Being a fan of both Ghibli movies and the Earthsea books, I went to see this movie the day it was released. I enjoyed the movie, but had mixed feelings about a number of things about it.
Animation-wise the movie was excellent. It had all the feel of a Ghibli movie, complete with characters that look like exact copies of characters from older movies. There was just one problem; the art and animation seemed to get very bad at times (the most noticeable is in a little scene with two ladies talking about Tenar), but it's good where it counts, so I wasn't complaining.
The story is where the mixed feelings came in. The story seemed to mix The Farthest Shore and Tehanu together in order to make a more epic and fast-paced story-line. That might have worked out, but much of the book's story went missing, having on the bare-bones of the story is there, and any slow-paced portions changed or eliminated. The change I had the biggest problem is that Ged and Arren met by chance in the movie, instead of Arren seeking him out, and Ged asked Arren if he wanted to join him. It gives them a very shallow, and kind of pointless relationship, and makes Arren kind of motiveless. The whole story takes place in Hort Town, which works out well, but as one might suspect, that itself eliminates a lot of the story. Tenar lives on the outskirts of town, and Cob inhabits a castle in town. The story moves quick and many things come without explanation, which alienates those who haven't read the books (and I doubt anybody in Japan has read the books prior to seeing the movie).
It seems very obvious while watching the movie that the director tried very hard to imitate his father's work. For anyone who has seen the Miyazaki movies, they will easily be able to recognize parts of the movie as being very similar to other Ghibli films. A lot of this is good, but some of it comes off as "trying too hard." The result is a lack of humor, very straight-forward story, and somewhat shallow characters.
Like I said, I enjoyed the movie. It was a good effort, but it's hard to get things right on your first try. I still enjoyed it. Great music though.
Animation-wise the movie was excellent. It had all the feel of a Ghibli movie, complete with characters that look like exact copies of characters from older movies. There was just one problem; the art and animation seemed to get very bad at times (the most noticeable is in a little scene with two ladies talking about Tenar), but it's good where it counts, so I wasn't complaining.
The story is where the mixed feelings came in. The story seemed to mix The Farthest Shore and Tehanu together in order to make a more epic and fast-paced story-line. That might have worked out, but much of the book's story went missing, having on the bare-bones of the story is there, and any slow-paced portions changed or eliminated. The change I had the biggest problem is that Ged and Arren met by chance in the movie, instead of Arren seeking him out, and Ged asked Arren if he wanted to join him. It gives them a very shallow, and kind of pointless relationship, and makes Arren kind of motiveless. The whole story takes place in Hort Town, which works out well, but as one might suspect, that itself eliminates a lot of the story. Tenar lives on the outskirts of town, and Cob inhabits a castle in town. The story moves quick and many things come without explanation, which alienates those who haven't read the books (and I doubt anybody in Japan has read the books prior to seeing the movie).
It seems very obvious while watching the movie that the director tried very hard to imitate his father's work. For anyone who has seen the Miyazaki movies, they will easily be able to recognize parts of the movie as being very similar to other Ghibli films. A lot of this is good, but some of it comes off as "trying too hard." The result is a lack of humor, very straight-forward story, and somewhat shallow characters.
Like I said, I enjoyed the movie. It was a good effort, but it's hard to get things right on your first try. I still enjoyed it. Great music though.