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Jul 12, 2012 12:46 AM
#1
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Jun 2012
15
I have been collecting feature-length (40+ minute) Asian animation movies since 2006. My current collection is pretty nice and I feel I have been successful in seeking out/tracking down new films.

Below I've listed my current collection. I am looking for new films to purchase. I am somewhat particular about what I buy.

- It can be from any Asian country: Japan, China, the Koreas, Taiwan

- It is preferable the film be 40 minutes in length, however I also enjoy anime featurette films 20 to 39 minutes in length

- I strongly prefer original/one-off anime films, that is: movies written for the screen and NOT based on any type of existing source material (novels, plays, manga, comics)

- If not original films, then my next preference is 'standalone' anime films, that is: if the movie is tied to a light novel, manga, anime series - it be entirely comprehensible and enjoyable on its own accord and would come with no disclaimer like "you should read the book first," "you should watch the anime first," "you will probably enjoy it but you may not fully understand what is going on if it's your first experience with this franchise" - the film should assume no prior knowledge of its source material

- If the film is nether original nor stands alone, but rather is adapted from an anime series or manga - please only suggest it if you think it's truly excellent enough to be worth my time and not just leave me lost

- I try to avoid films that were originally released as mini-series OVAs but are re-packaged as films in the U.S. To me, I go by its original intent so if it's a 2, 4, 6, whatever # episode OVA in Japan but sold as a film in the States, I'd rather it not be suggested - however OVA films that were always films are okay

And NO series - please & thank you!

So with those specifications, I hope I can discover some new films. My current choices were never blind buys but rather purchased after careful consideration so even though my collection ranges from slice of life and sci-fi to fantasy and action, I think it represents my tastes. Obviously I am not really into some genres such as Shonen, Shojo, Ecchi, Hentai, Magical Girl, Super Sentai, Harem, Yuri and so on.

I look forward to what new films you all may introduce me to. All films below were purchased on licensed DVD or Blu-ray, many are non-Region 1 imports. I do not support bootlegs.

5 Centimeters Per Second
Aachi and Ssipak
Ah, My Goddess!: The Movie
Akira
Animatrix, The
Animal Treasure Island
Angel's Egg
Appleseed (re-make)
Appleseed: Ex Machina
Barefoot Gen 1 & 2
Batman: Gotham Knight
Blood: The Last Vampire
Boy Who Saw the Wind, The
Brave Story
Catnapped!
Cat Returns, The
Cat Soup
Children Who Chase Lost Voices from Deep Below
Chinese Ghost Story (The Tsui Hark Animation), A
Dagger of Kamui, The
Dante’s Inferno
Dead Leaves
Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within
Fist of the North Star
First Squad
Galaxy Express 999
Genius Party
Genius Party Beyond
Ghost in the Shell
Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence
Girl Who Leapt Through Time, The
Golgo 13: The Professional
Grave of the Fireflies
Harmaggedon
Howl’s Moving Castle
Interstella 5555: The Story of the Secret Star System
Junkers Come Here
Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade
Kakurenbo
Kiki's Delivery Service
King of Thorn
Kite
Laputa: Castle in the Sky
Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro
Memories
Metropolis
Mezzo Forte
Midori
Millennium Actress
Mind Game
My Beautiful Girl, Mari
My Life as McDull
My Neighbor Totoro
My Neighbors the Yamadas
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
Neo Tokyo
Nezha Conquers the Dragon King
Night on the Galactic Railroad
Ninja Scroll
Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror
Ocean Waves
Origin: Spirits of the Past
Oseam
Only Yesterday
Panda, Go Panda!
Panda and the Magic Serpent
Paprika
Patlabor: The Movie
Patlabor 2: The Movie
Patlabor 3: WXII
Perfect Blue
Phoenix 2772
Place Promised in our Early Days, The
Pom Poko
Ponyo
Poro Rosso
Princess Mononoke
Project A-Ko
Redline
Roujin-Z
Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honneamise
Sea Prince and The Fire Child
Secret World of Arrietty, The
Sky Crawlers, The
SOS! Tokyo Metro Explorers: The Next
Space Adventure Cobra
Spirited Away
Spriggan
Spring and Chaos
Steamboy
Summer Days with Coo
Summer Wars
Sword of the Stranger
Tales from Earthsea
Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space
Taro: The Dragon Boy
Tekkon Kinkreet
They Were 11
Tokyo Godfathers
Tree of Palme, A
Urusei Yatsura: Beautiful Dreamer
Vampire Hunter D
Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust
Vexille
Visions of FRANK
Voices of a Distant Star
Welcome to the Space Show
Whisper of the Heart
Wind Named Amnesia, A
Wings of Honneamise
Wonderful Days (Sky Blue)
EfrazianJul 13, 2012 8:14 PM
Jul 12, 2012 3:03 AM
#2

Offline
Apr 2009
5194
Yobi, the Five-Tailed Fox
Colorful (the movie is not related to the TV series at all)
Hotarubi no Mori e
Piano no Mori
A Letter to Momo
From Up On Poppy Hill

and make note when for when it comes out: The Wolf Children Ame and Yuki

From your requirements, I imagine that the Macross Frontier movies are out? They are perfectly understandable as stand-alones and enjoyable, but there are two of them.
Jul 12, 2012 9:49 AM
#3
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Jun 2012
15
Into the Forest of Fireflies - Never heard of this one but it sounds great! Any idea if there is a licensed Blu-ray or DVD release with English subs out there?

The Piano Forest - this one was a distant blip on my radar, again - is there a legitimate release with subs?

Colorful - I really, really want to see this and have for some time but am waiting for it to get picked up for a release here.

Yobi, the Five-Tailed Fox - I am going to go buy this now. :D

A Letter to Momo - another film that has been floating around my "to watch" list once I can obtain a legal english sub or dub copy.

From Up On Poppy Hill / The Wolf Children Ame and Yuki - Ghibli and Hosoda are always on my radar!

Macross movies - no, not ruling these out. Been wanting to see "Do You Remember Love" for some time now, it always appears on "best of anime" lists.
Jul 12, 2012 10:38 AM
#4

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Apr 2009
5194
Efrazian said:
Into the Forest of Fireflies - Never heard of this one but it sounds great! Any idea if there is a licensed Blu-ray or DVD release with English subs out there?

The Piano Forest - this one was a distant blip on my radar, again - is there a legitimate release with subs?

Colorful - I really, really want to see this and have for some time but am waiting for it to get picked up for a release here.

Yobi, the Five-Tailed Fox - I am going to go buy this now. :D

A Letter to Momo - another film that has been floating around my "to watch" list once I can obtain a legal english sub or dub copy.

From Up On Poppy Hill / The Wolf Children Ame and Yuki - Ghibli and Hosoda are always on my radar!

Macross movies - no, not ruling these out. Been wanting to see "Do You Remember Love" for some time now, it always appears on "best of anime" lists.


Well, after doing a bit of research, I discovered I really have no idea how to find out if a dvd release has English subs or not ^.^" I know that Into the Forest of Fireflies has been released in Japan, but haven't discovered anything blatantly saying 'English subs'. You have such an extensive collection you might have better luck than I finding something.

The Piano Forest has been licensed and released in Germany, France, and Italy. English subs? No idea.

As for Letter to Momo, the great thing is that I'm pretty sure it's been licensed in the US, but porobably won't get a release until sometime next year.

Colorful, though, I don't think will get picked up for an English release, because it is a very spiritual movie and probably wouldn't sell too well. You might have better luck looking for Eng subs from another country's release.
Jul 12, 2012 10:49 AM
#5

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May 2008
158
Wanpaku Ouji no Orochi Taiji

Shounen Sarutobi Sasuke

^^^^ Older movies, not amazing, but interesting if you're into exploring older anime.

Here are a few I was recommended but haven't seen yet.

Chie the Brat

The Celestial Railroad (different from Night on the Galactic Railroad)

Kara no Kyoukai (might not be what you're looking for, it's not one movie but a series of movies, they're not OVAs I believe, so they may still count)

The new Berserk movie (the first installment in a new series of movies based on the Berserk manga, again maybe not what you're looking for, but if all goes as planned the whole story should be told through this new series of movies)

Eve no Jikan (yet another one you might not be looking for, basically the creators took all the old OVAs and combined them while adding new footage to create a stand-alone director's cut-type movie)

Taiyou no Ouji: Horus no Daibouken (old movie I believed directed by Hayao Miyazaki)

Like the Clouds, Like the Wind

Ai Monogatari: 9 Love Stories

King of Pigs

The Dream Machine (not out yet, I believe)

Flanders no Inu

Genius Party
Jul 12, 2012 12:50 PM
#6

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Jun 2012
1848
one i watched recently was denpa teki na kanojo
there is source material for it though its 2 40 minute ovas
http://myanimelist.net/anime/5177/Denpa_teki_na_Kanojo
~"The place to improve the world is first in one's own heart and head and hands." (Pirsig)

Jul 12, 2012 12:50 PM
#7
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Jun 2012
15
Sweetpea:

Hm, I usually consult Yes-Asia first and then cross-reference it with Play-Asia and Amazon. Sometimes there is conflicting information and you find out from a review that a DVD just so happened to have English subs despite no retailer listing as much.

But YesAsia and Amazon are 9 times out of 10 accurate in their listings.

It looks like The Piano Forest has DVDs and Blu-rays with Dutch, German, French, Italian, Polish, Japanese subs and/or dubs but no English anywhere. :/

GKids has confirmed a mid to late 2013 region 1 release for 'Momo' :)

I think one of these days I may just have to start buying grey market fansubbed DVDs. I really want the following films but they are unlikely to ever release here: Colorful, Belladonna of Sadness, Cleopatra, 1001 Nights, Macross: Do You Remember Love?, Princess Arete

... it just scares me because A) the animation quality can be sh!tty and B) I would never know if the subtitles are just totally BS and made-up.

Some people are annoyed with living in the U.S. because of the economy, the laws, the people... for me, it's because we never get the good anime.
Jul 12, 2012 6:02 PM
#8
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Jun 2012
15
Helmeppo:

I love old anime. Age is just a number, really. The quality of content isn't linked to release year.

Little Prince and the Eight-Headed Dragon
The Adventures of Little Samurai

... I have heard of both of these. The former's art style is absolutely striking and lurid in the best way possible. I hope to find a way to watch these with subs or dubs.

Chie the Brat has no official subbed release - quite a shame Studio Ghibli did not include any on their Blu-ray release of the film.

Celestial Railroad - hmm, this looks... sparse. The CGI seems nicely done but is it just 48 minutes of narration?

Garden of Sinners - I have had this near the top of my to-watch list for some time but the price for the 7 films is outrageous. Somebody better convince me this is the best damn anime film series I will ever see before I drop $500+.

I absolutely plan to see the Beserk trilogy. Studio 4C is my favorite anime production company.

Time of Eve - this one has been suggested to me before. Perhaps I should start being so specific about my movie choices and watch a few OVAs-turned-films.

Little Norse Prince - I see this has a quality UK release. It was directed by Isao Takahata. I think I will get it soon, since it is actually one of the very earliest anime I ever heard of but just keep neglecting.

Like the Clouds, Like the Wind - I was just searching for a legit U.S. release yesterday. This has been added to my 'buy the bootleg' list when I finally decide that is not a morally reprehensible route to go.

9 Love Stories - never heard of this before, really interesting concept. But I know this one will never come out here - music rights nightmare!

King of Pigs - crikey! Where'd this come from? Sounds right up my alley. "Tekkon Kinkreet" is my favorite animated film to date and this gives me small vibes of that. Kids as a motif for the brutal nature of humanity. I hope more than any of the films above I can get this on disc at some point.

Genius Party - I actually own this, forgot to add it to my list. Just imported it from Australia last week.

Dream Machine - Not sure if this will ever get completed. Such a sad situation.

Dog of Flanders - Alas, another film I have wanted to see for years but there is not a translation.
Jul 13, 2012 6:37 PM
#9
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Jul 2012
2
Check out the newer Madhouse films:

The Princess and the Pilot
Mai Mai Miracle
Jul 13, 2012 6:44 PM
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Mar 2011
25074
Efrazian said:
Helmeppo:

I love old anime. Age is just a number, really


you i like
"If you tremble with indignation at every injustice, then you are a comrade of mine"

When the union's inspiration through the workers' blood shall run
There can be no power greater anywhere beneath the sun
Yet what force on earth is weaker than the feeble strength of one
For the Union makes us strong
Jul 13, 2012 8:17 PM
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Jun 2012
15
Ha, thanks Enjolras1830.

I also just picked up Gisaburo Sugii's "Jack and the Beanstalk."
Jul 14, 2012 1:19 PM
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Jul 2012
2
I see you already have "Night on the Galatic Railroad" and now just got "Jack and the Beanstalk."

I think you should keep an eye out for "The Life of Guskou Budori" - it just released in cinema to Japan last week.

It looks like a great follow-up to 'Railroad' (cats and all!)
Jul 14, 2012 11:17 PM
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Jun 2012
15
The trailer looks amazing! Thanks, Goobin

Also, just bought Mai Mai Miracle because the DVD is pretty cheap.
Jul 16, 2012 9:40 AM

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Apr 2009
5194
Efrazian said:
Garden of Sinners - I have had this near the top of my to-watch list for some time but the price for the 7 films is outrageous. Somebody better convince me this is the best damn anime film series I will ever see before I drop $500+.

It is a freakin' fantastic series, but the time to order it would have been in December when it was on sale for $400. All the pre-orders sold out, and then all the official releases sold out very quickly when it was actually out.
Jul 16, 2012 9:58 AM

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Dec 2011
1572
That's quite a collection you have. I'm by no means a anime movie expert as I tend to steer towards series. Perhaps though you could try the movie series Kara no Kyoukai, it's great stuff and the series gets better and better.

*Edit* - I didn't realize it was so expensive, no it isn't worth 500$. Honestly though, are you really going to feel terrible for downloading something that is otherwise unattainable to the average working person? It's not going to hurt anyone at all.

The berserk movie on the other hand, eww no thanks that movie was blasphemy.
LayedBackJul 16, 2012 10:09 AM
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