The Tale of the Princess Kaguya (2013). 🤍 “The Procession of Celestial Beings I” by Joe Hisaishi is such an ethereal piece of music.
Still Totoro for me
My Neighbors the Yamadas
It’s cute, hilarious, and uplifting.
This is like asking what is the best or favourite South Park episode. I can’t think of a favourite studio Ghibli movie. But for me, probably the closest to my number 1 spot is “When Marnie was there.” I am not sure why, but the movie pulls a heart string for me and it feels more personal. Speaking of the movie, I can’t believe that the movie is 10 years old this year! I remember watching it for the first time in my local independent theatre!
I’d have to flip a coin between Porcco Rosso and Naussica
I’ve only seen one so far (twice) - My Neighbour Totoro, so it’ll have to be that one for now.
- Only Yesterday - Probably my favorite movie ever. It’s so authentic and personal and real.
- Spirited Away - Really emotional and dramatic and surprisingly NOT overrated at all.
- The Wind Rises - Feels very personal while also feeling broad and important.
- From Up on Poppy Hill - I love complicated family situations, and I like the aesthetics and music.
- The Secret World of Arrietty - The philosophy of the characters in this one is actually really interesting.
Favorite is not the right word.
I think there are different Ghibli movies for different questions.
Which is the most rewatched in my home? Probably Porco Rosso since it’s light-hearted and easy to consume. Miyazaki’s Magnum Opus? Mononoke or Nausicaa. Best to watch with your kids? Totoro, Kiki, and Ponyo. Most emotionally impactful? Grave of the Fireflies.
“Favorite” though? No idea. Depends on how I’m feeling.
Castle in the sky is my all time favourite! The music and theme hits all the right boxes for me.
Absolute favourite:
Kiki’s Delivery Service. Character and story that I relate with most of our of all of the movies. I wish I’d watched it when I was a kid.
Other favourites:
- Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
- Pom Poko
- Whisper of the Heart
- Howl’s Moving Castle
- The Tale of Princess Kaguya
- When Marnie Was There
Almost favourites:
- Princess Mononoke (I don’t like Ashitaka that much by the end)
- Spirited Away (only because this is the only Ghibli that I ever came across in the wild before watching all of them, I’m over exposed to it)
- Earwig and the Witch (love the concept and general story, not a fan of the animation style and a lot of specifics)
Mononoke is probably the “best” in my book but my personal favorite will always be Nausicaa. Although I just found it out predates the founding of studio Ghibli by one year.
Little personal story: As a kid, I repeatedly rented an animated movie called Warriors of the Wind from my local videostore. It was fairly short and the story was confusing as if there was something missing, but I loved it regardless. One day, the videostore didn’t have it anymore since they got rid of older VHS in favour of newer ones. I was heartbroken and didn’t managed to track it down (this was way before the internet).
Fast forward about 15 years, when I had already watched Princess Mononoke and wanted to watch other movies by that studio. So I watched Nausicaa, and the longer it ran, the more I realized it was that movie from my childhood.
Turns out that a US studio had gotten the rights in the 80s and cut 23 minutes of the run time to make the story simpler, even changing names completely (Nausicaa became princess Sandra for example). This was the version I saw as a kid.
Nausicaa is my favorite, too. The hand-drawn animation is incredible, the conflict is nuanced, the setting is beautiful, and the characters have interesting motivations. Its a masterpiece.
Have you read the Nausicaa manga? It’s really good.
The only problem with reading the Manga is that after you finish it, the film seems so simplistic and flat in comparison. The Manga has so much greater nuance, tragedy, and depth to it.
a fellow Nausicaa appreciator! It’s hard to find people that have even seen it tbh.
Yeah, Castle in the Sky is considered the first “official” Ghibli movie.
I’d also have a pre-Ghibli film as my favourite with Lupin III: Castle of the Cagliostro. Although hard to argue with Mononoke or Nausicaa.
I adore Porco Rosso for its gentle simplicity.
When Marnie Was There… hit me in the emotions in a way that I was not prepared for, and I love it for that.
Porco Rosso is also really funny!
Out of the ones I’ve seen, The Cat Returns. It’s not the most cinematic, amazing, fantastical movie like Spirited Away, Ponyo, Princess Mononoke, etcetera, but it’s one I really like regardless.
Though, if we’re talking about the opposite, Earwig and the Witch is at the very bottom.
Kiki’s Delivery Service
My Neighbor Totoro
Porco Rosso
Spirited Away
PonyoSpirited Away is my favorite with Ponyo close behind. Mononoke is what got me started and is probably the best one, but the other 2 just hit differently.
I like Only Yesterday. There’s just something appealing about getting away from a stifling job in the city and just going out to live in the country for fun, even if just for a week.
Only Yesterday is my favorite by far. If Grave of the Fireflies didn’t have the supernatural/Deus-ex-machina/genre whiplash scenes at the end, it would’ve been my favorite, but that ending ruins the movie for me.
