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DVD Description
As civilization draws ever nearer to their idyllic forest home, a group of mischievous Japanese raccoons try to scare humans away. But they soon discover that man is not their only rival in their struggle for their age-old territory. Released in 1994 as the Japanese economy slumped, but looking back to the sixties construction boom in Tokyo’s Tama Hills, Pom Poko questions the money grabbing ethics of yuppie Japan, and mourns the loss of the countryside. Drawing on Japanese myths and legends, writer and director Isao Takahata presents a satirical view of woodland spirits using every available magical ruse to take on modern developers: including transformations sabotage and trickery. Pom Poko is a unique window into Japanese folklore, a comedy of modern failings, and an elegiac tale of unlikely heroes fighting insurmountable odds.
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Crossing boundaries, divding opinion, multiplying enjoyment!!!,
By
This review is from: Pom Poko [DVD] (DVD)
`Pom Poko' was one of those Studio Ghibli films I decided to leave to last in my purchase of the entire collection on DVD, mainly due to the majority of reviews here on Amazon, which generally consist of less enthusiastic comments in comparison to other more commercially succesful features released by this renowned Japanese studio. But having finally watched the film for myself I'm even more surprised by the uncomplimentary reviews, because in both style and story I found `Pom Poko' to be absolutely flawless.
The film has magic galore and an original ecological morality tale at its heart, which is in the same vein as `Nausicaa: Valley of the Wind' and `Princess Mononoke' with their man versus nature overtones, but `Pom Poko' is a very different animal in its own right- a raccoon in fact! There's also a real intelligence to the script, which is aided enormously by its boundlessly playful and at times poignant sense of humour. The story is also extremely well plotted and has a sublime narration throughout that helps to make `Pom Poko' one of the most engaging Ghibli films I've yet seen. The narrator's voice and a couple of the other characters are recognisable as being provided by American actors, albeit lesser known ones than the customary band of A-list celebrities Studio Ghibli usually employs. But the characterization never suffers and being an ensemble piece I'd have to say that I think it's actually preferable, so that the audience sympathises with all of raccoon-kind, as they band together to thwart humanity's encroachment into their forest with increasingly inventive plans of attack. Once again I'm moved to award five stars to this uniquely enjoyable Studio Ghibli release, not because it's as accomplished as the very best that Ghibli has to offer, but because in its own right `Pom Poko' succeeds and then some! Superb.
41 of 45 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Pom poko pom poko pom!,
By A Customer
This review is from: Pom Poko [DVD] (DVD)
This film is a commentary on the out of control suburbs swallowing the countryside round Tokyo. It uses popular Japanese folklore to put across an anti-development message.Tanuki are Racoon Dogs, native to Japan and in the film they struggle to stop the destruction of their forest by using their powers of transformation to try to scare away the humans. "Pom poko" refers to the sound Tanuki make to frighten wayfarers by drumming on their stomachs. The animation is very special, but the many cultural references and long length (just shy of 2 hrs) mean this film requires perseverence. The film has a kind of "Babe the sheep-pig" narration, which is good, and some funny scenes where the Tanuki try to learn their art and blend in to human society. Imagine Watership Down, but with the rabbits up for a bit of sabotage rather than moving home. Although it features fluffy forest creatures, they aint Yogi bear (though they look a bit like him when they get happy!). They are quite prepared to wipe out a few construction workers for their cause. Past english dubs have tried to gloss over some of the more earthy details. Real-life Tanuki are well known in Japan for their large balls, which were translated for the original Disney release to "pouches". These feature quite heavily in the film, ahem, sometimes literally so - as they are used to crush opponents! Overall quite interesting if you want to learn about another culture, and great if you are into animation. Perhaps not so good if you want light family entertainment.
20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A superbly drawn and colourful, dynamic and magical tale,
By
This review is from: Pom Poko [DVD] (DVD)
It's not Spirited Away, but for likers of Ahime it's a good choice. Beautifully drawn with some absolutely breathtaking, wonderful scenes of glittering colour it's very watchable to any anime fan and many others too; children in particular will enjoy this. Moreover it's largely free of Disneyfication;it's cheesy but more original than most Hollywood cartoons and has a freshness about it that makes it accessible to more than just kids. The issues are often adult-I won't list them because such breakdown of this kind of film defies the entire point of it, and the characters are sympathetic and engaging, often humorous, while the plot is at times playful, at times sad and at times bleak and dark in a way that Hollywood just isn't. On the other hand, its greatest attribute is its ability to make one believe and hope that there is more to this world than meets the eye and that our lives may be touched by something outside our senses, by different experiences and by things beyond the realms of the physical.
All in all, a beautiful experience, albeit one that is full of gaping plot holes where the director's message about environmentalism isn't all that clear, and very worth watching, particularly if you can get it in Japanese with subtitles.
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