Miyazaki Countdown Part 3 - Castle in the Sky

Hello everyone and welcome to Some Like It Scott's second Countdown miniseries on 2023, a podcast first focusing entirely on the works of Japanese animator, Hayao Miyazaki: the Miyazaki Countdown. To honor one of the living legends of animation, the countdown crew of Scott, Scott, and Jay will watch all 11 of Miyazaki's films to-date, rewinding all the way back to his directorial origins with 1979's action-adventure heist thriller LUPIN III: THE CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO, all the way to his then-final film, 2013's biographical epic romance drama, THE WIND RISES. Join us each week over the next 11 weeks, as we build up to what is Miyazaki's self-proclaimed now-final film (we'll see...), the fantasy epic, THE BOY AND THE HERON.

 

In Part 3 of the Miyazaki Countdown, Scott, Scott, and Jay discuss Hayao Miyazaki's first official Studio Ghibli film: the 1986 fantasy adventure anime film, CASTLE IN THE SKY. Written and directed by the Japanese master, CASTLE IN THE SKY immediately thrusts viewers into the action, as a gang of air pirates led by a woman named Dola infiltrate a government airship carrying a prisoner aboard named Sheeta. Dola's gang incapacitates Sheeta's handler, a government operative named Muska, but in an attempt to escape capture, Sheeta falls off the side of the airship. In midair, however, the precious crystal Dola's gang was attempting to steal activates and slows Sheeta's fall, until she gently lands in the arms of Pazu, a young local miner, who takes her to his home for her to rest and recover. The next day, as Sheeta and Pazu get to know each other and their shared connection to a mysterious floating city in the sky called Laputa, Dola's gang arrives at their doorstep and pursues them, with the military in toe, led by Muska. It's a race to recapture Sheeta and find out exactly what her mysterious crystal's powers are and whether they ultimately lead to the fabled castle in the sky. The countdown crew share their thoughts on Miyazaki's third outing, how he continues to set a standard for the genres he explores, and the particular magic of his template for fantasy-adventure.