Thoughts on Tales from Earthsea

Sorry about the lack of blogging, but I was waiting for an event to happen that never did. To make up for it, I decided to do something different and blog about a movie I recently saw. That movie is Studio Ghibli's Tales from Earthsea.The first film to be directed by Goyo Miyazaki, the son of Hayao Miyazaki, the film is loosely based on the Earthsea books by Ursula K. Le Guin. In the film, something wrong is going on in Earthsea. Magic is disappearing and dragons have been spotted fighting each other. The wizard Sparrowhawk sets out to find out what is going on. Along the way, he encounters the prince Arren, who is running from something dark. The two of them travel together to right the wrong that is happening in Earthsea and learn the importance of accepting the fate that all life must experience.
The Earthsea books have been loved by fans of Narnia and Middle-Earth alike, and Studio Ghibli has had a history of presenting memorable films. However, the film disappointed people all over the world. The film took many ideas and elements out of each book in the series and tried to merge them into one new story. The result wasn't accepted. The film got the "Worst Film" award in Japan, and Goyo was given the "Worst Director" award. The author, who's a big fan of Studio Ghibli, was disappointed with the results. She said that "It's not my book. It's your movie."
The movie did have some good points though. The film had music that made the world seem magical, and the landscape is unlike what you usually see in an epic fantasy film. The dragons were designed in an interesting way. They were given serpentine bodies that still kept the modern look of dragons, a creature of incredible power and strength. My overall opinion of Tales from Earthsea is that if you haven't read the books, you'll like the movie, but if you've enjoyed the series, maybe you should stick with the books.