Gauche the Cellist (1982, English Subtitles)

Gauche the Cellist is Isao Takahata's 1982 movie about a young musician who is visited by a series of talking animals over a series of nights. During his encounters, the stubborn young man slowly learns to quiet his mind and discover the beauty of the world around him, and the music that is found throughout all life. It is a miraculous movie that will uplift your spirit and enrich your heart. It is one of the greatest animated feature films ever made.

And it has Beethoven. What more could you want?

Here is the entire movie, presented in its native Japanese language with English subtitles. Please watch and enjoy before the copyright police come barging through the door.

Hey, GKIDS, are you reading this? Release this movie in North America!

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Gauche the Cellist and Mastery in Adaptation

YouTube user Kenji the Engi presents this excellent video essay on Isao Takahata's 1982 masterpiece Gauche the Cellist, describing this movie's adaptation from a poem by famed Japanese author Kenji Miyazawa. He comments on many of the scenes, story elements and animation techniques, providing the perfect introduction to this great movie.

I often pester GKIDS to pick up Gauche the Cellist for release in the US. Studio Ghibli and animation fans everywhere would love this movie, if they were only given the chance. For now, you can import the movie from Japan on DVD and Blu-Ray (released on the Ghibli ga Ippai label with English subtitles). It is also available on the Isao Takahata Blu-Ray box set, which for the moment is still exclusive to Japan.

This movie comes highly, highly recommended. See it by any means necessary.

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Japanese Voice Actor Ryuji Saikachi Has Died

Sad news for anime fans everywhere. Veteran Japanese voice actor Ryuji Saikachi died on September 29 from congestive heart failure. He was 89 years old. He was a fixture on more than 80 anime films and television series, dubbing American movies (including Disney's The Lion King), videogames and commercials.

His animation credits include the following: Dragon Ball Z, Tokyo Godfathers, Paranoia Agent, Night on the Galactic Railroad, Galaxy Express 999, Wolf's Rain, Unico in the Island of Magic, 3x3 Eyes Seima Densetsu, Roujin Z, Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honneamise, Mermaid Forest and Tensai Bakabon.

For Ghibli Freaks, Saikachi is remembered for playing the train engineer in Laputa: Castle in the Sky, a member of the orchestra in Gauche the Cellist, and most famously, Matthew Cuthbert in Anne of Green Gables.

Thanks to Anime News Network for their article and research.

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