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Castle in the Sky

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Laputa: Castle in the Sky (天空の城ラピュタ Tenkū no Shiro Rapyuta), or Castle in the Sky in the United States, is a 1986 film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki.

Contents

Characters

Setting

[Spoiler warningSpoiler warning]: Plot and/or ending details follow.
The world in which the story takes place is clearly Earth, but apparently in a parallel universe, or possibly an alternate history. None of the place names matches real-life geography, and all of the aircraft (except one or two primitive airships) use different technology from real 20th century aircraft. Some of the architecture seen in the film could belong to an English or Welsh mining town, but is surrounded by landscapes reminiscent of rural Ireland. Running through the landscape are railroad tracks set on high wooden trestle bridges, more reminiscent of early railway bridges in the Rocky Mountains, and there are armored military trains that also have no comparison in our world. The overall level of technology seems to be the equivalent to our own world in the 1920s, with telephones, steam engines, and radio using something like morse code.

On the military side, the uniforms seemed to have been inspired almost to the point of direct copy from German World War I uniforms, complete with its spiked pickelhaube, while the weaponry is basically British, including Lee-Enfield bolt-action rifles, Webley revolvers, and Vickers water-cooled machine guns.

Plot

[Spoiler warningSpoiler warning]: Plot and/or ending details follow.
The film's introductory scenes show the historical foundation to the legend of the ancient flying cities. The skies are initially filled with such city-fortresses, which are later shown disgorging streams of humanity into the world, having come crashing to earth, apparently after a series of meteorological disasters.

One of the fortresses, Laputa, is said to still exist, propelling itself through the sky concealed within the swirling clouds of a violent hurricane. While most people consider Laputa to be a myth, some, like Pazu, believe it to have a basis in reality; Pazu's deceased father once caught sight of Laputa, and even managed to take a photograph of it when his airship was caught in a storm. However, even with this evidence he was ridiculed, contributing to his untimely death.

Sheeta and Pazu
Enlarge
Sheeta and Pazu

One night, Pazu, who is employed as an engineer's assistant in a mine, witnesses a young unconscious girl floating to earth from out of the sky. The girl, Sheeta, has in fact fallen from an airship in which she was being transported under guard by a sinister group of government secret agents headed by Colonel Muska, her plunge being precipitated by an attack on the airship by a family of pirates headed by an aged yet charismatic woman named Dola. Both the pirates and Muska appear to be motivated by a desire to control the strange blue crystal Sheeta wears as a pendant, and which seems to possess levitational powers.

Her pursuers soon trace Sheeta to Pazu's village, and the children are forced to escape by train. The pirates come up behind them intent on getting Sheeta. Unexpectedly a large military vehicle appears in front of them. Blocked on both sides, they fall from a collapsing rail trestle bridge and are saved from certain death when Sheeta's crystal spontaneously activates, allowing them to float safely into an abandoned mine below the town. There they meet an old miner known as Uncle Pomme who reveals to them that the crystal is made of "Volucite" (called "aetherium" in Disney's English language dub) which was used to power Laputa, and that it is one of the largest such crystals in existence. Pomme counsels Sheeta to remember that the crystal's power rightly belongs to the earth, and that she should never use it to commit acts of violence.

Believing that their pursuers have abandoned the search, Sheeta and Pazu emerge from the mine, and Sheeta admits to having an ancient "secret name" passed down through her family - Lusheeta Toel Ul Laputa (Ul means ruler in Laputan, Toel means True). She also reveals that after being orphaned she had lived alone on a remote farm in the north of the country until government agents under Muska had come one day to abduct her. Shortly afterwards the children—who have in fact been under aerial observation—find themselves surrounded and are captured by Muska's troops. They are taken to a huge seaside fortress where they are separated—Pazu confined in a subterranean cell, and Sheeta locked away high in a tower.

Dola and her Boys
Enlarge
Dola and her Boys

In discussions between the general in command of the fortress and Muska it becomes clear that the government is sponsoring a concerted search for Laputa, and that Sheeta and her crystal are believed to be the keys to its discovery. Muska attempts to gain Sheeta's trust and co-operation by showing her the remains of a giant Laputan robot that are kept in a locked room beneath the fortress. He tells her of how in plunging from the sky the robot proved that Laputa's existence was not a myth, and that the advanced technology it represents could become a threat to world peace if left uncontrolled. He shows her that a winged symbol on the robot's casing is identical to the one inscribed onto her crystal. He also intimates that unless she co-operates with him in unlocking the crystal's secrets—which he believes can be used to physically locate Laputa— Pazu is likely to come to harm.

Seeking to protect her friend, Sheeta confronts Pazu, telling him that she has agreed to co-operate with Muska and the government, and asking him to return home and forget he ever knew of her and Laputa. Muska pays him three gold coins to "reward" his efforts in "protecting" Sheeta and returning her to him. Stung by this apparent rejection, an angry and confused Pazu returns to his village, only to find Dola's pirate family occupying his home, feasting.

An angry exchange between Pazu (who has been quickly restrained) and Dola ensues, and the chief pirate accuses the boy of betraying his friend for money, and after learning the whole thing she, apart from guessing that Sheeta will probably be killed once the location of Laputa has been revealed, scolds at Pazu for his ignorance of not knowing Sheeta has saved him from being harmed. Pazu recognizes this, and when the pirates decode a government radio transmission revealing that the following morning Sheeta, Muska, and the general are to depart the fortress in search of Laputa aboard the gigantic military airship Goliath, he begs Dola to let him accompany her. Dola agrees, and in no time they are heading for the fortress in the flaptors (a kind of flying-machine resembling a butterfly).

Meanwhile, Sheeta recites a spell her grandmother taught her to use in times of peril and inadvertantly reactivates the Laputan robot. It proceeds to rescue Sheeta, causing massive damage in the process. As Sheeta tries to restrain it, the robot is destroyed by cannon fire from Goliath. Pazu and Dola arrive in time to rescue Sheeta, but her crystal pendant is lost and recovered by Muska, who uses it to track Laputa.

Dola prepares to drop Sheeta and Pazu off at the mining town, but the children manage to persuade her to take them on the search for Laputa. Aboard Dola's airship, the Tiger Moth, they pursue the Goliath, with Sheeta serving in the kitchen and Pazu working as a mechanic and lookout.

After morning, they encounter a huge cloud mass - a "dragon's nest" - and Pazu recognizes it from his father's descriptions as the place where Laputa is located. Trying to find a way in, the Tiger Moth is buffeted by the hurricane winds that form the cloud, and on top of that they are spotted by the Goliath and taken under fire. The crow's nest glider Sheeta and Pazu are in at the time is separated from the pirate ship, and after a hazardous ride through the hurricane they reach the flying city of Laputa.

The children awake to find the city devoid of human life, only a robot - similar to the one in the army fortress - and animals and birds occupying it. They also find a huge greenhouse with a gargantuan tree, whose roots have pervaded all of Laputa's base - which is largely formed by a huge black metallic sphere - and whose crown forms a huge green roof over the palace.

The serenity of the place is rudely disturbed by the soldiers, who have reached the island safely thanks to Sheeta's pendant and now begin to plunder the city of its riches. The Dola pirates are also present, alive but as prisoners. As they attempt to free them, Sheeta witnesses Muska and two of his men locating an entrance to the black sphere and is subsequently captured. Pazu manages to evade his alerted pursuers and free the pirates.

Sheeta, with her hands bound, is taken by Muska into Laputa's core: a chamber with a gigantic Volucite/Aetherium crystal hovering in it, which was the power source of Laputa. In this advantageous situation, Muska reveals that he, like Sheeta, is an heir to the throne of Laputa. From there, Muska machinates his take-over of Laputa's formidable arsenal. Here the film directly links the Laputan civilization to Judeo-Christian and Hindu texts: when Muska demonstrates the immense destructive power of the floating fortress (which is presumed to be nuclear fission or fusion), he asserts that it was the basis of the Biblical story of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the Vedic weapon "Indra's Arrow". Muska also summons the full arsenal of Laputa's robots, who with their humanoid shapes and winged arms may be intended to suggest angels. He then murders the soldiers in cold blood, but his other plans are dashed by Sheeta, who has managed to get free and regains the crystal. She runs through the ruins, with Muska in pursuit.

Meanwhile, after many difficulties, Pazu finds a way into the sphere. He briefly manages to get in contact with Sheeta, who passes the crystal to him.

Finally, Sheeta is cornered by Muska in the city's throne room. She confronts her enemy, declaring that they will both die in that room if they must. Pazu arrives just in time to prevent Muska from shooting the girl, and together they use the Spell of Destruction which blows up the pendant and drives the core crystal from its chamber, triggering the collapse of the metal sphere. Sheeta and Pazu escape death when they are hurled into the giant tree's roots by the power they release, but Muska, blinded by the resulting flash, is trapped in the sphere and eventually falls to his doom. Freed of the sphere's weight, the island begins to rise higher, prevented from falling apart by the tree roots. It rises for untold distances, until it is gone forever.

Sheeta and Pazu finally awake and manage to get back to the glider, which they use to depart Laputa. They are met by the Dola pirates who had managed to escape the collapse by means of their flaptors and get their hands on at least some of Laputa's treasures. (Dola herself, it seems, was in the know regarding the cause of the collapse; she remarks while staring at it that the children had used the Spell of Destruction.) After having reached the coast and a cordial farewell, the companions part ways in the beautiful sunset sky, each party intending to create a new life for themselves.

The Disney version

Castle in the Sky Region 1 DVD cover.
Enlarge
Castle in the Sky Region 1 DVD cover.

The Disney-produced English dub was recorded back in 1998 and planned for release on video in 1999, but Disney eventually decided to release it to theaters instead (presumably because the first release under their deal with Studio Ghibli, Kiki's Delivery Service, performed better than expected on VHS).

After the box office failure of Princess Mononoke in the U.S., however, Laputa's release date was pushed back yet again; on occasion the completed dub was screened at select children's festivals. The movie was finally released on DVD and video in the U.S. on April 15 2003, alongside Kiki's Delivery Service and Spirited Away. The dub received mixed reviews (as mentioned, criticisms were directed at the leads, while Cloris Leachman's Dola and Mark Hamill's Muska drew raves). In the year of its release, Castle in the Sky was the second-best selling DVD from Studio Ghibli distributed by Disney, the year of its release (after Spirited Away and ahead of Kiki's Delivery Service).

Although the plot and much of the script was left intact, Disney's English dub of Laputa: Castle in the Sky contains some changes.

While these alterations were approved by Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki, some critics and fans have questioned them. In particular, some fans pointed out that the new soundtrack placed music in scenes that previously involved the dramatic use of natural silence, as in the opening airship raid or when Pazu and Sheeta pass through the stormcloud. On the other hand, according to a [diary] about the reworking of the music, Miyazaki is said to have applauded Hisaishi's efforts, and some critics gave the re-scoring high marks in their reviews.

Trivia

Credits

Cast

The movie stars the following actors:
Japanese dub
Original English dub
Disney's English dub

Awards

External links


The Works of Hayao Miyazaki
Films
The Castle of Cagliostro | Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind | Castle in the Sky | My Neighbor Totoro | Kiki's Delivery Service | Porco Rosso | Princess Mononoke | Spirited Away | Howl's Moving Castle
TV series
Future Boy Conan | Lupin III
Manga
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind | The Age of the Flying Boat
Misc.
On Your Mark


Studio Ghibli Films
Pre Ghibli Films
 (1968) • Puss 'n Boots (1969) • Flying Ghost Ship (1969) • Animal Treasure Island (1971) • Alibaba and the 40 Thieves (1971) • Yuki's Sun (1972) • Panda Go Panda (1972–1973) • Lupin III: Castle of Cagliostro (1977) • Chie the Brat (1981) • Gauche the Cellist (1982) • Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984)
Ghibli Films
Castle in the Sky (1986) • The Story of Yanagawa's Canals (1987) • My Neighbor Totoro (1988) • Grave of the Fireflies (1988) • Kiki's Delivery Service (1989) • Only Yesterday (1991) • Porco Rosso (1992) • Ocean Waves (1993) • Pom Poko (1994) • Whisper of the Heart (1995) • Princess Mononoke (1997) • My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999) • Spirited Away (2001) • The Cat Returns (2002) • Howl's Moving Castle (2004) • Tales from Earthsea (2006)
Studio Ghibli Shorts
The Sky-Colored Seed (1992) • Nandarou (1992) • On Your Mark (1995) • Ghiblies (2000) • Ghiblies Episode II (2002) • Mei and the Kittenbus (2003) • Koro's Big Day Out (2003) • The Whale Hunt (2003) • The Invention of Destruction in the Imaginary Machines (2004) • Imaginary Flying Machines (2004) •  (2004) • The Day I Harvested a Star (2006) • House-hunting (2006) • Monmon the Water Spider (2006) • The Night of Taneyamagahara (2006)
See also...
Masashi Andō • Hideaki Anno • Ghibli Museum • Mamoru Hosoda • Megumi Kagawa • Kazuo Komatsubara • Katsuya Kondō • Yoshifumi Kondō • Yoichi Kotabe • Goro Miyazaki • Hayao Miyazaki • Yoshiyuki Momose • Tomomi Mochizuki • Yasuji Mori • Hiroyuki Morita • Mamoru Oshii • Shinji Otsuka • Yasuo Ōtsuka • Toshio Suzuki • Isao Takahata • Kazuo Oga • Tsukasa Tannai •

 

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