The Cinematheque

“Particularly for those who have come to appreciate Miyazaki’s better-known works, The Castle of Cagliostro is a must-see.”

Tracy Brown, Los Angeles Times

With The Boy and the Heron still on our minds, Film Club travels back to the first feature film made by Miyazaki Hayao! Nearly two decades into his career, Miyazaki was given the reins on The Castle of Cagliostro after co-directing Lupin III episodes with Takahata Isao. Despite the legendary status of Kato Kazuhiko’s thieves and rogues, the soon-to-be animation legend revised their sensibility in the film, making them his own: action heroes with balletic body language and encyclopedic knowledge, a respect for nature and history, and contempt for abusive power. That’s not to say this isn’t a crime caper, of course, with kidnappings, rapid-fire action, and counterfeiting conspiracies. Miyazaki delights in the strange gravity of animation—cars collapse and side-step onto walls, humans run and fall with such daring that they might as well be flying. Cagliostro won its director the Ofuji Noburo Award and the chance to create his next project on his own terms.

English dubbed version

“A fabulous action yarn … Miyazaki’s trademark attention to detail is astonishing.”

Nicole Armour, Film Comment

“[The film] has genuine charm, and there is lovingly handled and lyrical treatment of landscape.”

Kate Stables, Sight and Sound