Charles Camp The film that officially introduced the world to what would become the greatest animation studio of all time, and it lives up to that honor. All these years later in what now seems to be the twilight era of Studio Ghibli, classic after classic under their belts, Castle in the Sky still manages to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with its best. Hayao Miyazaki's intention with this film was to show off what the studio was capable of, as well as to act as its mission statement - to create animated features of the utmost quality filled with magic, heart, adventure, depth, and purity of artistic intent. It succeeds with flying colors.It's a notable film in Miyazaki's filmography not only for being his first under the Ghibli banner, but also in that it is perhaps his most traditional work during his time with the studio. It employs many classical storytelling techniques that he would later largely abandon as his voice as an auteur deepened: a solid three-act structure, the MacGuffin plot device, as well as a purely villainous antagonist. This was likely a conscious decision with the intent of laying a sturdy, accessible foundation upon which to build the studio's name, and it's by no means a criticism of the film. Quite the contrary, these tried-and-true techniques are employed in absolutely masterful fashion to create what is a clear contender for the studio's strongest and most narratively satisfying action/adventure film. It also lays the groundwork for what would become many of Ghibli's core themes: coming of age, friendship, awe of the natural world, and rich, morally layered characters who are often not all they may seem at first glance.Though it may not have quite the same level of experimentation, uniqueness, and artistic virtuosity as some of Miyazaki's later works, it remains one of his seminal films, as well as one of his most tightly-scripted, well-paced, and purely fun. A classic in its own right.4.5/5

cruzchristopher I watched this when I was in 7th grade. Almost 6 years ago and it was also in Japanese which was quite a fun experience. From that day forward I fell in love with it. Finally got the opportunity to watch it again and all those great feelings were back in the blink of an eye. I could watch this movie every day and never ever get bored of it. Never pass up an opportunity to see it. It's an experience that you will never forget. All of Studio Ghibli's movies are must see but Castle In The Sky should be on your bucket list. This movie is an absolute masterpiece.

ElMaruecan82 "Castle in the Sky" is the eighth Hayao Miyazaki I discover and discover is the word, because despite the patterns you start noticing from one film to another, each one carries a mark of uniqueness like a sacred crystal amulet of its own.And the more I see his work, the more routinely (I must confess) my amazement grows. I don't even watch them in chronological order and it doesn't affect my judgments, "Nausicaa" looked more accomplished than "Porco Rosso" or "Kiki" and while not being as sophisticated as "Mono-noke", "Ponyo" hit a more sensitive chord. Now, what can I say about "Castle in the Sky" without being taken in a maze of hackneyed and boring superlatives? Let me think a little…Well, I'll borrow a compliment Roger Ebert made about Wes Anderson, which I think applies perfectly for Myazaki: the Japanese master's mind would be a wonderful place to visit, it seems that even animated frames are too limited, too small a space to carry all the expansive range of ideas that can flourish out of his imagination. "A Castle in the Sky" is only his third animated feature and yet it is so close to an unprecedented level of animated perfection even on the field of storytelling, it is so rich your own mind can lose track. I guess I could have said the same about "Nausicaa", you've got to wonder how he managed to outdo himself one film after another, and he hadn't made "My Neighbor Totoro" yet. Still, I can see in "Totoro" or even "Kiki Delivery Service", a desire to get back to a simpler story-line, and not to my displeasure because this is the kind of plot I enjoy more in Miyazaki. "Castle in the Sky" is nothing short of a masterpiece but I have a soft spot for his character-driven movies. Miyazaki is never as hypnotic and impressive when his frames are more in states of contemplation, as if they were in an awe of their own material. Of course, action is outstanding, and Miyazaki had already demonstrated that he mastered the sky as the background to thrilling fights and chases, showcasing a level of dedication that only Disney movies can compete with (barely) but Miyazaki, the spiritual man, the poet, is so capable of transcending the limits of action that some parts from "Castle in the Sky" are too unsurprising especially since they came after "Nausicaa". To be fair though, there's more to enjoy than a series of chases in the air starting with the heroine. I loved the way the character of Sheeta didn't duplicate the "Nausicaa" model, she's not a fighter but a simple girl who hides a secret, symbolized by a mysterious amulet.And even the revelation about her regal ancestry doesn't turn her into some kick-ass heroine. Miyazaki doesn't insult his audience's intelligence, while Nausicaa had her skills from the start, Sheeta is really caught in a coming-of-age narrative. The second character Pazu, a boy working in a mine factory, is eager to follow her, embodying the adventurous spirit of childhood (he's like Fio in "Porco Rosso" and Tombo In "Kiki") but his lack of experience makes him commit some blatant mistakes in judgment, he's just a kid after all. As a matter of fact, even the big bad pirates from the start are only kids when confronted to their bossy and experienced mother Dola, who's like a mixture between Ma Baker, Agnes Skinner, Grandma Addams and Captain Hook. I loved all the peripheral characters... from those who brought up the comedic element the film would have severely lacked to Uncle Pomme who provided the obligatory Miyazaki moment of meditation of the virtues we should all treasure from Earth. Miyazaki has covered the sky, the sea and the earth, he's indeed the most environmentalist director ever and "Castle in the Sky" combines the idea of earth with the spiritual elevation through the castle of Laputa, a legendary city whose name was borrowed from Gulliver's Travel and that used to rule over the world and incarnate the boundless ambition of men. The antagonist, Prince Muska wants to take a hold of the amulet to be the Earth new ruler. He's helped by a whole army and a giant robot who reveals the first inspiration of Miyazaki, French masterpiece "The King and the Mockingbird", which could have been called "Castle in the Sky".The film belongs to the complex realm of Miyazaki's stories, with so many layers you've got to keep yourself pretty focused to enjoy it. In fact, it's perhaps the one flaw I can concede to this particular film, it requires a certain conscience of the inspiration, understanding before enjoyment, and two hours of such deep and rich writing might be too difficult for younger audiences. I'm not implying that this is a film aimed for children as it provides a sweet and a nice friendship story between a boy and a girl so it would be a shame if children missed that story. Miyazaki has always been an expert when it came to concoct mixtures of mature and inspiring material. This time, the film flies in many directions before we can identify the main plot line, and there are a few disorienting changes of tone. It's all visually rich and entertaining but I didn't feel as engaged as in the previous movies, if not the best Miyazaki, it was probably the one with the best potential. Which might explain why there's another Miyazaki named "Howl's Moving Castle".

amiranda-39274 This movie is probably the the second best Mayazaki film, the first is Nausicaa, the only reason why is probably because of the two leads voice actors, not that there's anything too wrong with them, their not annoying, its just i couldn't match the voices with the characters, in nausiccaa the voices are perfect. but other than that this movie is probably better than some Disney films, i actually thought it was Disney when i saw it as a little kid. The soundtrack is amazing, the art used for this film is something out of a dream, in fact the plot seems like something out of dream as well, that is what a cartoon movie is supposed to do. Despite not liking the 2 leads voices i like their characters, i like the pirates, and all the townspeople, but i love the villain played by Mark Hamill, who I'm not kidding actually uses his iconic joker laugh in this movie, every time he showed up on screen i felt the tension increase, probably one of the best cartoon villains ever. The movie can be slow a few times, but it not that big of a deal, but when the action starts, your heart starts pumping faster. i prefer this film and nausiccaa to all of mayazakis other work only because here he had bloodless carnage and didn't use too much gratuitous violence or creepy images yet, i know those are his trademarks but i find them sometimes unnecessary, and i think this movie can prove that