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Originally Posted by blessingx /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Well there may be no other Miyazaki caliber artist working today. Although culturally there are easier places to soar than others, that may be the answer to that question, not Pixar versus Ghibli or U.S. versus Japan.
Guys the vast majority of animation, including anime, from a larger film perspective is targeted for "kids." [I use those quotes intentionally as that doesn't stop at 18] It's not a limitation of the medium though. Ghost in the Shell as beautiful and serious as it is (and as violent and containing nudity), isn't an adult film. Arguably, the above mentioned Spirited Away and Ratatouille have more adult themes.
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I don't want to derail this thread by starting a Pixar vs. Ghibli discussion or anything of the sort. I would simply enjoy it if Pixar and modern Disney made features like Pinocchio or Spirited Away, features that didn't rely on very distinct dualistic layers of humor, features that were capable of putting such an incredible story on the screen that any person of any age could appreciate everything about it.
I keep thinking of the line from Toy Story: "I'm a married spud, I'm a married spud, I'm a married spud." The kids like the zany animation, the adults like the joke I suppose, but to me there is a significant disconnect at play here. We are taking our kids to see media that, whether we like it or not, reflects our culture back at us, and instead of a shared experience it is, in my view, becoming a fragmented one. When we no longer connect across generations over the same stories, and instead connect over iPhones and things of that sort, I get a little nervous for us all. I don't think Pinocchio and Spirited Away contain adult themes; I think they contain simple, primal themes for humans.
I also disagree that animation is inherently for kids, or even for the kid in us all, as you suggest. I finished watching the MyHIME series recently, and I was blown away by how poignant the relationships between the characters were. It was like a dissection of all different possibilities of love, and it was far more advanced than 90% of anything else I've seen in that regard. It was also genuinely hilarious. It wasn't the kid in me that was reacting to MyHIME, it was the person. I may have taken more away from MyHIME than a 14-year-old Japanese girl, but the bottom line is that the series intended to convey the same information to each of us. It wasn't trying to amuse her with silliness and amuse me with humor that was over her head. The themes and the humor were intended for everyone watching. I'm not sure why people are so critical of others who want stories that express something real about something--that's what stories have been about for thousands of years. Only in the last century has that started to change. I reject that change. I also reject the thinking that says if you want to consume something that expresses something meaningful go see an art-house film or read a book. The division our society is erecting between the fun and the meaningful only stands to make the fun less meaningful and the meaningful less fun over time. It's clear we can have both at once--so why not?
If anyone is interested in continuing this discussion let's start another thread. I've already derailed this one enough.
Back to Ratatouille... I really am hoping to like it. Based on this thread it sounds promising. Any Head-Fier girls in my area want to go see it?
