Product Details

• Actors: Daveigh Chase, Suzanne Pleshette, Miyu Irino, Kirsten Dunst, Minami Takayama
• Directors: Hayao Miyazaki
• Writers: Hayao Miyazaki, Eiko Kadono
• Producers: Hayao Miyazaki, Donald W. Ernst, Eiko Tanaka, Hideo Ogata, Isao Takahata
• Format: Double CD, NTSC
• Language: Japanese
• Number of discs: 6
• Rated: G (General Audience)
• Studio: Walt Disney Home Video
• DVD Release Date: April 22, 2003
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (45 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00008UA4E
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #218,498 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Miyazaki 3 Pack (Spirited Away/Castle in the Sky/Kiki's Delivery Service)" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Spirited Away
The highest grossing film in Japanese box-office history (more than $234 million), Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away (Sen To Chihiro Kamikakushi) is a dazzling film that reasserts the power of drawn animation to create fantasy worlds. Like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz and Lewis Carroll's Alice, Chihiro (voice by Daveigh Chase--Lilo in Disney's Lilo & Stitch) plunges into an alternate reality. On the way to their new home, the petulant adolescent and her parents find what they think is a deserted amusement park. Her parents stuff themselves until they turn into pigs, and Chihiro discovers they're trapped in a resort for traditional Japanese gods and spirits. An oddly familiar boy named Haku (Jason Marsden) instructs Chihiro to request a job from Yubaba (Suzanne Pleshette), the greedy witch who rules the spa. As she works, Chihiro's untapped qualities keep her from being corrupted by the greed that pervades Yubaba's mini-empire. In a series of fantastic adventures, she purges a river god suffering from human pollution, rescues the mysterious No-Face, and befriends Yubaba's kindly twin, Zeniba (Pleshette again). The resolve, bravery, and love Chihiro discovers within herself enable her to aid Haku and save her parents. The result is a moving and magical journey, told with consummate skill by one of the masters of contemporary animation. --Charles Solomon

Castle in the Sky
Inspired by "Gulliver's Travels," the fantasy-adventure Castle in the Sky (1986) was Miyazaki's third feature, and helped to establish his reputation as a visionary in both Japan and America. The orphan Sheeta inherited a mysterious crystal that links her to the legendary sky-kingdom of Laputa. With the help of resourceful Pazu and a rollicking band of sky pirates, she makes her way to the ruins of the once-great civilization. Sheeta and Pazu must outwit the evil Muska, who plans to use Laputa's science to make himself ruler of the world. Castle echoes elements in Myazaki's earlier Nausicaä, and anticipates imagery in his later films, from My Neighbor Totoro to Spirited Away. Disney's new English dub, which features Anna Paquin (Sheeta), James Van Der Beek (Pazu) and Cloris Leachman (pirate matriarch Dola) is lively and close in tone to the original Japanese, if a bit talkier. The exciting flying sequences, appealing characters, and fantastic vision of a steam-powered future Jules Verne might have imagined make Castle in the Sky a must-have for fans of Japanese and Western animation. --Charles Solomon

Kiki's Delivery Service
In Kiki's Delivery Service, a 13-year-old girl meets the world head on as she spends her first year soloing as an apprentice witch. Kiki (Kirsten Dunst) is still a little green and plenty headstrong, but also resourceful, imaginative, and determined. With her trusty wisp of a cat Jiji (a gently subdued Phil Hartman) by her side she's ready to take on the world, or at least the quaintly European seaside village she's chosen as her new home. Miyazaki's gentle rhythm and meandering narrative capture the easy pulse of real life (even if his subject is a girl flying high upon a broomstick) and charts the everyday struggles and growing pains of his plucky heroine with sensitivity and understanding. Beautifully detailed animation and the rich designs of the picture-postcard seaside town of red-tiled roofs and cobblestone streets only add to the sense of wonder. This charming animated fantasy is a wholesome, life-affirming picture that doesn't speak down to kids or up to adults. --Sean Axmaker

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A child's sense of wonder captured on film, March 26, 2003

By 

Zack Davisson "japanreviewed" (Seattle, WA, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Miyazaki 3 Pack (Spirited Away/Castle in the Sky/Kiki's Delivery Service) (DVD)

These films are just.....Great. All three of them, "Spirited Away," "Kiki's Delivery Service," and "Castle in the Sky" are modern wonders, each of them a true work of art. Amazing. Wonderful. Spectacular. Phenomenal. Dig out a thesaurus and go to it.

Make no mistake, while Miyazaki is a master film director, internationally acclaimed and without a doubt the best Japanese director since Akira Kurosawa, this trio is no dull study for film students. Each movie is a exercise in splendor and capturing a child's sense of wonder on film. Miyazaki layers his simple stories with some much depth that the dance of lesson and entertainment is inspiring to watch in action.

Trademarks of a Miyazaki film include young female heroes, flying, non-descript European settings and environmental messages.

Spirited Away: Enter a world of pure imagination, like "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" or "Alice in Wonderland." Inspired by the classic tales of a child lost in fairyland, "Spirited Away" is breath-taking in it's scope and wonder, and beautiful to behold.

Castle in the Sky; The inspiration of Disney's "Atlantis," but superior in every way possible. A girl with no memory, and a magical jewel. A boy with no family, who loves her and will do anything to help her. Villains who are not villains. Friends who are not friends. Top this off with Miyazaki's environmental statements, and the magic of Laputa, the magical Castle in the Sky from Jonathon Swift's Gulliver's Travels.

Kiki's Delivery Service: A classic Miyazaki tale, resplendent with all of his hallmarks. A story with no villain and plenty of magic and charm. A coming-of-age story in every way. Some of his most spectacular flying animation.

You really cannot go wrong with this set. This is an artist at work, in the prime of his skills, making the kind of movies we all wish we had grown up with.

Parents Note - Miyazaki makes movies for children, and while there is a difference of standards in Japan and America, these movies can be watched without fear. "Kiki's Delivery Service" is probably best for the smaller kids, and my 4-year old niece absolutely adores it. "Castle in the Sky" might be a little older, but it is easy to understand and a delight for all ages. "Spirited Away" is a little bit more complicated, and might have some scary scenes, but is still a kid's film in every way.

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A masterful trio by Studio Ghibli, May 15, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Miyazaki 3 Pack (Spirited Away/Castle in the Sky/Kiki's Delivery Service) (DVD)

...although actually, these films were never intended to be anything of the sort ;).

Although Disney has shown an irritating hesitation to publicize or release the films they have purchased the US rights to from Studio Ghibli, this three-set is still most welcome. Spirited Away was my introduction to the studio's works, and is probably one of my all-time favorite movies. These three DVDs, although sparing on the extras, hold up to scrutiny, and I give them my heartfelt reccommendation.

Kiki's Delivery Service is a light-hearted tale that gently chides the world for its harshness, well nevertheless remaining optimistic and true to its form. Spirited Away is a heartfelt adventure, in which the main character does not face good or evil, but simply a need to adapt to a new world and a new set of rules, and to overcome their lesser attributes. And Castle in the Sky is a wonderful, vaguely Star-Wars-y adventure about a confused girl who is ready to meet her destiny.

Did you notice I just used the word 'heart' twice in three sentences? Well, these movies have a *lot* of heart to them, more so than any typical viewing from the House of Mouse. These aren't a packet of slickly-paced jokes, or an 'epic' tale of Good vs. Evil. They simply...are. And they shine for it.

Each DVD contains three language tracks...English, Japanese, and either French or Spanish (Spanish for Kiki, French for the other two). The English version comes with subtitles for the hearing impaired, true to the dub (which is slightly different from the original Japanese version, although not much). There are also literal subtitles for the Japanese track...they're big and obvious, if you even stop to follow any of the instructions or pay any attention at all.

Actually, I prefer the dub for Kiki's delivery service, and I think I might for Spirited Away, too. I haven't yet tinkered with the Japanese Castle in the Sky (which, by the way, was rescored...the original score was maybe one hour of original melodies for a two-hour movie. Ghibli decided that they might as well fix an old annoyance, and the new soundtrack is awesome). Disney did a very good job; the voice actors for the English versions managed to cover some sort of poorly chosen lines rather well.

The movies are, in short, not 'Disney-fied' at all, and if you find the English versions unsatisfactory, you can still experience the pure Japanese bliss. Good show, Disney. Now take a cue from these guys in Japan!

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific trio of masterpieces from a celebrated animator., August 23, 2003

By 

Jonathon Turner "Jon Turner" (Highland Park, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Miyazaki 3 Pack (Spirited Away/Castle in the Sky/Kiki's Delivery Service) (DVD)

Hayao Miyazaki's films are well known in Japan, but America has had little exposure to its films. PRINCESS MONONOKE received an excellent DVD release from Miramax three years ago, and just last year Fox Video released a barebones version of MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO, but other than these two films (as well as THE CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO), the catalog of Miyazaki's films on DVD has been rather skimpy. All of that is about to change, however, for Disney is (finally!) bringing Miyazaki's titles to the U.S. on DVD -- especially now that they have just been issued in Japan. And what better choices to start out with rather than three of his most popular (and most requested) films -- SPIRITED AWAY, KIKI'S DELIVERY SERVICE, and CASTLE IN THE SKY?

For those of you who don't know, you can read my reviews on each of these titles. Otherwise, here's a brief plot outline and impressions of each of them.

CASTLE IN THE SKY is an exciting action-adventure tale about two young orphans who team up to find the fabled lost island of Laputa, aided by air pirates and pursued by government agents. It's a lot of fun, with endearing characters, beautiful animation, spectacular music from Joe Hisaishi (composer for all of Miyazaki's movies save CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO, which was done by Yuji Ohno), and just the right amount of action, romance, and humor.

KIKI'S DELIVERY SERVICE, an ideal choice for small fry as well as grown-ups, focuses on the trials and tribulations of a young witch-in-training's quest for independence in a big city. It's funny, moving, and never dull to watch. The artistry is equally breathtaking, the characters are real people dealing with tangible emotions, and a message that should appeal to all ages.

SPIRITED AWAY, the (first ever for an Anime!) winner of the 2002 Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film, and arguably the jumpstart for the release of Miyazaki's films, is a surreal, gorgeously animated fable of a cute little girl and her struggle to rescue her parents from the spell of a greedy enchantress. If you haven't seen this movie yet, I suggest you do so now. It's something else. No, really.

These DVD releases features the following: great if not spectacular transfers, entertaining and extremely well done English dubs, and a handful of extras (mainly the SPIRITED AWAY DVD; the CASTLE and KIKI DVDs' extras are more than the PRINCESS MONONOKE DVD, but somewhat lacking in comparison to those on SPIRITED AWAY) to please newcomers and fans alike.

I understand that some folks have a problem with Disney's treatment of the movies--notably the inclusion of extra dialogue and music (in the case of KIKI'S DELIVERY SERVICE and CASTLE IN THE SKY), but I feel that the criticisms are unfair on various grounds. Miyazaki and his company have complete control over any musical alterations and transfers whatsoever, and NOT EVEN ONE SECOND FROM THESE FILMS ARE CUT. Plus, they've included the original Japanese language tracks with subtitles, to give fans the option to view these films the way they were released in its origin homeland. (KIKI is somewhat "dubtitled" and the subs on CASTLE are a little off at times, but only the most stubborn of purists won't overlook these shortcomings.)

So which version is better to watch? Honestly, I like both equally, and I don't necessarily recommend one over the other. Plus, rather than wasting time getting involved with ranting debates about the marketing mistakes Disney made with these films, I'd suggest watching these movies in whatever way you feel comfortable viewing them. Both the subtitled and the dubbed versions on all three of these titles are great entertainments, though getting the most out of the dubs may depend on what you bring with you to them. Whatever version you choose to watch, all three of these films are essentials to anyone's collection, animation or otherwise. In the words of Miyazaki admirer John Lasseter (head of PIXAR Animation Studios), who introduces each of these films on all releases, "YOU are lucky!"