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The first feature film by the distinguished Hayao Miyazaki (Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away), The Castle of Cagliostro also marks the latest instalment in the hugely popular Lupin III animated TV series, of which Miyazaki had written and directed a number of episodes.
Here, our iconic super-thief Lupin pulls off a thrilling heist at a Monte Carlo casino, only to discover the spoils are counterfeit. Lupin traces the fake bills to the country of Cagliostro where an evil Count is generating forged money and distributing it worldwide. With partners in tow (including a retired gangster, a modern-day samurai, and a beautiful female thief) Lupin heads to Cagliostro where he also finds a promise of hidden treasure and Clarice, a beautiful Princess in need of rescuing from the Count’s dastardly clutches.
Maintaining the lineage of the Lupin III franchise, Miyazaki also imbues the proceedings with his customary wit, and sense of the romantic – Miyazaki’s heroes are always ready to come to the aid of a damsel in distress. Moreover, the film is lovingly detailed; with the storybook kingdom of Cagliostro being beautifully redolent of the director’s equally inspired later works.
Customer Reviews
So....
There are other editions of this film including streamline and manga editions.
This is the Optimum Asia release. This Optimum re-release marks a general improvement over the previous Manga edition. Whereas that version came without anamorphic enhancement and was essentially lacklustre in the visual department, here we find a fine clarity, superb colours and anamorphic transfer. That said, we also arrive at an NTSC-PAL conversation which results in some noticeable - if never overt - ghosting. The film remains watchable, but then this was never a problem with the Manga disc for all its other flaws. As for the soundtrack we arrive at both Japanese and English options in DD2.0 form. Both remain clean enough and technically sound though no doubt the purists will go for the Japanese original (which comes with optional English subtitles of the white variety, unlike some of Optimum's other Ghibli offerings). The English dub is the old Streamline edition and not the newer re-recording which appeared on the Manga disc. The Manga edition used David Hayter (the voice for Solid Snake in the Metal Gear Solid games) as the voice for Lupin, which I do think sounds better than Bob Bergen, who voices Lupin in this Optimum edition using the older streamline soundtrack.
This DVD edition still sounds great though and the voice acting is still brilliant. I would definately recommend it.
Cagliostro's Castle was my introduction to anime, and it's hard to imagine a better transition-- if this were live-action, it would be world-famous. The hero, Wolf (Lupin in Japanese, I believe), is a likeable rogue with impossible gadgets, a bizarre streak of chivalry and a determined policeman on his tail, and if that doesn't sound like a recipe for great fun I'm not sure what does. Throw in an eternally unruffled swordsman, a matter-of-fact sharpshooter, a refreshingly love-to-hate villain, a sassy lone agent and a beautiful 19-year-old damsel in distress, and you've got this amazing film, which mixes romance and action with comedy and doesn't waste a single minute.
One word of advice: get used to EITHER the subtitled OR the dubbed version, don't try to like both-- they seem to have been based on scripts at different stages of production, and as a consequence don't always match up even at crucial moments. If you speak fluent Japanese, fine.
Although it is true that the film lacks the flair and the individual charm that Miyazaki would develop throughout his later work for his famed Studio Ghibli, we can certainly see his unique style and his intuitive approach to character developing through the high-risk escapades found here. The Lupin III series focuses on the suave gentleman thief Arsène Lupin (distilled from the character found in Maurice Leblanc's long running series of novels... hence the lineage), who gets himself into all manner of scrapes and adventures whilst trying to readjust the economical balance. The film gets off to a great start with Lupin and his gang making a getaway from a robbery just pulled on the national casino of Monaco. When the gang discover that the haul has left them with a fortune in counterfeit cash, they head for the small European duchy of Cagliostro to lay low and investigate. However, once there, Lupin and his chums inadvertently stumble across a national conspiracy going back hundreds of years, and find themselves having to rescue the beautiful Clarice from the hands of the evil Count de Cagliostro, whilst, in the process, trying to solve the mystery of a hidden treasure dating back to the 15th century!!!
Although the plot outline sounds a little confusing (it might just be my poor description!!), the film itself is a great adventure, with Miyazaki showing early signs of his firm grasp of action (it is often said that a certain Steven Spielberg once called Cagliostro the greatest action movie ever made!!), as well as offering many great moments of piercing high-tension. As always, the director is just as capable of creating great scenes of drama (and even some subtle moments of pathos) as he is at creating the more high-octane moments, whilst always ensuring that the characters are likeable and totally believable in what they do.
The Castle of Cagliostro may seem a little out of place when viewed alongside the director's more iconic films, though that isn't to say that the film is without merit. Here Miyazaki shows his depth as a filmmaker, creating a rousing action adventure with great characters, some broad humour and a handful of memorable moments. It's probably not the best place to start for those new to Miyazaki's work (try Spirited Away or My Neighbour Totoro), but at the same time, it shows his development as a filmmaker, as well as offering a great story, and a more than welcome addition to the Lupin III canon.
Please forgive me for my poor writing.
I love to watch Japanese anime that has been dubbed into other languages. Read more
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