Anime fans can beef up their collections with today’s release of three favorites from award-winning Japanese animation house Studio Ghibli, including a pair from Academy Award-winning director Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away). Studio Ghibli has teamed up the Walt Disney Home Entertainment to present two-disc special edition DVDs of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, Porco Rosso and The Cat Returns, each sold separately.
Written and directed by Miyazaki, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind takes place thousand years after a great war and is set in a seaside kingdom known as the Valley of the Wind, one of the only areas that remains populated. Led by the courageous Princess Nausicaä, the people of the valley are engaged in a constant struggle with powerful insects that guard a poisonous jungle spreading across the Earth.
The English-language cast which includes Alison Lohman (Matchstick Men), Patrick Stewart (X-Men), Uma Thurman (Kill Bill ), Edward James Olmos (TV’s Battlestar Galactica) and Shai LaBeouf (Holes). Bonus materials include a featurette titled The Birth Story Of Studio Ghibli.
Also from the imagination of Miyazaki, Porco Rosso tells the story of a valiant World War I flying ace whose face has been transformed into that of a pig by a mysterious spell. When he infuriates a band of sky pirates with his aerial heroics, the pirates hire a comical rival pilot, to get rid of him. On the ground, the two compete over the affections of Gina, a beautiful cabaret singer.
The English-language version of Porco Rosso features the voice talents of Michael Keaton (Batman), Brad Garrett (TV’s Everybody Loves Raymond), Susan Egan (Spirited Away), Kimberly Williams (TV’s According To Jim) and David Ogden Stiers (Lilo & Stitch). Extras include a an interview with Studio Ghibli producer Toshio Suzuki.
Directed by Hiroyuki Morita, The Cat Returns tells the story of Haru, a bored schoolgirl whose world is turned upside down when she saves the life of an unusual cat. She embarks on an unexpected journey to the Kingdom of Cats where her eyes are opened to a whole other world and her destiny is uncertain.
Headlining the English-language version are Anne Hathaway (The Princes Diaries), Cary Elwes (Ella Enchanted), Peter Boyle (TV’s Everybody Loves Raymond), Elliott Gould (Ocean’s Eleven), Andy Richter (Elf), Rene Auberjonois (The Princess Diaries) and Tim Curry (The Wild Thornberrys Movie).
All three films include brand-new English-language dubbing, as well as the original Japanese-language track. Each also includes complete storyboards, the original Japanese theatrical trailers and Behind The Microphone featurettes with the voice casts. The individual two-disc sets are available now for the suggested retail price of $29.99.
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