The
Only Yesterday UK DVD has just japanese audio with english subtitles, as well; the upcoming release is the first time it will be dubbed in english.
It's definitely the 'hidden gem' of Studio Ghibli's catalog, and is my favorite of Isao Takahata's movies. Though it is mostly about a young girl growing-up in 1960s Japan (intercut with scenes of her 1980s 'mid-life crisis' as an adult), there are plenty of situations that are recognizable or relatable to people of any age .. or almost any country.
I first saw the movie at Anime Expo in 1996; a subtitled version that had been made especially for Japan Air Lines flights. It was a
late-night screening, with only about thirty people in the audience, but every one of us was enthralled with it .. and, after the climactic ending sequence -- into which I'm certain Miyazaki had
some input, on a 'brain trust' level -- there were tears (of joy!) everywhere. I bought the movie on japanese Laserdisc soon after .. and picked-up the UK DVD a few years ago, when it became obvious that Disney had no intentions of releasing it here.
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I received
The Collected Works of Hayao Miyazaki Blu-ray boxed set from Amazon earlier this week. I'm pretty happy with it!
The celluloid band that encircles the outer slipcase is
way too tight, though; it took a
lot of effort to slide it off .. and I'm not sure I could slide it back on any easier, so I'm just gonna leave it off.
The video and audio quality on the movies I've watched so far is excellent.
There are indeed no 'bonus features' on the movie discs (I've kept the DVDs in my video library .. so I still have access to those, in standard definition .. though, frankly, most of the stuff Disney touts as 'bonus features' on these titles doesn't much interest me). I haven't yet watched the bonus disc that comes with the BD set.
All-in-all, I feel it was 'worth' it, especially given the $85 discount I'd gotten while it was a 'Deal of the Day'.
