Next up: Classics on Blu-ray

MORE GIFT IDEAS:

* GIFT & BOXED SETS
* TV ON BLU
* CLASSICS
* THE BEST OF THE YEAR

Animation just doesn’t get any better than the work of Hayao Miyazaki. His latest film, Ponyo is also his first on Blu-ray. This is not only a perfect gift for kids and animation fans but also for film fans of all ages.

Highest possible recommendation!!

READ MORE: Ponyo Blu-ray Disc Review

AMAZON: $21.99

I reviewed the Fantastic Mr. Fox Blu-ray way back in March and, let me tell you, I’m still surprised at how much I enjoyed it! I’m a fan of Wes Anderson but didn’t think I’d care for this stop-motion animation take on the classic Roald Dahl tale. What a pleasant surprise! It’s a great film with a stellar presentation on Blu-ray disc.

READ MORE: Fantastic Mr. Fox Blu-ray Disc Review

AMAZON: $17.49

Highly recommended!!

READ MORE: Neon Genesis Evangelion 1.11: You Are (Not) Alone Blu-ray Disc Review

AMAZON: $16.49

I’m still hoping to get my hands on a copy of The Secret of Kells Blu-ray disc (hint hint!) but understand that it’s stellar in just about every possible way. The film itself is one of the best animated films to be released in years and worth your every attention. If the Blu-ray lives up to its reputation of having a killer transfer and great audio, this one could end up with a special place on my Blu-ray “shelf-of-honour“.

READ MORE: Oscar nominated animated film The Secret of Kells coming to Blu-ray

AMAZON: $18.49

Disney is really killing it with the Blu-ray releases of their classic catalogue titles. And Beauty and the Beast is one of the most significant, as it truly ushered in the modern renaissance of the studio’s 2D animated offerings. The film looks unbelievably great on Blu-ray and features tons of amazing special features. Again, another pick that’ll please animation AND film fans alike.

READ MORE: Beauty and the Beast: Diamond Edition Blu-ray Disc Review

AMAZON: $19.49

I’m really steamed that I missed out How to Train Your Dragon. By all accounts, this is one of the best animated films to come out in the past number of years and the finest work of Dreamworks animations studios since the original Shrek. I just might have to grab a copy of the Blu-ray disc for my niece and nephew for Christmas, just so that I can finally get to see it myself!

AMAZON: $18.99

Warner Home Video and DC Comics continued their onslaught of animated superhero adaptations throughout the year, releasing four new Blu-ray discs in 2010, culminating with the DC Showcase collection of exceptional short films this past month. My favourite disc of the lot (though I enjoyed them all) is the Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths disc, which features a fun dimension-hopping story, great character designs and a slate of decent special features. But they’re all highly recommended for fans of the comics.

READ MORE:

• Batman: Under the Red Hood Blu-ray Disc Review
• Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths Blu-ray Disc Review
• Superman/Batman: Apocalypse Blu-ray Disc Review

AMAZON: $18.99, $20.99, $10.99, $9.99

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs doesn’t look like a whole hell of a lot but it’s one of my girlfriend’s favourite films of the entire year (and I thought it was pretty all right too!) Released way back of the beginning of January the title is now available in a Blu-ray 3D edition as well as the standard, old Blu-ray combo pack.

READ MORE: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs Blu-ray Disc Review

AMAZON: $14.99

As I said before, Disney is on a roll with its Blu-ray releases of catalogue animation titles. Fantasia and its sister film, Fantasia 2000 both look and sound stellar in high-def. It’s unfortunate that most of the old DVD special features have been relegated to an online BD-Live archive, providing the sole option of streaming the content to your screen, as opposed to putting it on a local disc. Don’t let this single shortcoming keep you from adding this exceptional presentation of a classic film to your collection. Recommended!

READ MORE: Fantasia / Fantasia 2000 Blu-ray Disc Review

AMAZON: $27.99

FUNimation has been releasing some great anime series on Blu-ray this year. Not all of them were created in HD, so the studio has been tirelessly improving their up-conversion process (taking the standard definition material and turning it into HD goodness!) to provide the best looking presentation possible. And you know, they’re doing a bang up job. The titles above are among my favourite released this year, with Eden of the East being one of the best looking, best written, most compelling animated series I’ve seen in an age. It especially comes highly recommended!

READ MORE:

• Top 5 New Blu-ray releases for the Week of May 18 – DRAGONBALL Z KAI: PART ONE
• Top 5 New Blu-ray releases for the Week of May 25 – FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST: BROTHERHOOD PART 1
• Top 5 New Blu-ray releases for the Week of October 19 – Eden of the East: The Complete Series

AMAZON: $37.99, $19.99, $69.98, $19.99

I’m not a big fan of the Family Guy but I kinda get how their Star Wars spoof episodes are so popular. Anyway, all three shows will be available for the first time in this brand new Blu-ray boxed set on December 21st.

AMAZON: $27.99

Far from Disney’s absolute best animated film but a decent return to form as the studio’s first hand-drawn effort in years, The Princess and the Frog is a great choice for any young girl who loves a musical rags-to-princess story.

READ MORE: The Princess and the Frog Blu-ray Disc Review

AMAZON: $28.99

And while we’re on the subject of Disney and the films that little girl’s might like, it’s hard to beat the revisionist (it’s hard to believe this is the same character from J.M. Barrie‘s Peter Pan!) direct-to-video Tinkerbell series. These things have been consistently entertaining and this years’ entry, The Great Fairy Rescue is no exception.

READ MORE: Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue Blu-ray Disc Review

AMAZON: $18.49

ANIMATION ALSO AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY
Clicking an image will take you to Amazon.com where you can learn more about and purchase the Blu-ray disc:

MORE GIFT IDEAS:

* GIFT & BOXED SETS
* TV ON BLU
* CLASSICS
* THE BEST OF THE YEAR

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I was seriously only a few days away from placing my order for the Japanese release of Miyazaki‘s Nausicaä on Blu-ray, sick and tired of waiting to hear any news whatsoever about a domestic edition. And just as I’m about to finally pull the trigger, wouldn’t you know it, this news hits. So, it looks like Disney is finally getting their act together and delivering the goods – Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind will hit shops on March 8th with cover art and a feature set that’s in line with the Ponyo Blu-ray of this past year.

I’m sure Disney’s release is going to be fine and dandy but I can’t help but feel a pang of disappointment that we won’t be seeing any of the special features from the Japanese disc – specifically the Anno Hideaki and Katayama Kazuyoshi commentary track and the 44-minute “Anno Hideaki and Suzuki Toshio discussion from December 2009.“ Optimum‘s U.K. release (which is Region B locked) has included both extras subtitled in English, so I’m not sure why we have to go without.

Also, I can’t help but feel let down by the package art of the U.S. edition of the Blu-ray. The Japanese release (which you can see here in all its glory) is so classy and minimalist where ours just feels so…bland. I guess it could be worse. We could have gotten stuck with the U.K. cover art.

In the end, I feel like I’m going to have to get comfortable with the notion of ponying up the cash for all three versions of the release in order to have everything I want from the Blu-ray presentation of Miyazaki’s Nausicaä. Yes, I will be considerably poorer for it but these are the lengths to which I must go to satisfy my inner nerd. Damn you, Ghibli/Disney! DAMN YOU!

SPECIAL FEATURES:

• The World of Ghibli: Visit Nausicaa’s world in this enchanted interactive experience
• Behind the Studio: Discover the film’s fantastic origins in this fascinating documentary, including an interview with Hayao Miyazaki
• Creating Nausicaa
• Enter the Lands: Explore the many worlds of Studio Ghibl
• Studio Ghibli Trivia Challenge: Test your Knowledge
• Original Japanese storyboards
• DVD of the film including:
  • Behind the Microphone: with A-list voice talent
  • The Birth Story of Studio Ghibli
  • Original TV trailers

Via: The Digital Bits.com

Related posts

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• Miyazaki's Nausicaä to be the next Ghibli Blu-ray release? (3)
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This is extraordinary news! According to pre-order listings on Amazon.jp, Studio Ghibli‘s next two Blu-ray releases will be Hayao Miyazaki‘s 1986 Laputa, Castle in the Sky and his partner, Isao Takahata‘s 1999 comedy, My Neighbors the Yamadas.

You might recall that Yamadas was long rumoured to be the first Ghibli Blu-ray disc release, following Ponyo. However, the less-popular title was temporarily shelved in favour of bringing the studio’s first film to Blu-ray - Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, released to great success in Japan on July 14th (read our follow up story here.) While none of these titles have yet to be announced for domestic release here in North America, we can expect to hear something soon, seeing as how plans are afoot for UK and Aussie releases before the end of the year.

Both Laputa and Yamadas will be in Japanese shops on December 22nd.

LAPUTA, CASTLE IN THE SKY
(December 22, 2010 – MSRP ￥ 7,140)
Video: 1.85:1 1080p
Audio: Japanese 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio (French, German, Korean, Cantonese, Mandarin DD 2.0 audio)
Subs: Japanese, English, French, Korean, Chinese (simplified and traditional) and Finnish

Special Features:

• North American edition of the movie with DD 5.1 English audio and Japanese subs
• Picture in Picture content (Storyboards)
• “Screenplay” (Afureko daihon)
• Isolated opening and ending (without credits text)
• Trailers and TV Spots

MY NEIGHBORS THE YAMADAS
(December 22, 2010 – MSRP ￥ 7,140)
Video: 1.85:1 1080p
Audio: Japanese 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio (English, German in 5.1 DD and Korean, Mandarin in 2.0 DD)
Subs: Japanese, English, French, Korean, Chinese and German

Special Features:

• Nippon TV “Making Of” special (45min)
• Storyboards
• “Screenplay” (Afureko daihon)
• Trailers
• TV Spot

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Hayao Miyazaki‘s first independently created film, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind was released on Blu-ray in Japan a couple of weeks ago, selling a record 20,000 units in the first week alone. The disc is feature packed, super-well designed and sports a gorgeous transfer sourced from a 6K scan of the original elements. I can’t wait to own this thing. But my impulse to import has been stayed with the confirmation that the film will be hitting Blu in both the U.K. and Australia sooner than I suspected!

Japanese Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind Blu-ray Packaging (images - asianblurayguide.com)

Optimum has announced that Nausicaä will be in UK shops on October 18th while Australian distributor Madman Entertainment has confirmed a November release down under. No details are known for either release yet, aside from Madman’s package art and their assurance to customers that their version will be given “the same treatment as we did with Ponyo. LOTS of extras!”

Austrailian package art for Madman's Blu-ray release of Nausicaä

What these two impending releases tell me, though, is that Disney will be gearing up to deliver their own edition of Nausicaä on Blu-ray to we poor souls caught between Atlantic and Pacific. A USA/Canada version should drop sometime before the holidays, if this pattern is any indication. And that release, though I’m certain it won’t be as feature-rich as the others, will be far more affordable than our alternative import options. So, I’ll hold off, for now. And compare the eventual domestic release of the Nausicaä Blu-ray with these others before deciding which is most worthy of my hard earned dollars.

Read more: Miyazaki’s Nausicaä announced for Blu-ray release in Japan (UPDATED)

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Disney was right – Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind is officially set to be the next of Studio Ghibli‘s films to come to Blu-ray! When last we reported on the Japanese animation studio’s catalogue coming to Blu, it was still in question whether distributor, Disney would follow up the release of Ponyo with Miyazaki‘s Nausicaä or Takahata‘s My Neighbors the Yamadas. Today’s announcement confirms the former but details are still in question. Here’s what we’ve gleaned from the Japanese language post on AV Watch:

NAUSICAÄ OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND
(July 14, 2010 – MSRP 7,140円 – Aprx. $77.50 US)
Single-sided BD50
Video: MPEG-4 AVC 1080p
Audio: DTS HD Master Audio

Given the quality of their previous disc, Ponyo, and the bevy of special features they included on the Japanese edition we can fully expect this Blu-ray to be the best Nausicaä, the studio’s 1984 debut film, has ever looked – clean and bright in presentation, with a disc full of extras, both vintage and modern. Don’t be surprised to find English language subtitles either. And if we’re lucky, Disney might include their English language dub track in the package, starring the voices of mighty Enterprise and Galactica captains Patrick Stewart and Edward James Olmos!

There is, sadly, no word yet on any further North American releases of Ghibli films on Blu-ray.

UPDATE: GhibliWiki has a translation of producer Toshio Suzuki‘s comments revealing why Nausicaä was chosen as the next Ghibli Blu-ray and how the studio has approached the restoration process:

“I watched Nausicaa. Re-encountering the film for the first time in 26 years. There was Miya-san nearby. When a preview room became dark, I was tense. Then Nausicaa began. We never watch a film after it’s completed. I don’t watch it. Because we cannot go to the next film. However, there were special circumstances this time.

It was the end of last year that the reqest for the next BD title was given by Disney. I thought about nothing, but I answered immediately, “How about Nausicaa?” Ghibli and Disney staff’s faces were frozen. They seemed to have planned for Laputa and they thought Nausicaa would be “The Last BD Title” without permission. Then another thought appeared on me with an answer. I want to do a restoration from a clean negative. It was longtime homework for me who was concerned with Nausicaa.

Led by Okui-san of the photography department, an argument began about how to make an original negative of “Nausicaa”. However, Okui-san was not involved with the production of Nausicaa directly. What is the standard of the original negative? We can guess, but we do not understand this important part. Digital technology can do anything. It is very easy to change a used thing into a new thing. Then a conclusion came about become Miya-san decided it. Miya-san participated in a meeting. Miya-san’s opinion was simple and clear.

Miya-san was watching the Disney Channel in a house well after work. It was broadcasting a show on digital processing, a “makeover” of old works. That is profanity. Miya-san always sent forth a negative opinion about digital processing. A past masterpiece becomes a work without dignity through digital processing. That is quite disrespectful for the person who made it. It is natural for it to seem that a film looks timeworn by aging. Who has the right that makes it a new thing in technology? This was an opinion of Miya-san.

This is Miya-san’s opinion. Basically, respect a original thing. We do not clean it than the original, remove the wound of the process of the print, keep the color mistakes, etc.

Okui-san took two months in deference to the opinion of Miya-san and worked hard for data faithfully. It was enough work to lose consciousness.

In this way the preview of March 1 came about.

There is already little staff who remember those days at Ghibli. I persuaded Miya-san who hated watching. When I went to the preview room 10 minutes early Miya-san was already there. In fact, I know that the preview was in the mind of Miya-san for a few days. Miya-san who waited for a re-encounter with Nausicaa was clearly excited.

The screening was over. We waited for an impression from Miya-san in a meeting room. At first Miya-san spoke an impression “looked timeworn”, and he said in this way. “Suzuki-san, technically, we have come very far and wide.”

The order from Miya-san was one thing: I want a little green to increase where necessary.

Okui-san came my room next day. He said “Miyazaki-san cried, didn’t he?” I answered in this way, “Nausicaa is not yet over.” Both I and Miya-san remember all of the events and every cut.”

Previously on The Blu-ray Blog: Miyazaki’s Nausicaä to be the next Ghibli Blu-ray release?

Via: www.asianblurayguide.com

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This is a huge release week for me. One of the most important of the year. There’s not a lot hitting the shops today but a couple of films here number amongst my favourites. As always, your clicks matter. If you enjoy this weekly column and want to support it and the site, please make your purchases through our Amazon links. By doing so, you’re directly helping the The Blu-ray Blog stay alive…just like Johnny 5.

I can’t believe I just typed that…

1. PONYO

What more can I possibly say about the incredible Ponyo Blu-ray disc that I didn’t already cover in my review? This is an incredible film now available in a flawless, absolutely stunning Blu-ray presentation. If you’re not already a fan of Studio Ghibli and animation master Hayao Miyazaki this is the perfect place to start. If you’re already a fan, what are you waiting for? Get out there and pick up a copy of Ponyo on Blu-ray!!

Read my full review here: Ponyo Blu-ray Disc Review

Amazon: $24.99

Also available today: 3 more films by Hayao Miyazaki on DVD – My Neighbour Totoro, Castle in the Sky and Kiki’s Delivery Service.

2. CLASH OF THE TITANS

I love love love Clash of the Titans!!! Once upon a time I tried to make a giant papier mache head of Titans villain, Calibos. It didn’t turn out too well (Gimme a break…I was only 6 years old!) Needless to say, this is a much anticipated release for me. I haven’t seen the disc yet but I understand that, while being a very faithful film transfer and excellent encode, the quality of the source material itself leaves a lot to be desired. Expect to see a very healthy amount of grain and varying levels of detail on the Blu-ray, especially during the incredible stop-motion animation sequences by Ray Harryhausen. Despite its imperfections, you can feel confident picking this disc up as it’s probably the best Clash of the Titans will ever look on home video, barring a very expensive restoration.

Amazon: $26.99

3. WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

The Maurice Sendak classic, Where the Wild Things Are has been a favourite book in my family for years and years. It became even more special when my sister named her son Max after the title character of the story (I was pushing for Maximus…it was 2000 after all, and Gladiator was a big hit at the time!) It kills me that I missed out on seeing Spike Jonze‘s adaptation when it was in theatres last year but I’m excited to finally get a chance to check it out on Blu-ray. I haven’t received my review copy yet so I can’t speak to the quality of the disc itself but I can tell you that this thing is packed with special features, the coolest of which is the NFB produced Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life.

Amazon: $19.99

4. THE NEVERENDING STORY

Geez, it’s been so long since I’ve seen the Neverending Story that I’m not sure I’m fit to even comment on it! All I can tell you right now is that when I was young I enjoyed the heck out of the film. I also remember spending a summer up at our cottage listening to the (admittedly crap) theme song ad nauseum for two months on my old cassette tape recorder (I believe I had recorded the track by holding the microphone of the machine up to the speaker of our family stereo system while the song played over the radio…those were the days…) Oh, and the film (specifically that wolf-like Gmork!) still scares the crap out of my pal, Karl. ATREYU!!

Amazon: $17.99

5. 2012

I hate disaster movies. And, as such, I have no desire to see Roland Emmerich‘s 2012. I include it here only because I realize that it’s a major studio release and a lot of people are interested in it. But honestly, if you can only afford one or two Blu-ray discs this week and you need to buy something new, you owe it to yourself to scan up a little higher on my Top 5 list. Do yourself a favour and pick up Ponyo. I guarantee you won’t be disappointed. There’s a even a huge tidal wave in it, for you disaster flik fanatics!!

Amazon: $22.99

ALSO AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY THIS WEEK
Clicking an image will take you to Amazon.com where you can learn more about and purchase the Blu-ray disc:

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My Neighbour Totoro. Castle in the Sky. Kiki’s Delivery Service. These are among my favourite films of all time. And they are all newly re-released on DVD this week from Disney.

I think writer/director/animator Hayao Miyazaki is an absolute genius and, after years and years of having to import his films through dubious channels we’re very lucky to finally have them available to us on home video. But I think it goes without saying that, while I’m pleased to have them in my home on DVD, I’d much rather have nice, new HD transfers on Blu-ray. Especially after seeing what Studio Ghibli‘s films can look like in high-def thanks to the brilliant Ponyo disc (read my full, gushing review here!)

All three of these Studio Ghibli films were previously released on DVD by Disney between 2003 – 2006. I compared the old discs with the new and discovered that all films are derived from the same transfers. Nothing new in that department. The feature discs themselves in each 2-disc set aren’t identical however, as there have been slight changes in trailers and menus. The greatest change you’ll find in these three new DVD sets is in the bonus feature department.

The second disc in each set features the bonus content and let me tell you, it’s a relative wealth of extras! Where the previous sets simply offered a storyboard-version of the film, these re-releases give you that and so much more. Utilizing the same design as the Ponyo disc, each bonus disc menu ushers you into “The World of Ghibli” which contains both the useless (but potentially fun for the under-5 set) interactive The World of Ghibli – Enter the Lands nonsense as well as The World of Ghibli – Behind the Studio – a series of short, candid interviews with Miyazaki, his composer Joe Hisaishi and producer Toshio Suzuki. The Hisaishi piece is, sadly, identical on each disc but aside from that, each little featurette is quite wonderful and almost worth the price of the upgrade for die-hard fans like myself.

Each bonus disc also features a film-related English subtitled sequence from The Scenery In Ghibli : Japan in Miyazaki’s Work / European Journey To Meet Miyazaki’s Work Blu-ray, which is an incredible addition to these US/Canadian DVDs!

All of the bonus features from the old DVDs have been carried forward, save for the inclusion of the credit-less opening and closing animation of Totoro.

Watching the Totoro, Kiki and Castle DVDs on my new Samsung LN40B750 made it quite clear that these films are not yet ready for Blu-ray. A lot of work is going to have to be done to get the films in shape for HD. Especially since we’ve now seen Ponyo on Blu-ray and know how brilliant these films can look in 1080p. If the rumours are to be believed, Miyazaki’s Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind will be making its way to Blu-ray this summer in Japan. I’ve got my fingers crossed that a North American release will follow quickly on its heels.

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If you follow The Blu-ray Blog at all, I’m sure you’ve gathered that I’ve been waiting ages to get my hands on this disc. I’ve been following Ponyo (Gake no Ue no Ponyo, literally “Ponyo on the Cliff“) since before it was released in Japanese theatres in July of 2008 (writing about it for FPS Magazine too!) I’ve posted articles on the Japanese Blu-ray release, the North American disc and even a now-dated rundown of Studio Ghibli on Blu-ray. To say I’m excited to finally have Ponyo in my Blu-ray disc player is a bit of an understatement. And I’ve got to tell you, for the most part, I’m not let down by this release. Let me start with the good stuff.

The film itself is pure genius. As is everything creator Hayao Miyazaki touches. It’s very possible that I can’t be impartial here, as I’m such a fan of his work but Ponyo is wonderful, understated family entertainment that’s damn near perfect in every way. It’s essentially the familiar story of Hans Christian Andersen‘s The Little Mermaid, given that special Ghibli touch that turns a simple fairy tale into anime magic. It’s crafted to appeal to very small children but loaded with adult themes (the environment is always concern in Miyazaki’s work) and touches that hearken back to the director’s previous works. Much like My Neighbour Totoro and Kiki’s Delivery Service before it, Ponyo leaves you with an enchanted, magical feeling, like you’ve just seen the world through the fresh eyes of a child – a flavour of film making that, in my experience, only Miyazaki seems fully capable of harnessing.

Like I said off the top, Ponyo is absolutely stunning on Blu-ray. I would go so far as to say perfect. Yeah. Ponyo looks perfect! I’ve never seen anything look this slick in HD. I can’t find a fault! The audio, on the other had, is an issue for me. While the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 English dub does sound spectacular, nearly matching the quality of the video encode, what irks me is the fact that the original language track (Japanese) is relegated to a mere, lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 track! Luckily, it’s pretty decent DD but it doesn’t really hold a candle to the lossless DTS-HD. Sigh… One of these days, Disney, you’re going to see the light and understand that the people who buy these films on Blu-ray are the people who care about film and the quality of the presentation of the original material!

The discs special features are actually a lot better than I was anticipating. And they’re all in HD! I was expecting typical Disney-style kids-fluff here. And there is some of that, to be sure (the clumsy, interactive The World of Ghibli – Enter the Lands, which I’ll be happy to never endlessly click-through again!) but what surprised me is the amount of content that actually features Miyazaki discussing his work! The World of Ghibli – Behind the Studio is a series of short pieces that, when viewed in succession, run almost 45-minutes and feature a ton of behind-the-scenes footage of Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki himself, intercut with a lot of film and interview footage, some of which has been culled from the 12-hour long Ponyo Was Produced Like This – Hayao Miyazaki’s Thinking Process Blu-ray (a Japanese release without English dubbing or subtitles.) There is also a Ponyo-related 1080i, English subtitled sequence from The Scenery In Ghibli : Japan in Miyazaki’s Work / European Journey To Meet Miyazaki’s Work Blu-ray, which is an incredible addition to this US/Canadian disc.

If you’re a Miyazaki fan, as I am, and love to look at his artwork, even when it’s not moving, you’ll really enjoy the excellent picture-in-picture track on the Ponyo disc as it allows you to view all of the master’s hand-drawn storyboards as the film plays in the background! Amazing! Almost as good as a commentary track in this case. The Ponyo Blu-ray disc is rounded out with an introduction to the film by its American producers Frank Marshall and Kathleen Kennedy, previews of other Ghibli discs (sadly, all only available on DVD), trailers and BD-Live.

For a look at all the special features on the Japanese edition of the Ponyo Blu-ray read our previous article here: Studio Ghibli/Disney Ponyo Japanese Blu-ray Bonus Features, Release Date Confirmed

[flv:PONYO_DVD.flv 640 354]

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• Ponyo Blu-ray US/Canada March Release Date Confirmed (8)

Remember how we told you that it looked like My Neighbors the Yamadas would be the next Ghibli film to make it to Blu-ray? Well, it seems that Disney, Ghibli’s distributor has other plans. At the conclusion of an airing of the film on Japanese TV, the studio made the announcement that Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind would be the next Ghibli film to hit Blu! And it’s apparently going to be released this coming summer in Japan.

Now, that could mean any number of things for us. For certain, a plan is underway to bring all the Ghibli films to Blu-ray. Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment confirmed as much during the ceremony for the 2nd annual Digital Entertainment Group Japan Awards/Blu-ray Prizes where they earned the top award for their release of Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea (released December 8th in Japan.) What’s in question is the order that the catalogue titles will appear. And when and if we’ll see them on this side of the Pacific. Ghibli producer, Toshio Suzuki claims the next title up is Yamadas while Disney is claiming Nausicaä. To be honest, I’m happy either way. As long as the effort is being made to get Ghibli films onto Blu and the discs make their way here to North America I’ll be satisfied. I’m not holding my breath for a 2010 release though. If push comes to shove, I’ll import the Japanese releases. They may be expensive (think $80 US on average) but at least the discs include English subs and will play on my PS3.

Via: Anime News Network

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• Miyazaki’s Nausicaä US Blu-ray details and package art (1)
• Miyazaki’s Nausicaä announced for Blu-ray release in Japan (UPDATED) (6)
• Miyazaki’s Nausicaä announced for Blu-ray release in Australia and UK – US release soon? (2)
• Studio Ghibli Blu-ray Update: No Lossless Japanese Audio, Ponyo Sale on Amazon, Yamadas up next (2)
• Top 5 New Blu-ray releases for the Week of March 2 (1)

All right. We’re only a month and a bit away from finally getting our grubby little hands on the US/Canadian edition of the Ponyo Blu-ray. I can barely contain my excitement. Seriously! But a couple of days ago I found out (via these great sites) that the Japanese language track on the disc will not be lossless. Only the English dub is receiving the royal treatment!

Seriously, Disney!?! Don’t you guys learn anything? We had to suffer this same poorly made decision in your recent batch of martial arts film releases on Blu (see our Ultimate Force of Four Blu-ray boxed set review) where all the original language audio tracks were compressed in 5.1 Dolby Digital. I mean, I know you’re proud of your new English dub and all but the audience who is buying Blu-ray right now is also the audience who will want to experience these films in their original language! Trust me, the kids don’t care whether they watch the film on DVD or Blu, or with compressed or uncompressed audio. For them to enjoy it, the film need only be watchable and in English. That’s all. It’s the enthusiasts, the otaku who care about formats here. It’s the Blu-ray and film fans who want these movies presented in their original audio, in the best format possible. There’s still time to come to your senses, Disney! Give us a Japanese audio track in DTS-HD Master Audio!

Sorry for the rant (I’m sure the suits at Disney feel properly scolded now!) If this less than grand news about the Ponyo Blu-ray hasn’t put you off the disc and you still plan to pick it up come March 2nd, you might want to take advantage of this special offer at Amazon.com:

“For a limited time, pick up Miyazaki’s latest masterpiece Ponyo on DVD or Blu-ray with another classic Studio Ghlibi release and save $10. To receive the $10 discount, add both titles to your cart and enter the promotional code “PONYOTEN” at checkout.
Order the special edition 2-Disc DVD gift set of Ponyo with a plush toy along with one of the Studio Ghlibi titles below and save $12. To receive the $12 discount, add both titles to your cart and enter the promotional code “PONYOSPE” at checkout.”

And finally, to those of you who, like me, are dissapointed that we haven’t heard rumblings of more Ghibli on Blu-ray lately, we’ve got this rumour from our friends over at The Ghibli Blog.com:

“According to (Producer, Toshio Suzuki’s) comment in the radio show, Ghibli’s next BD is Yamada (My Neighbors the Yamadas). This is not official announcement.”

My Neighbors the Yamadas is a great film by Isao Takahata. And while I’d be happy to see it on Blu I’d much rather get some of his partner, Miyazaki‘s best films on the format first! And seeing as Disney is re-releasing Totoro, Laputa and Kiki on DVD along with Ponyo, perhaps these amazing movies will top the list!

An otaku can dream…

Related posts

• Miyazaki’s Nausicaä US Blu-ray details and package art (1)
• Miyazaki’s Nausicaä announced for Blu-ray release in Japan (UPDATED) (6)
• Miyazaki’s Nausicaä announced for Blu-ray release in Australia and UK – US release soon? (2)
• Miyazaki's Nausicaä to be the next Ghibli Blu-ray release? (3)
• Top 5 New Blu-ray releases for the Week of March 2 (1)