The Old School Otaku Lounge

I'm sure most of you have already heard the news but it was confirmed today that Isao Takahata has passed away.

I made it a point to bring him up in almost every discussion about Ghibli I was involved in, to push against the perception that Ghibli was only Miyazaki. For a long time I've felt that he was criminally underappreciated (and largely only appreciated for Grave of the Fireflies, which to its credit is a phenomenal film). The man was definitely a legend. I'm sure with the retrospectives that'll come out over the next few weeks, more anime fans will realize this is the case if they didn't already know.

When I was in my late teens and I watched Only Yesterday for the first time, it hit me real hard despite being a cartoon aimed for more of a middle aged Japanese audience.

https://youtu.be/qu7Dw4NJmY4

Rest in peace.

A real talent, he had an amazing career & will definitely be missed.

In the documentary about Miyazaki, we can see a friendly rivalry between Miyazaki and Takahata. Each director is trying to make their movies better than the other. I think that rivalry helped to drive these two men toward excellence.

I must admit, I've not seen any of Takahata's films, which is a severe fault of mine, I admit. They are on the list, definitely. The only movie I don't want to see is Grave of the Fireflies. I know, I know, but I really, really don't need to see something that is going to crush me like that movie will.

Sometimes you want to be crushed, just to remind yourself that you can still feel.
Hm, A touch more morbid than I intended, but I hope the intent is there -_-;;;

runesaint wrote: ↑Sun Apr 08, 2018 5:43 pm Sometimes you want to be crushed, just to remind yourself that you can still feel.
Hm, A touch more morbid than I intended, but I hope the intent is there -_-;;;

Perhaps, but considering the film's topic, well... perhaps that's fitting.

I totally understand why people are shocked and dismayed by my refusal to see it. It's one of those things, though, where I just can't bring myself to watch it. If anything, it's a testament to the film's reputation.