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New To Studio Ghibli - Recommendations on Best Films/Order To Watch?

Soulsis

Soulsis

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,562
Hi everyone!

My fiancé and I have decided to watch through Miyazaki's films as I had never seen one until earlier this year. Ponyo was made available to us back in January so we watched it on a whim, and I quite liked it. It definitely felt like a movie for kids but the art direction and allegorical subtext really stuck with me, and I wanted more.

As I had heard so much about Spirited Away, we watched that next. It completely blew me away and I understood why it's considered Miyazaki's opus by many. Everything about it touched my heart. Juxtaposing whimsy and wonder with sinister/heart-wrenching themes of loss and self-discovery is what draws me Pixar's best films, and Spirit blended those motifs so confidently. The world felt lived in, and the way a scene took its time to convey nuanced emotion is something I'd never seen before in animation.

Next, we cycled through the available films for purchase and I opted for Princess Mononoke. This was a much more intense watch, and though I felt like it could have been trimmed down a bit, it's a stunning work of art. While it didn't entrance me the way Spirited did, I still enjoyed it a great deal.

Since there are 20+ films out there, none of which are available for streaming in the U.S. (i.e. costing around $15-20 each), I can't afford to buy them all and/or watch in order. So, what would you recommend as the next must-see, and is there a particular order you'd recommend?


TRLD; I've watched these films. What next?

1. Ponyo (B-)
2. Spirited Away (A+)
3. Princess Mononoke (A-)
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Thanks in advance for the help! :)
 
Gernau Morat Gurgeh

Gernau Morat Gurgeh

Member
Oct 31, 2017
10,036
ps3ud0 said:
I just want to say watch Grave of the Fireflies but prepare yourself, it's something you will only want to watch once...

This person has taste!

ps3ud0 8)
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Porco-Rosso-2-600x322.jpg
 
Rokal

Rokal

Member
Oct 25, 2017
505
Aren't these streaming on HBO Max or whatever the hell they're calling it these days?

Anyway just do release order. Advice above in the thread is crucial. Don't skip Takahata's stuff.

Edit: My personal favorites aside from Spirited Away which you already watched are Kiki's Delivery Service, Whispers of the Heart, and Only Yesterday. They're all 100% worth your time though.
 
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Era Uma Vez

Era Uma Vez

Member
Feb 5, 2020
3,201
Porco Rosso is my favorite.
After that, maybe Castle in the Sky and Howl's Moving Castle, but just watch everything that Miyazaki has made, you can't go wrong with any of those.

Also, not technically Ghibli Studio, but again, made by Miyazaki, Lupin III: Castle of Cagliostro. One of the best adventure animated movies ever.
 
Emwitus

Emwitus

The Fallen
Feb 28, 2018
4,091
They are all streaming on HBO max :-) they even have a dedicated studio ghibli section.

If n I'm being honest I only subscribed for fresh prince and studio ghibli
 
julian

julian

Member
Oct 27, 2017
16,741
I love the Porco Rosso love. So yes, that.
Kiki's is great too.

I've only missed a few so far but even the worst ones aren't terrible.
Just get HBO Max for a month and binge.
 
FuturusX

FuturusX

Member
Oct 28, 2017
3,744
Watch them all. Brilliant films. Grave of the fireflies is not on HBO Max due rights issues with that one.
 
Lua

Lua

Member
Aug 9, 2018
1,948
The nausicaa movie is very much like mononoke him, tho it has problems in the ending because it was adaptinga a manga that wasn't finished and it was also much longer.

Also the manga is a masterpiece,i love it.
 
Quade

Quade

Member
Mar 8, 2019
1,195
It usually flies under the radar in the Ghibli library so i'll recommend it as i watched it recently and loved it - Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.
 
Resident4t.

Resident4t.

Chicken Chaser
Member
Oct 27, 2017
914
I thought most of them were on hbo max
Might as well watch them all.
My favorite is Kikis delivery service

People love My Neighbor Totoro but I've never been a fan.
 
Pluto

Pluto

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,415
Porco Rosso, Nausicaä, My Neighbour Totoro

But all Ghibli movies are good, it doesn't really matter in which order you watch them.
 
A_Dang

A_Dang

Member
Oct 27, 2017
262
Western New York
As other posters have mentioned: don't skip on Takahata's films.

Grave of the Fireflies is an essential, but absolutely brutal film to watch.

My favorite Ghibli film is another one of Takahata's (and already recommended here): The Tale of the Princess Kaguya.
 
OP
OP
Soulsis

Soulsis

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,562
Holy shit, had no idea they were on HBO Max! I'll definitely subscribe then.

I guess since purchasing limit isn't an issue, I'm just curious to see what everyone's "essentials" are.

I'm seeing Porco Rosso mentioned a lot so maybe I'll do that next. I'm most curious about My Neighbor Totoro coz that character is so iconic, but I've heard from friends that it's a bit overrated. I think after Mononoke I'm looking for something a bit more on the whimsical abstract side.

Keep the posts coming though, I love to see what everyone's faves are.
 

sAbobo

Member
Dec 1, 2018
2,387
I'm probably alone but I love The Baron appearances, Whispers of the Heart and The Cat Returns, enough that I bought the music box statue for way too much money.
 
sir_crocodile

sir_crocodile

Member
Oct 25, 2017
23,479
Soulsis said:
Holy shit, had no idea they were on HBO Max! I'll definitely subscribe then.

I guess since purchasing limit isn't an issue, I'm just curious to see what everyone's "essentials" are.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

I actually ranked them in January when The Guardian did their own ranked list. Feels like a lifetime ago now...

For me:

22. Arrietty (2010)
21. My Neighbours the Yamadas (1999)
20. Only Yesterday (1991)
19. From Up on Poppy Hill (2011)
18. Ocean Waves (1993)
17. Pom Poko (1994)
16. When Marnie Was There (2014)
15. Howl's Moving Castle (2004)
14. Whisper of the Heart (1995)
13. The Wind Rises (2013)
12. Grave of the Fireflies (1988) (one of those films where I recognise how good it is but it's too depressing for me)
11. The Cat Returns (2002)
10. Ponyo (2008)
9. Tales from Earthsea (2006)
8. My Neighbour Totoro (1988)
7. Princess Mononoke (1997)
6. The Tale of the Princess Kaguya (2013)
5. Porco Rosso (1992)
4. Kiki's Delivery Service (1989)
3. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (1984)
2. Spirited Away (2001)
1. Laputa: Castle in the Sky (1986)
0. Castle of Cagliostro (1979) (Not Ghibli, is Miyazaki, is perhaps the greatest animated film ever)
 
Caspar

Caspar

Member
Oct 29, 2017
1,402
UK
My top 3 would be:
  1. The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
  2. Grave of the Fireflies
  3. Only Yesterday
As other's have mentioned don't skip the Isao Takahata directed films, he may not have been as prolific or had as many hits as Miyazaki but he was a far better film maker in many people's eyes.
 
Kyuuji

Kyuuji

The Favonius Fox
Member
Nov 8, 2017
31,928
Personal must-see's are:
  • Kiki's Delivery Service
  • Howl's Moving Castle
  • Spirited Away
  • Porco Rosso
  • Laputa: Castle in the Sky
  • Grave of the Fireflies (if you can handle depressing)
 
Shibi

Shibi

Member
Oct 25, 2017
383
Nausicaa is my favorite after Spirited Away. Also love Pom Poko which I consider highly underrated.
 
robot

robot

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,467
Don't sleep on Whisper of the Heart. It may not be by Miyazaki but it's still one of the studio's best films.
 
iFirez

iFirez

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,555
England
I'm a big Ghibli fan, I adore Nausicaa, Ponyo, Howl's Moving Castle, Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke.

I'm going to return to watching some more of these as they're on Netflix (at least in the UK) and watch Ki Ki's Delivery Service, Castle in the Sky and The Castle of Cagliostro.
 
MrKlaw

MrKlaw

Member
Oct 25, 2017
33,034
I wouldn't do Nausicaa (too similar to Mononoke) or Howl (too similar to Spirited away) in feel. They're both top tier although some people don't like Howl so much.

I'd go for something lighter like Kiki's delivery service or Arietty

tbh there isn't a wrong order - just work your way through them. Maybe leave some of the more esoteric/slice of life ones to later - Pom Poki/Neighbours Yamadas might be an acquired taste, and Ocean Waves/only yesterday are pretty slow if evocative
 
Alcander

Alcander

Member
Oct 29, 2017
788
Arrietty is secretly one of my favorites - and has been a good gateway film to get my daughter into Ghibli stuff

[edit] Also I quite like "from up on poppy hill" which no one seems to really ever mention
 
MikeProtagonist

MikeProtagonist

Member
Oct 26, 2017
7,285
Pretty much all of them are fantastic. I'd only skip Pom Poko, it's just weird.

Even the ones that people don't mention much like Arrietty, When Marnie Was Here and Princess Kaguya are amazing.
 
JangleLuke

JangleLuke

Member
Oct 4, 2018
1,604
Castle in the Sky (or Laputa) is a must watch.

After that Porco Rosso and Totoro are also pretty much required viewing.
 
Huey

Huey

Member
Oct 27, 2017
13,177
Nausicaa is definitely my favourite so watch that next. Porco Rosso, Howls moving castle would be great next steps after that.
 
EVIL

EVIL

Senior Concept Artist
Verified
Oct 27, 2017
2,782
1. Nuasicaa - This is a much watch. people compare it to princess mononoke but its on its own league entirely. def do not skip this one.
2. Porco rosso
3. Kiki's delivery service
4. Castle in the sky
 
zswordsman

zswordsman

Member
Nov 5, 2017
1,771
I need to actually watch Nausica and Castle in the sky. Only ever watched them with an ex girlfriend and obviously didn't pay attention.

Also need to watch the one with the guy character, I forget the name ah screw, time to watch all of them.
 
samoyed

samoyed

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
15,191
Should watch all of them but the must sees, on top of what you already saw, are Nausicaa (pre-ghibli), Porco Rosso and Grave of the Fireflies.

If you're short on time, it is not necessary to watch both Laputa and Nausicaa, imo, they are moderate substitutes for each other.

Also give Satoshi Kon a shot with Millennium Actress.
 
MikeProtagonist

MikeProtagonist

Member
Oct 26, 2017
7,285
I figured this was a good opportunity to check out Only Yesterday. Man, what a non-children's movie. It's almost aggressively dull, but in a rather sweet way.

Only The Cat Returns and Ocean Waves left now. Even if Ghibli does finish those two more movies, it's sad that there's only so many of these.
 
Midramble

Midramble

Force of Habit
The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
10,452
San Francisco
Top 4

1) Spirited away (Chihiro has one of the greatest represented character arcs of all time. Tear up everytime)

2) Porco Rosso

3) Whisper of the Heart

3) Kiki's Delivery Service
 
RedSwirl

RedSwirl

Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,049
Aside from Mononoke my favorite Ghibli movies that I've seen so far are Nausicaä (the manga is Miyazaki's real magnum opus) and Porco.

I also really enjoyed Kiki, Howl, Laputa, Whisper, and Cagliostro.

Since OP said they were looking for something more whimsical, I'd actually suggest Totoro next, since that's pretty much the epitome of a feel-good, whimsical movie. The thing about it is... not a whole lot actually happens in Totoro. The whole movie is just about, like, a summer afternoon.

Cagliostro was Miyazaki's directorial debut, before he founded Ghibli, and it's on Netflix in the US. It's based on a larger franchise though and is slightly more violent than Miyazaki's other movies. Still a great animated film though and had a fairly large influence on western animation going forward. For a good sense of what it's like, it may have been one of the inspirations behind the Indiana Jones movies. Even if that isn't true it's still pretty similar in the tone and style of its action.
 

Deleted member 18021

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 27, 2017
4,000
Know that Whisper of the Heart is the best one, and you're set.

If you're watching Miyazaki in particular, don't forget Future Boy Conan.
 
Kittens McMittens

Kittens McMittens

Member
Nov 14, 2017
4,928
Totoro is one of the greatest movies of all time. Kiki is good too. All the Hayao Miyazaki films are good tbh, as are the Takahata ones. The only good Gorō Miyazaki film though is From Up On Poppy Hill, which Hayao wrote.
 
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