Super Awesome Studio Ghibli Marathon, Part 4

Oh, the crazy.  Not only did I tackle National Novel Writing Month, but then I discovered that a local theater was playing a chunk of Studio Ghibli movies (each for only a couple days), and how often does that happen?   So I made it work.  Somehow.

b Whisper of the Heart: Oh, Country Roads.  I love it when someone just gets obsessed with a song and uses it in some other medium.  This one is STs favorite, I think, and I really loved it, too.  It was nice to see it all in it's inspiring, romantic, and awkward glory.  I like how it's kind of open-ended.  I mean, you hope they'll keep their promise and stuff, but you don't really know.  I like how the kids inspire each other.  And the Baron is pretty great, as was that clock.  I like how there's always a family in the background and some normal family troubles to ground the fantasy elements.  I got kind of choked up.

b Only Yesterday: This one had some odd animation.  There was something off about the main character's face when she smiled; it was just a little creepy.  I had some trouble following the time jumps, and it took me an embarrassingly long time to realize the flashback family was the older girl's past.  It was late, and that probably made things seem more confusing.  Anyway, what an odd duck this film was.  It was one of the most Japanese Ghibli films, I think, grounded with almost ruthless firmness in history and nature.  Maybe this is why Disney never released it here?  I can't tell you how much I wanted to slap those horrible, petty, spiteful older sisters when they spiked her chance to finally do something she was good at.  Dividing fractions.  Sigh.  I learned quite a bit about all sorts of things that will never help me win on Jeopardy. : )