written: 08-02-1996
Anime Watch is a column about Japanese Animation written by Jay Scott Raymond. The sensibilities of those non-illuminated ones who aren't into Anime receive no consideration here.
Have you heard about the Disney - Ghibli deal yet? Here's the skinny. Disney has struck a deal with the Tokuma Group, which owns a majority interest in Studio Ghibli, to dub and distribute several of Studio Ghibli's films. The deal covers the following:
| New Release: | Previous STUDIO GHIBLI Releases: |
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Take note that "My Neighbor Totoro" is on the list of releases despite the previous release of this title by Fox Video.
An especially heartening part of this deal is that Disney is not permitted to cut or alter the animation or replace the musical score (an evil Manga Video seems to be fond of). This still doesn't guarantee us a good translation, but with Disney's clout, they should be able to get good voice actors.
Overall this deal seems to me a very good thing. The Ghibli films get the marketing and distribution clout of Disney, but the contract prevents them from committing any of the editing evils they might otherwise perpetrate. Now if we can just get them to rename "The Lion King" to something more accurate, "Jungle Emperor In Disguise" for instance.
Anime and Giant Battle Robots Forever!
Jay The Obscure