Cassian Andor continues the path toward his heroic rebel destiny.

The second Season of the adventures of Cassian Andor set itself up really nicely as a Rogue One prequel, with good acting, nice plot twists and stunning visuals. Six popcorns and goes to the Movie Vault, next to the first season.

The wedding episode features one of the most unexpected and awesome songs in the whole Star Wars universe. Listen it here

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A struggling musician realizes he’s the only person on Earth who can remember The Beatles after waking up in an alternate reality where they never existed.

Great quirky movie with a ton of Beatles songs performed by Himesh Patel himself and gets four popcorns.

Also it has a great alternate ending, you can watch it on Youtube

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A love story between a girl who loves reading books, and a boy who has previously checked out all of the library books she chooses.

This is the last feature-length movie from the Laserdisc Collection, directed by Yoshifumi Kondō and based on a screenplay by Hayao Miyazaki. It’s a good and fun coming-of-age movie, and while it’s focusing on the life and love of the teenage protagonist, it throws in environmentalist themes as well. It was also nice to see the “Porco Rosso” reference on the clock, a movie where Yoshifumi Kondō did key animation. All in all, it’s an uplifting heartfelt story, nothing unexpected from a Studio Ghibli release. Five popcorns.

Also I found out this is where the Lo-Fi Girl was inspired stolen from.

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A community of magical shape-shifting raccoon dogs struggle to prevent their forest home from being destroyed by urban development.

Written and directed by Isao Takahata, this is such a funny and weird movie! Raccoons transforming in humans, transforming their balls into bridges, or other various things, this movie is bonkers from start to finish. While it features the suspension of disbelief in a lot of regards, the end result is an incredibly entertaining movie that will put a lot of smiles on your face, while drawing attention to its environmentalist story. I’m somehow happy I didn’t know about this until now, it made the first watch so enjoyable! Six popcorns.

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As a young man returns home after his first year away at college he recalls his senior year of high school and the iron-willed, big city girl that turned his world upside down.

This is one of the lesser known movies released by Studio Ghibli, and it’s pretty linear, direct, and anchored in reality. It shows a slice of life of high school teenagers, with their personal and interpersonal dramas, their fears, conflicts and problems. It’s well written and realistically made and it makes you reflect on your own high-school years and decisions. What it lacks in Miyazaki magic it makes up in relatability and authenticity, making this coming-of-age drama resist the test of time and being a strong movie on its own, worthy of the Studio Ghibli mark. Five popcorns.

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In 1930s Italy, a veteran World War I pilot is cursed to look like an anthropomorphic pig.

Another fantastic animation from Studio Ghibli, directed by Hayao Miyazaki. The story is simple, straight forward, with some tear jerking moments, the music is great, and the Japanese original voice actors are entertaining as always.

It gets six popcorns and a place into the Movie Vault.

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A twenty-seven-year-old office worker travels to the countryside while reminiscing about her childhood in Tokyo.

Directed by Studio Ghibli co-founder, Isao Takahata (who already directed Grave of the Fireflies), this is another movie anchored in reality, with the main protagonist facing memories of the past while discovers more about herself through nostalgia. Using flashbacks, it touches serious subjects, like a toxic family life, awful parents, environmentalism, puberty and personal relationships, while being fun and entertaining. The music is also connected to the reality, at some point being happy to notice the unmistakable pan flute of the great Gheorghe Zamfir. Another Studio Ghibli that I’ve seen for the first time, it gets six popcorns and goes into the Movie Vault with the others.

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Along with her black cat Jiji, Kiki settles in a seaside town and starts a high-flying delivery service. Here begins her magical encounter with independence and responsibility, making lifelong friends and finding her place in the world.

After the previous movie, this one is a breath of fresh air. It’s funny, it’s captivating, it throws magic right into your face from the beginning. I loved the representation of the city life and how odd Kiki seems in that world where she tries to find her place. A great coming-of-age movie that’s both heart-warming and insightful. This is the first Studio Ghibli that I’ve never heard about and it was a pleasant surprise to discover it. Six popcorns.

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A young boy and his little sister struggle to survive in Japan during World War II.

Yeah… About this… Even if I’ve already seen this a couple of times, last time about 10 years ago, this is still painful to watch. It’s the first Studio Ghibli serious movie and it’s a brainful. It’s grim, sad, brutal and realistic and hits like a fucking truck. It’s something I would never recommend to a child, but definitely recommend to an adult. The music is beautifully haunting and it highlights the sad and brutal reality of war, the movie being essentially a lesson in humanity and its fragility. I’m not sure if the popcorn rating would apply here, as this movie is not fun to watch, but it is a must-see one. Seven stars out of five, for a movie that is definitely one of the best war dramas of all time.

Why do fireflies have to die so soon?

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When two girls move to the country to be near their ailing mother, they have adventures with the wondrous forest spirits who live nearby.

I still remember seeing this back in 2015, it’s heartwarming and it tells a beautiful strong story the right way. The line between reality and fantasy is often crossed, just as any kid would naturally do and it is probably one of the best movies directed by Miyazaki in the 1984-1995 timeframe. There’s not much really to say about it, as I think it’s a worldwide classic, with a lot of good lessons to learn. I also love how this is more down to Earth than the previous two movies, less scientific and more fantastic, but with a tighter grip on reality and the human relationships. Seven popcorns for one of the best movies of all time.

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Pazu’s life changes when he meets Sheeta, a girl whom pirates are chasing for her crystal amulet, which has the potential to locate Laputa, a legendary castle floating in the sky.

Back at the end of 2015 and the beginning of 2016, I was in the middle of my “Watch all the IMDb Top 250 movies”, so naturally, I got into a streak of randomly ordered Studio Ghibli, and “Castle in the Sky” was one of them. It’s a very interesting thing how Hayao Miyazaki is basically the King Midas of animation and everything that he touches becomes gold, “Castle in the Sky” ending up to be simply a masterpiece. Fantasy, sci-fi, retro-futurism and steampunk/cyberpunk are mixed with a great soundtrack and together they tell a beautiful story. I love the motifs of huge flying megastructures in sci-fi and fantasy creations and this theme has been tackled in different ways over the centuries, in all formats, but Miyazaki wraps this up beautifully in a classic Studio Ghibli masterpiece. Six popcorns.

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Warrior and pacifist Princess Nausicaä desperately struggles to prevent two warring nations from destroying themselves and their dying planet.

A thousand years after the end of civilization as we know it, the world is completely changed I’ve seen this the first (and last time) back in 2015, so it’s a great time to re-watch it. The post apocalyptic universe is masterfully done (as one would expect from a Studio Ghibli movie), the story is well written and keeps you glued to the screen. I loved how Nausicaä is the personification of the harmony between human and nature against the environment degradation, represented by the Sea of Decay. Six popcorns, especially for Teto, the fox-squirrel.

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