Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro (1979) ★★★★
After watching this with the English language track, I decided to rewatch it with the original Japanese track. Both are very good and it feels slightly different depending on whether it's a Japanese or English, with the latter giving it a more European feel, perhaps fitting the geographical setting little better than with the Japanese dialogue.
Hayao Miyazaki's directorial debut is visually and tonally very different to the films he would go on to make with Studio Ghibli such as My Neighbour Totoro, Princess Mononoke, or Spirited Away with no environmental or sociopolitical commentary; the use of slapstick humour is very different to any films Miyazaki has made since.
I haven't seen the manga on which this is based and it's been many years since I saw it for the first and, before this week, only time. Despite this, there is so much of the film which seems very familiar, blending elements of James Bond, Indiana Jones, and the Marx Brothers so 110 minutes just flies by; it's a joy to watch.
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