Studio Ghibli always manage to attract big talent for the English translations of their lush animated features; their most recent release, The Secret World of Arrietty, had Amy Poehler, Will Arnett, Carol Burnett, and Saoirse Ronan. From the looks of it, their next release, Up on Poppy Hill, has more than its fair share of famous names.
Based on a concept from Ghibli patriarch Hayao Miyazaki — and directed by his son, Goro — the film, which we reviewed over a year ago at TIFF, takes a more grounded approach than the fanciful selections that make up the bulk of the studio’s catalog. Set in 1963, the manga adaptation focuses on two Japanese teenagers who fall in love, only to realize that they could be half-siblings. The English voice cast for the film includes Gillian Anderson, Sarah Bolger, Beau Bridges, Jamie Lee Curtis, Bruce Dern, Jeff Dunham, Isabelle Furnham, Christina Hendricks, Chris Noth, Ron Howard, Emily Osment, Aubrey Plaza, Chalie Saxton, Alex Wolff, and Anton Yelchin. [TOH]
The project is the second Ghibli film for Anderson, who also lent her voice to the studio’s dark fantasy adventure Princess Mononoke. But I was most surprised by the addition of Dunham; while the blue collar ventriloquist comedian specializes in creating distinct vocal personalities for his many stereotyped dummies, animation seems like a totally new avenue for him. I’m curious to see what he does with the dramatic material.
Up on Poppy Hill should hit theaters in March 2013 and one can see the first trailer here.
Does the cast list make you want to see Up on Poppy Hill more?