I've always liked anime, but have only ever scraped the very surface when it comes to watching any. While going through one of life's rough patches I visited my good friend Josh Keighley (of the books podcast on here) and we watched The Wind Rises together. The beautiful animation, the messages, the music, it was like a warm hug, I felt instantly better. I decided there and then I was going to make it my mission over the next few months or so to watch all the Studio Ghibli films in release order, to keep chasing that high. I'll be presenting them here in sets of three, and attempting to rank them as I go along (hey, I just like ranking things). Let us begin with the first three Studio Ghibli movies.

Officially, Laputa: Castle in the Sky is the first Studio Ghibli film, though I know there are others before made by Ghibli directors before the studio was formed. Castle in the Sky follows a young orphan named Sheeta who gets kidnapped by one of the film's best characters, the pirate leader Dola, and meets fellow orphan Pazu. Together they try to find the magical city of Laputa, which allegedly floats in the sky.

This film surprised me. It's an action packed adventure that rarely lets up over its 2 hour 15 minute running time. The animation is absolutely gorgeous, the soundtrack suitably epic and yet pretty, but what really set the film apart for me was the character interactions. I loved Pazu and Sheeta's relationship, and any scene featuring Dola's pirate gang was a complete joy. The film definitely has themes of protecting the nature in our world and has the common anti-corporation/big business angle which I expect will come up in future Ghibli films too. Honestly, this is just a great action-adventure film, and I'd say pretty much anyone would enjoy this film. It's just a damn good time.

8/10

Directed by Isao Takahata The Grave of the Fireflies follows Seita who is left to look after his little sister Setsuo as a result of the war. It's a heartbreaking tale of children having to grow up too fast, homelessness and the futility of war.

This was by no means an easy watch and certainly not one I'll be rewatching in a hurry because of just how heavy it is. However I firmly believe that anyone with even a slight interest in anime should not miss this. The animation is stunning as always and the story is paced beautifully. A delicate and yet emotionally brutal look at the effects of war. I cried, possibly twice.

9/10

We're back to Hayao Miyazaki directing. This one features Ghibli's iconic mascot Totoro! The premise is a simple one: a father and his two daughters move into an old house in the country to be closer to their mother who is in hospital. It's a slice-of-life type film where the family settle into their new home and soon meet some mysterious forest creatures.

What can I say? This is one of my very favourite films and one of the few Ghibli films I've seen before. I love how there's no real plot, villain or good guy. The interactions when they first get to the farmhouse are so spot on I was taken right back to my own childhood, a crazy feeling of nostalgia, even when I'd never seen this film before. From then on we're taken on a fantastical journey with themes of nature and community, and the fact that the very things that most define us, are what we're losing. I can't think of another film that nails that feeling of being a child as well as this one. A warm hug of a film (yes I know that's the second time I've said that, but it's just true) that kept a stupid childish grin on my face for its entire duration. A truly magical masterpiece.

10/10

So here we are. 3 films down. I promised I'd rank them as I go along so here goes:

1. My Neighbour Totoro

2. Grave of the Fireflies

3. Laputa: Castle in the Sky

Thanks for reading and I'll catch you next time for the next 3 Ghibli films: Kiki's Delivery Service, Only Yesterday and Porco Rosso.