Studio Ghibli’s renowned Spirited Away is now released on Blu-ray.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Genre: Anime
Blu-ray Release Date: November 24
Perhaps the most loved and accomplished of Hayao Miyazaki’s works, SPIRITED AWAY, was released on Blu-ray with full extras.
The last of the Miyazaki directed films to be released in high definition and will also be featured in the forthcoming The Hayao Miyazaki Box-Set which is due to be released this December.
This compelling, coming-of-age story follows stubborn 10-year-old Chihiro who comes upon the entrance to a strange ghost world.
Upon entering, she finds herself frightened and alone and forced to survive by working at a magnificent bath house, whose proprietor is a wicked sorceress named Yoruba
Inspired from the 10-year-old daughter of one of Miyazaki’s own friends, he decided to create a heroine, after directing films such as My Neighbour Totoro and Kiki’s Delivery Service for small children and teenagers that they could look up to.
The film tackles a multitude of themes beneath the simplicity of the story including environmentalism and ecological awareness, consumerism and the anxieties of growing up and finding your own identity
It is a film of startling originality, imagination, intelligence and emotion and is renowned as the pinnacle of the studio’s work and one of the finest animations ever made.
SPIRITED AWAY was the first ever anime to win an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and the Golden Bear at Berlin Film Festival.
The award-winning film regularly tops critic and fan polls as the most accomplished and well-rounded not only of his films but of animated featured the world over.
With familiar influences from Lewis Carroll’s Alice In Wonderland to Japanese folklore and legend, Spirited Away was a phenomenon on initial release.
The film swiftly overtook Titanic to become Japan’s highest grossing film of all time.
The Blu-ray extras include an Introduction by John Lasseter, The Making of Spirited Away and Behind The Microphone – Voice Talent Featurette, Meet Hayao Miyazaki, Alternative Angle Storyboards and the Original Japanese Trailers.
It’s a release that should not be missed – the Blu-ray is available to buy now!
Watch the trailer here:
