With the UK now in a government-imposed lockdown due to coronavirus, it’s a good time to catch up on all the television shows and films you never got around to watching.
It’s also a good time to slip into another realm entirely, so by all accounts, it’s a great time to welcome seven new Studio Ghibli movies to Netflix.
The streaming platform announced its acquisition of 21 films from the iconic animation studio in late January and has slowly staggered the release date of the films, releasing seven every month.
The animation studio is almost a genre in itself, with every film it releases boasting a magical and unique visual style, and music score to match.
The movies were previously only available through DVD or illegal streaming, rarely screening on television.
However, that didn’t stop a dedicated mass of fans forming from all corners of the world – even if it was sometimes difficult to find them subbed in English.
What Studio Ghibli films are dropping on Netflix today?
The last batch of movies includes Howl’s Moving Castle, one of the highest-grossing Japanese films, which took in an impressive 19.6 billion Yen (146.4 million) at the Box Office.
The film, which features strong anti-war messages tells the story of a young girl named Sophie who is turned into an old woman by a witch.
She then encounters Howl, a wizard intent on fighting the King of the fictional land the movie is set in.
Here are all the films dropping today:
- Howl’s Moving Castle (2004)
- The Wind Rises (2013)
- Pom Poko (1994)
- Whisper of the Heart (1995)
- Ponyo (2008)
- From Up on Poppy Hill (2011)
- When Marnie Was There (2014)
The films are in their native Japanese, but available with English subtitles.
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