31. Master of the Imagination

G!

I have a small
Library of movies
From my childhood
That I had seen I don't
Know how many times,
Because when you're that
Young every movie seems
New no matter how many
Times you watch it. Most
Of those movies back then
Were Pixar or Disney, and
Then there's Spirited Away,
Which I Loved like A Bug's
Life or Toy Story, but never
Understood as much as those
Other movies until I got older;
I didn't catch on to the fact that Haku
Was a dragon until well past the halfway
Mark, I didn't understand why the river spirit
Was covered in sludge, and Chihiro's memory
Of getting saved from the river was lost on me.
Still, the things I didn't understand did little to
Detract from how awesome I felt the movie was.
And now it almost feels painful when I watch
Spirited Away again, because now I understand
It all, and the movie just becomes more and more
Relevant to life. Aside from Spirited Away, I was
Not introduced to the films of Hayao Miyazaki
Until 8th grade, when I saw Howl's Moving Castle
And was blown away by it. Incredible to say, the
8th grade me still did not understand everything
That occurred in the movie (and I had already
Caught the movie fever by then), but oh it was
A magnificent experience! After that, it's another
Year of silence until I happened upon Castle in the
Sky in 10th grade, and I became determined to seek
Out all of Miyazaki's films, I could have kicked my-
Self for missing out on so many amazing movies
For so long. Kiki's Delivery Service, Nausicaa of
The Valley of the Wind and Princess Mononoke
Quickly followed, as did My Neighbor Totoro and
Porco Rosso, capped off with Ponyo and The Castle
Of Cagliostro. The other films of Miyazaki's Studio
Ghibli I too had meanwhile watched in succession,
Brilliant movies like the lush Whisper of the Heart,
The quirky Pom Poko, and the very, very sad Grave
Of the Fireflies. Watching The Wind Rises last year,
The sadness I felt at the fact that Hayao Miyazaki
Had announced his retirement from filmmaking
Made the experience all the more bittersweet. One
Day, I hope to own a collection of Miyazaki's
Filmography. My favorite director of all time had
Been around all this time; it's ironic how I've only
Gotten to know him in the last 2 years. I find it
Difficult to delve into something I love so much, so
I'll do what a fanboy normally does: You should to
Watch the films of Hayao Miyazaki, and I mean all
Of them (there aren't even that many); every one of
His films is magnificent, inspired, and perfect; there
Is nothing that can be added to them to make them
Better. Beautiful scenery painted of watercolors, epic
Storytelling where everything falls into place, and
Thoroughly dynamic characters that leap off the
Animation into real life are the facts in a Miyazaki
Film. No other filmmaker of the present time had
So well utilized every aspect of the art of film, and
So immersed himself in the filmmaking process,
Than the undisputed master of imagination, my
Favorite director for all times, Hayao Miyazaki.