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Ghibli's Laputa And Yamadas Come To Blu-Ray Monday
posted on by Andrew Osmond
Two feature films by Studio Ghibli will be released on Blu-Ray on Monday, Laputa: Castle in the Sky, directed by Hayao Miyazaki, and My Neighbors the Yamadas, directed by Isao Takahata. Both films are released in "Double Play" packs including BR and DVD discs, with an RRP of £24.99 each.
Laputa, rated PG, is Miyazaki's 1986 fantasy about a treasure hunt for a flying island. Yamadas, also PG, is Takahata's 1999 comedy about an eccentric Japanese family. The Laputa disc includes a new eleven-minute 'Behind the Studio' featurette. The Yamadas disc includes two new featurettes: 'Secrets of My Neighdours the Yamadas' (45 minutes) and 'Behind the Microphone' (68 minutes).
The beginning of Laputa is set in a mining village, inspired by Miyazaki's visit to Wales in 1984. According to an interview in Britain's Guardian newspaper:
Miyazaki has visited Wales several times and has a deep affection for the place. He was first there in 1984, witnessed the miners' strike at first hand and farmed the whole harrowing experience into his 1986 animation Laputa: Castle in the Sky. "I admired those men (...) I admired the way they battled to save their way of life, just as the coal miners in Japan did. Many people of my generation see the miners as a symbol; a dying breed of fighting men." He shrugs. "Now they are gone."
Monday also sees Manga Entertainment's release of the first volume of Casshern Sins, containing the first twelve episodes of the series. In this Madhouse-animated remake of the 1973 anime Shinzō Ningen Casshan, the robotic Casshern wanders a desolate future world. Casshern Sins is released in both DVD and Blu-Ray editions.
Manga is also releasing The Tower of Druaga in a six-DVD box-set (certificate 12). Animated by the Gonzo studio, this is a spinoff from a fantasy videogame series, about adventurers climbing up an enormous tower full of monsters. The set contains both the first storyline, 'The Aegis of Uruk' (12 parts plus a bonus episode), and its sequel, 'The Sword of Uruk' (a further 12 parts).
In addition, Manga is reissuing two of its DVD box-sets, Desert Punk (6 discs) and Gungrave (7 discs), both rated 15.
Erratum: Original release date of Yamadas corrected.
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