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Princess Mononoke (Special Edition)

Childrens Toy Shop > DVD > Anime
from: Optimum Home Entertainment

March 27, 2006
Not just the best studio ghibli film but the best film ever. The storyline is brilliant. The animation is breath taking and to top it off the characters are excellent.
I would recommend this film to anyone anime fan or not.

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Spirited Away [2001]

Childrens Toy Shop > DVD > Anime
directed by: Hayao Miyazaki

January 01, 2007
First of all the film is excellent Ive seen it before which made me purchase the DVD - BUT - I got the DVD in the post and didnt watch it for a while, opened it up - the disk says spirited away but the film on the disk is actually an old EMI film called 'Bad Boys'! Weird.

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Howl's Moving Castle [2005]

Childrens Toy Shop > DVD > Anime
starring: Chieko Baisho, Takuya Kimura, Akihiro Miwa, Tatsuya Gashuin, Ryunosuke Kamiki
directed by: Hayao Miyazaki, Rick Dempsey, Pete Docter

January 01, 2007
Howl's Moving Castle is one of those rare gems which seem to have everything and suit everyone. There is a beautiful romance, magic, action, humour, vivid and detailed artwork...

It is a film which can be viewed on many levels - the storyline could be understood without difficulty by a child, yet someone older will find a huge amount to question and, through coming to conclusions themselves, the film's overall message is not dictated to the viewer, making it mean something slightly different to everyone. The strong anti-war message which runs throughout the film is made all the more powerful by the fact there seems to be no clear aim to the fighting- a theme which links to the reality of some of today's warfare.

However, this ... Read More:

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Appleseed

Childrens Toy Shop > DVD > Anime
starring: Ai Kobayashi, Jurota Kosugi, Yuki Matsuoka, Asumi Miwa, Akimoro Tsubasa
directed by: Shinji Aramaki

September 19, 2005
This new completely CG anime couldn't be any further from the original 1988 hand drawn version. The original was ok for its time and this new version with all its techno wizardry is no better.

The story revolves around Deunan, the female protagonist of the feature and her relationship with the cyborg Briareous. Both characters are entangled in a web of intrigue, Briareous supporting the terrorists trying to free humans from Bio droid control and the elders attempts to destroy what's left of humanity.
The story at first intriguing lacks any real depth and immediacy to pull the viewer in, and half way through you begin not to care about the characters or what happens to them. This film stutters along and jumps from impressive action scenes to long lectures ... Read More:

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My Neighbour Totoro

Childrens Toy Shop > DVD > Anime
directed by: Hayao Miyazaki

March 27, 2006
I was hoping to get a great fairytale like story with a touch of darknes, but this story was much more childish, and I was a bit dissapointet.

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Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children (2 Disc Special Edition)

Childrens Toy Shop > DVD > Anime
starring: Steve Burton, Mena Suvari, George Newbern, Rachael Leigh Cook, Steven J Blum
directed by: Tetsuya Nomura

April 24, 2006
Final Fantasy 7:Advent Children looks very good. Better than The Spirits Within, and that's saying something. It's got action, vast cityscapes, and people with hair that moves. And it's got monsters and motorbikes, and more action...and yet more action. In fact, there's so much action everything else falls by the wayside, and here lies one of the films biggest failings.

First, it has to be said that if you haven't seen Final Fantasy 7 and know a far bit about the world that this adventure takes place in, you're going to be totally lost here, because the movie is a direct sequel to that video game. So, as far as the movie going public goes, that's got to be a pretty small audience, even for a game like this, which was a massive world seller. But that's still not going ... Read More:

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Ghost In The Shell - Stand Alone Complex - SAC 1st GIG - Complete Box Set

Childrens Toy Shop > DVD > Anime
by: Masamune Shirow

November 14, 2005
First anime series i have ever watched. bought it purely off the back of the movie.

Absolute quality. I dont pretend to be a review critic as i have nothing to base this on as my anime experience is zero. First few episodes were dull but the series takes off.

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Tales From Earthsea [2007]

Childrens Toy Shop > DVD > Anime
directed by: Goro Miyazaki

January 28, 2008
In all honesty,unlike a lot of other reviewers,I didnt know that this was based on any books.
I liked the film though :)
Some of it was a little confusing,but all in all,beautifully animated and one I will watch again.

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Nausicaa Valley Of The Wind

Childrens Toy Shop > DVD > Anime
directed by: Hayao Miyazaki

September 26, 2005
this is something really special that shouldn't be regarded anything near OK. When i first watched it i thought is wasn't as good as Princess Mononoke, another one of Hayao's stunning films, but when i came to watch it the second time i was blown away with its beauty! Nausicaa is the sort of film that leaves you completely inspired and it has the most wonderful ending that i wont spoil! now i have seen it over 30 times and have lost count and i STILL think its amazing. A MUST WATCH!

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Bleach - Series 2 Part 1

Childrens Toy Shop > DVD > Anime
by: Bleach

June 30, 2008
This volume includes episodes twenty-one to thirty-two of the great anime series Bleach and the show does go up a gear as Ichigo, Uryu, Orihime, Chad and Yoruichi invade the Soul Society in order to rescue the condemned Rukia. While in the Soul Society they make new friends to help in the rescue attempt but also come up against the full might of the Soul Reapers and discover that their mission might be tougher than they thought.

The episodes presented here are all very good and as you might expect the amount of action in the series has definitely increased, although the final episode of this volume is a lot less action orientated though but it does include some back-story for both Lieutenant Renji and Rukia. The animation remains good and although it can take a while for it to go anywhere ... Read More: