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Post by angilasman on Mar 6, 2010 19:06:38 GMT -5
^The Hellboy comics are what got me interested in world folklore years ago. Most of the short stories are actual folktales retold with Hellboy as the main character.
"Baba" means old woma or grandmother in slavic langauages so it seems very likely Yubaba's name comes from there. While most of the creatures are uniquely Japanese in Spirited Away Yubaba does seem very European.
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Post by spackle on Mar 6, 2010 19:26:05 GMT -5
^The Hellboy comics are what got me interested in world folklore years ago. Most of the short stories are actual folktales retold with Hellboy as the main character. I think I'd like that! Oh... nooo... more to check out! I've got Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare to watch tonight.
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Post by afriendlychicken on Mar 6, 2010 22:54:31 GMT -5
^The Hellboy comics are what got me interested in world folklore years ago. Most of the short stories are actual folktales retold with Hellboy as the main character. I think I'd like that! Oh... nooo... more to check out! I've got Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare to watch tonight. Spackle? I think you've found your heaven. Recently, while I was in Borders, I ran across a book called 'The Midnight Eye Guide to New Japanese Film'. I sat down and read through the chapters on Kore-Eda Hirokazu and Shohei Imamura. I was about to put the book back on the shelf when I caught a glimpse of a chapter on Studio Ghibli and the films of Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata; If you haven't seen his Grave Of The Fireflies yet, rent or pick up a copy. You won't be sorry. Each chapter in the book is only around 10 pages so there's not a lot of information. The book feels that Nausicaa is his first masterpiece with Princess Mononoke being his second. I was able to find out that the setting of My Neighbor Totoro was based on Miyazaki's actual childhood. His mother was in a hospital with the exact illness as in the movie and they only saw her on occasion. So the dad did have to take care of them alone for awhile. It's an okay book to pick if you don't know anything about the studio and newer Japanese directors. If you do, it wont tell you much more then you already know. EDIT: I looked up Isao Takahata's other films. This is not complete, but they are Hols: Prince of the Sun, Only Yesterday; I saw this film on TCM and loved it. Unfortunately, it's never been released in the USA; My Neighbors the Yamadas and Pom Poko.
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Post by caucasoididiot on Mar 6, 2010 23:27:55 GMT -5
Baba" means old woma or grandmother in slavic langauages so it seems very likely Yubaba's name comes from there. While most of the creatures are uniquely Japanese in Spirited Away Yubaba does seem very European. Actually, it means the same in Japanese. Though a common root is possible. The "yu" means "hot water," so it's basically "hot water old lady." Word to the wise though, be incredibly careful saying it to a Japanese woman, as it can easily come across as "hag." Usually results in an attack in Japanese movies! (^_^) Edit: OK, checked against the Japanese wiki. I'm fairly sure they never appear in the film, but Yubaba is given the kanji 「湯婆婆」for "hot water old woman." Zeniba is 「銭婆」. The first character means "money," more specifically the old subunit of the yen which was called (significantly?) the "sen." Keep in mind that Japan had already opened to the West by the late 19th century, so the Yubaba/Zeniba look is actually common to both.
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Post by spackle on Mar 7, 2010 8:49:52 GMT -5
Spackle? I think you've found your heaven. Don't you know it! One of many heavens, perhaps, but yes. Baba" means old woma or grandmother in slavic langauages so it seems very likely Yubaba's name comes from there. While most of the creatures are uniquely Japanese in Spirited Away Yubaba does seem very European. Actually, it means the same in Japanese. Though a common root is possible. The "yu" means "hot water," so it's basically "hot water old lady." Cool that it means the same in both languages. Maybe I should change my name to Yubaba Yaga! Nah, I like the riff in Mighty Jack too much to change from spackle- Toothy French lady to Mr Atari- "Won't you stay with me, monsieur?" Crow, in his best French lady voice- "While I spackle my teeth?" Cracks me up every time. Plus, I like Mighty Jack.
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Post by caucasoididiot on Mar 7, 2010 10:13:55 GMT -5
Maybe I should change my name to Yubaba Yaga! Nah, I like the riff in Mighty Jack too much to change from spackle- Good call! Messing with your screen name gets addictive. It's taken me years to get back to my real one. It's a genre jump, but I just found that someone's put the original Japanese Shall we dansu? up on YouTube. I really enjoyed this and will probably watch it again tonight. There are a lot of insights about Japanese culture here: Shall we ダンス?(1/13) Edit: But see two posts down. I have a funny memory of when I saw this movie. There was an older couple sitting behind me, and when the Daiei logo came up the husband said, "This movie's Japanese? You didn't tell me this movie's Japanese." At the end the wife asked him what he thought, and he answered, "I loved it, except for the parts that were Japanese." (^_^)
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Post by Mighty Jack on Mar 7, 2010 16:46:26 GMT -5
I still haven't gone back to my original screen name. I have too much fun pretending to be someone else.
Well I bought my first Miyazaki film. I hunted all over town and found Totoro, 1 copy at Target. No one had Princess Mononoke, not even Best Buy and Ponyo on Blu was too expensive (no one had it at a sale price, so I’ll wait or see what they have online)
It was so nice to see this one again. I watched it with subs and I’m pretty sure that how I first saw it, or there was another dub because I don’t think Dakota Fanning was even born when it was released. I’d never heard the director’s name or anything of his career until Roger Ebert starting gushing over him and this film in particular. The way he described it I had to go see it (it might have been on a trip to Seattle).
Though the dubs were fine, it just felt more authentic and natural with subs (though I will say that while kids always sound shrill, they sound extra shrill in Japanese… lol). When I first saw this I thought it was one of the trippiest things I’d ever viewed, little did I know that by comparison, this would arguably be the most sedate and straight forward Miyazaki of them all (but still trippy). Ahh Cat-bus, how nice it was to see you again.
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Post by caucasoididiot on Mar 7, 2010 17:17:08 GMT -5
I still haven't gone back to my original screen name. I have too much fun pretending to be someone else. . . . Though the dubs were fine, it just felt more authentic and natural with subs (though I will say that while kids always sound shrill, they sound extra shrill in Japanese… lol). I'm thinking of it as my second childhood. And I can tell you from personal experience that Japanese kids do have a special brand of shrill. (^o^) I have disappointing news on my Shall we dance? link. Seems that over rights issues to a piece of music in part 8 YouTube blocked the sound. You can still follow it through the subs, but it's not the same. As it includes one of the movie's key scenes it's a real shame. I don't know yet if the rest of it is OK, but FYI. I really want to see Totoro again.
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Post by spackle on Mar 7, 2010 18:22:34 GMT -5
^I haven't seen Sakuya, but I heard that the scene where all the yokai appear is an in-joke: they're the yokai from the classic '60s films (which were remade by Miike). In fact, they're the yokai from another of the films recommended by reaperg- Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare. Thanks reaperg, I enjoyed them both. The yokai costumes in Spook Warfare are some of the oddest things I've seen. And I loooove odd costumes. What's up with the one-legged umbrella fella who communicates with slurping noises and sign language? And the one that looks like a big puffball fungus? In the trailer I think they called that one no-face. Is that the same as the no-face in Spirited Away? My head is swimming with yokai! Oddly, I find it quite pleasant.
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Post by spackle on Mar 10, 2010 10:49:43 GMT -5
Stan Sakai says the info was found in Juliet Piggott's Japanese Mythology. I'm such a ditz. I was digging through my mythology books and found I already *have* this book! Haven't looked at it in years. I guess I'll take it off my Amazon wishlist.
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Post by afriendlychicken on Mar 10, 2010 17:16:56 GMT -5
Anyone remember seeing a Rokuro-Kubi in the Miyazaki films? Does anyone know of any Japanese films that have them?
A Rokuro-Kubi is a spirit that can pass as a human being. But at night, they can stretch their necks out to astonishing lengths and transform their faces into something frightening. They may also drink blood or eat human flesh.
The reason I'm asking is that I've only ran into them once, in an episode of Kikaida 01.
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Post by caucasoididiot on Mar 10, 2010 17:27:56 GMT -5
The only time I remember seeing one offhand was in a sort of slasher film on TV. It involved a bunch of kids in a school where one of the scary teachers turned out to be one. I'm afraid I don't even slightly recollect a title.
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Post by spackle on Mar 10, 2010 19:46:22 GMT -5
The aforementioned Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare has a creature called Long-Neck or something. She can stretch out her neck very very long. She tries to strangle (with her neck) the foreign demon who is muscling in on yokai territory. But her face isn't too scary. She looks kind of like a goth girl.
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Post by angilasman on Mar 10, 2010 20:30:58 GMT -5
^Yeah, but in that movie the usually frightening yokai are friendly and cute. Kappa is the hero of the whole thing really!
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Post by spackle on Mar 10, 2010 22:49:09 GMT -5
^ True, people are afraid of them, but they're more like something from a kids' movie. Which it kind of is.
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