the end of the apocalyptic age our modern day is leading to. They compliment eachother perfectly and I'd recommend those two without hesitation.

He focuses a lot on making stories for girls, but aren't necessarily limited to girls. So you got coming of age stories like Kiki's Delivery Service and Spirited Away. But Porco Rosso focuses on masculinity in the time of European fascism. Usually he's breaking gender roles in natural ways. You see a lot of strong badass chicks that aren't the fetishized femme fatale that we're used to. As an adult man, some of these movies can be harder to relate to on the surface, but don't let that stop you from trying another movie of his if you don't connect to one you hear is great.

Princess Mononoke almost feels like a semi adaptation of the Nausicaa manga to me, he made the film relatively early in the Manga's run and carried on doing it between films until 1995. I think if you read that it does kind of explain his career, how the films became lighter whilst the manga became darker then the two elements merged when the manga ended and even stuff like Spirited Away and Howls that are nominally childrens stories did have a more horrifying edge to them.

I must admit I was never so into Totoro and Kiki never having watched them young(Castle in the Sky was the first thing I saw, indeed the first anime film I saw back in the late 80's on UK TV without knowing what it was for years) and not having kids myself but Porco Rosso maybe my favourite film by him, seemingly light adventure infused with a much more adult melancholy. The Ghibli films with quite low key drama in them from that era as well I think all work very well, Grave of the Fireflys, Only Yesterday and Whisper of the Heart.

 

[Randlewand]

Haven't seen Totoro. Iron Giant is awesome

 

[soggyfist]

100%. The guy is a true master of his craft, everything has meaning in his work, and even better you can see the change in his perspective over the years, especially when coming back to his most pervasive themes.

I've noticed everyone seems to have a different answer of what their favorite film of his is, and I've seen every single one mentioned at least once.

For me it was always Princess Mononoke, it's his darkest and most mature film, set in a historically inspired feudal Japan, but really tackling the revolutionary change of technology and culture that Japan had experienced in the Meiji Restoration and the Japanese economic miracle after WWII. Reconciling the Nietzschian idea of the death of good being a cost of human progress as we embrace a scientific world views, from a uniquely Shinto perspective.

I recently watched Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind for the first time though and was blown away, it's now a tie for me. It's his first original film and you can see the same environmentalist and anti-war themes. If Mononoke is the beginning of an industrial revolution that leads to the modern day, Nausicaä is the end of the apocalyptic age our modern day is leading to. They compliment eachother perfectly and I'd recommend those two without hesitation.

He focuses a lot on making stories for girls, but aren't necessarily limited to girls. So you got coming of age stories like Kiki's Delivery Service and Spirited Away. But Porco Rosso focuses on masculinity in the time of European fascism. Usually he's breaking gender roles in natural ways. You see a lot of strong badass chicks that aren't the fetishized femme fatale that we're used to. As an adult man, some of these movies can be harder to relate to on the surface, but don't let that stop you from trying another movie of his if you don't connect to one you hear is great.

Would you suggest that I watch them in order? I know they're all unrelated but to see his progression. I know HBO Max has most of them.