Ponyo (Blu-ray) Official AVSForum Review

( Max score: 100 )

91

Film Synopsis:

A young boy named Sosuke rescues a goldfish named Ponyo, and they embark on a fantastic journey of friendship and discovery before Ponyo's father, a powerful sorcerer, forces her to return to her home in the sea. In her quest to become human and reunite with Sosuke, Ponyo stumbles upon and releases her father's magical Water of Life and triggers a gigantic storm. Now balance must be restored to the world they all cherish.

My Take:

Playing on the beach near his home, a five-year old boy named Sosuke (voiced by Frankie Jonas) finds a beautiful goldfish trapped in a bottle. He releases the tiny creature and, sure that she is no ordinary fish, names his new friend Ponyo (Noah Lindsey Cyrus). As Ponyo and Sosuke grow closer, she reveals to him that she is the daughter of a powerful wizard (Liam Neeson) and a sea goddess (Cate Blanchett), and magically transforms herself into a real human girl. But by crossing from her watery world onto land, Ponyo has created a dangerous imbalance in nature. As the moon begins to draw closer to the earth, sea levels rise and a giant tsunami threatens to destroy Sosuke's home. Ponyo's father marshals all his might to find his missing daughter, as the two children embark on an adventure of a lifetime to try and save the world.

I wasn't familiar with Hayao Miyazaki's work prior to this review but now have an appreciation for it. Inspired by the classic Hans Christian Andersen tale The Little Mermaid Ponyo incorporates a contemporary concern for nature while creating a bold, imaginative vision of a magical world from a child's perspective. The story is geared toward adolescents however it carries an environmental message that is noticeably aimed at adults. I didn't find that aspect of it to be objectionable and thought that its primary elements were entertaining, especially for the target audience. Fujimoto, Gran Mammare, and the sea itself present young viewers with larger than life characters while Sosuke and Ponyo can be easily identified with. There is just the right amount of adventure and peril to keep interest flowing while leading up to the requisite goal/ending which ties things up neatly. Hayao Miyazaki's hand drawn animation is exquisite as many of the backgrounds/static shots could easily double as standalone paintings. I was a little surprised that a lossless Japanese audio track was not included. I opted for the DTS-HD Master Audio English dubbed version and enjoyed the vocal performances by the cast. Ponyo is an endearing, charming and wholesome film that makes for entertaining family viewing.

Parental Guide:

This film is appropriate for all ages.

Audio: 86

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Video: 96

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Ponyo comes to Blu-ray Disc from Disney featuring 1080p AVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 30 mbps and lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio sound that has an average bitrate of 2.3 mbps.

This is a reference quality video presentation that looks stunning in high definition. Colors are beautifully crafted with vivid tonality and excellent delineation which I appear visually stimulating. Images have strong contrast, rich blacks and opulent depth. There is a pristine quality to the video that brings out the small intricacies inherent, in the film's animated design. Images are razor sharp with defining clarity and lucid resolution that is notably discerning. The DTS-HD Master Audio track features an engaging surround mix that presents a 360 degree sound field that makes excellent use of the surround platform. This mix is not the type that contains powerful low frequency transients or extended dynamics. Its strengths lie in its attention to detail and beautifully crafted music. Joe Hisaishi's music is the centerpiece of the surround mix and features well articulated instrumentation that doesn't rely on the power of the bass drum or timpani. It relies on the delicacy of instrumental presence which is mixed with the variety of sound effects to create an aurally resplendent surround experience. Dialogue is definitively authoritative with excellent clarity and room penetration through the center channel. Off camera directional cues and panning sequences are spot on which help create a believable and stable sound stage. The surrounds are actively engaged either in support of the music or to handle the films recorded elements. Low frequency effects were not in your face but there was enough bass present that it could be felt when appropriate. I thought this audio presentation sounded great.

Bonus Features:

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  Disc1:

  
  
• (HD) Disc introduction: Meet Ponyo
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• The World of Ghibli - Two features: Behind the studio & Enter the lands
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• (HD) Behind the studio:
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  2. A conversation with Hayao Miyazaki & John Lasseter - 4 minutes
     
  3. Creating Ponyo - 4 minutes
     
  4. Ponyo & Fujimoto - 3 minutes
     
  5. The Nursery - 2 minutes
     
  6. Producer's perspective: Telling the story - 2 minutes
     
  7. The locations of Ponyo - 9 minutes
     
  8. Scoring Miyazaki - 7 minutes
     
  9. Original Japanese trailers (2)
     
  10. Behind the microphone: The voices of Ponyo (English version)
  
  
• (HD) Other Ghibli worlds preview (8 minutes):
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  2. My neighbor Totoro: creating My neighbor Totoro
     
  3. Kiki's delivery service: creating Kiki's delivery service
     
  4. Castle in the sky: character sketches
  
  
• (HD) Enter the lands - Multi-layered interactive experience that features 4 lands to explore in Ponyo's world
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  Disc 2:

  
  
• Bonus DVD of Ponyo

Final Thoughts:

Ponyo is a charming and endearing animated film inspired by the Hans Christian Anderson tale of The Little Mermaid as derived from the wonderfully creative imagination of Hayao Miyazaki. This film is beautifully crafted and features visually stimulating images that look simply stunning in this high definition offering from Disney on Blu-ray Disc. Fans can delight in the supplemental features which explore not only the world of Ponyo but offer a behind the scenes look at the production, Ghibli Studios and the minds behind it. This two disc package which includes a Bonus DVD of Ponyo (the feature film) will make a great addition to the Blu-ray libraries of those that appreciate not only the work of Hayao Miyazaki but good animated family entertainment. Recommended.