Subject: RETROSPECTIVE: THE CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO (1980)

From: [email-masked] (Modemac)
Date: 21 Nov 1996 21:17:14 GMT

THE CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO
                       A film review by Modemac
                        Copyright 1996 Modemac

Hayao Miyazaki is best known as the director of MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO, smash hit
Japanese animated film.  It was subsequently released by Fox Video here in
America, though because it's not a Disney film, it's still largely unknown to
audiences in this country.  This is a pity, because TOTORO is a wonderful movie
for young audiences.  It defies the anime stereotypes involving robots, demons,
samurai warriors, women with tight clothes and huge breasts, and lots of graphic
violence, and above all it is a fun, entertaining movie.  Miyazaki's movies have
all been aimed at the "family" audience, and his stories are often full of
comedy, exciting action, and energy; on the Internet mailing list for discussion
of Miyazaki's works, he is often referred to as "The Steven Spielberg of Japan."

Miyazaki had created and produced many animated series and movies before the
success of TOTORO, however.  Among other works such as SHERLOCK HOUND, NAUSICAA,
and LAPUTA: CASTLE IN THE SKY, he was responsible for the adaptation to TV of a
highly popular comic series by Monkey Punch called "Lupin III," and in the late
1970s he produced an animated TV series based on the character.  Many episodes
of the series were produced, along with two animated movies: THE FUMA CONSPIRACY
and THE CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO.  CAGLIOSTRO received a stroke of good fortune:  it
was screened at the Cannes Film Festival in 1980, where it enchanted audiences
and gained a reputation of its own.  (Rumor has it that Spielberg himself saw
the movie at Cannes, reportedly enjoying it immensely.)

Streamline Pictures obtained the rights to release THE CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO on
video in the United States, and a subtitled print of the movie was screened at
several art houses across the country.  A dubbed version of the film was
released on video in 1992, and copies of this video can still be found with
various video companies.  The dubbing job is sufficient, in that there are no
lines of dialogue that make the viewer wince; the lip-synching is quite good.

"Lupin III" is a fine animated series, but THE CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO stands out
as its high point, and a high point of Japanese animation as a whole.  It's an
exciting, hilarious, cartoony romp packed with memorable characters, delightful
animation, and enough thrills and cliffhangers to rival the Indiana Jones and
James Bond series.  The animation is every bit the equal of Disney's productions
of the late 1970s and early 1980s, and it avoids most of the anime clichés as
well.  (There's a samurai here, but no demons.)

The hero of the story, "Wolf" (the English translation of "Lupin"), is the
world's greatest thief: he's a clever, ingenious trickster with an arsenal of
gadgets, who is always one step ahead of his enemies...yet he can't help jumping
into a new adventure to save the life of a pretty girl.)  This concept is
similar to Columbia Pictures' LONE WOLF series of the 1930s [based on Louis
Joseph Lance's character], and the character may have been taken from there.)
He finds himself caught up in a fiendish plot involving counterfeit money, a
hidden treasure, a princess locked away in the highest tower of a castle, and
the evil Count Cagliostro, who intends to marry the princess and reunite the two
halves of their long-separated family.

Unlike many Japanese animated films, THE CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO doesn't take
itself seriously, instead devoting itself to giving the audience a fun
roller-coaster ride.  The plot is complicated, but not overly so (prolonging the
climax too far is a common fault with anime), and the supporting cast of Wolf's
friends and enemies have been well-developed by this time, so that they stand
out on their own and seem lifelike and believable.

One notable scene has Wolf surrounded by about two hundred bad guys, all with
their blades pointed at his throat -- but Wolf remains calm and undisturbed,
still in control of the situation.  Aplomb of this sort doesn’t occur very often
on the screen, especially in cartoons.  Wolf is a worthy descendant of Bugs
Bunny; this makes him more than a mere two-dimensional “hero” figure.

Added to the plot are outlandish car chases, gunfights, battling ninjas, scuba
diving, dark inescapable dungeons, lots of explosions, and lots of laughs.  This
film uses the reality-defying tricks of the animated film to give us great
slapstick, death-defying stunts, impossible physics (how'd you like to drive
your car along the side of a cliff?), and characters who heal from near-fatal
wounds in the space of one day.  It's a good thing they do, too, otherwise
they'd never be able to survive the furious action of this wild ride...and still
escape from the clutches of Inspector Zenigata, the police inspector who is
obsessed with capturing Wolf once and for all.  (Shades of THE PINK PANTHER.)
The final climax of the film takes place inside a huge clock tower, and though
the final resolution doesn't blend with all of the funny action scenes
beforehand, it still satisfies and leaves the viewer smiling.

Miyazaki's company, Studio Ghibli, signed a distribution contact with Disney in
1996, and Disney now has the distribution rights to all of his films.  His fans
are hoping that this means his older films, such as CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO, will
be translated and released on video in America, though so far there haven't been
any signs of that.  At the time of this writing (November 1996), there is no
word of a new video release of CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO; this means that people
wanting to watch this movie will have to search for the dubbed video release
from Streamline Pictures. 

Fortunately, this is a movie worth searching for.

--
                 Reverend Modemac ([email-masked])
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