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Buried Treasure - Only Yesterday

The version of Only Yesterday that I have--which I'm fairly certain is legal--is a Region 2 PAL 16:9 anamorphic release from an outfit called Optimum Releasing. Included on the disc are storyboards and a Making Of featurette along with some Ghibli trailers. This same company also released a Region 2 PAL DVD for Horus Prince of the Sun under the title "Little Norse Prince." I would be aware of neither of these things were it not for the efforts of this crazy Irish cat from the Internet.

Man. It's been nearly 15 years since I first saw this movie, and about three since I last rewatched it (for the sake of the AWO review of it over here). But of all the Ghibli films, this is one I commonly cite as "the best" if forced to pick one. I'll bet I still have my old VHS fansub of this from the "PoroPoro Project," a group of fans (some of whom I've since met...I think) that gathered together for the sole purpose of acquiring, translating, and releasing a high-quality fan translated version of Omohide Poro Poro. This was perhaps among the second batch of fansubs that I ever requested during my teenage years back in the mid-1990s as I was trying to acquire all the Ghibli films I'd heard so much about.

I don't know if it was the reputation which preceded it, but I recall instantly taking a liking to the movie despite the fact that there's not a whole lot in there for a then 15 year-old guy to relate to. After all, it's an animated movie meant primarily for "middle-aged" adults, which in Japan is considered to be like...25 or however old Taeko is. Looking back, I think what intrigued me was the fact that there was virtually no fantasy elements whatsoever. It was an animated movie that could easily have just been a live-action film. Such a thing is a novelty when it's among the first anime you ever see. Heck, it's STILL a novelty.

Those 2 R2 DVD's you have from the UK are definitely legit as Optimum are the official UK distributor for all things Studio Ghibli which is why we were able to get to see Tales of Earthsea here in the cinemas as well as on DVD unlike the US because of the crappy mini series by Sci-Fi.

Their releases are pretty good especially as certain ones contain extras that aren't on the Disney DVD releases.

Those 2 R2 DVD's you have from the UK are definitely legit as Optimum are the official UK distributor for all things Studio Ghibli which is why we were able to get to see Tales of Earthsea here in the cinemas as well as on DVD unlike the US because of the crappy mini series by Sci-Fi.

Hey Justin, are you ever going to do a review of something "R6" or rarer? Don't get me wrong, this week's review was superb, and I heartily agree with the choice of title. But I was wondering if you were ever going to get into the buried of the buried, the treasure above treasures, the Pandora's box of obscurity . . . You follow? I mean, what's the point in having a scale that goes that far if you never stretch it a bit?

He's featured at least one R7 (Hideaki Anno Talks to Kids) and one R6 (Bobby's in Deep) in the past. There are probably others that I'm forgetting, but there's two.

but note their releases (and R2 releases generally) are made in the PAL system and will NOT play in NTSC-only USA DVD players. A multi-system player (PAL/SECAM/NTSC) is recommended and available cheaply in the UK thankfully. Region-free of course