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From ‘Ponyo’ to ‘WALL-E,’ they dazzle our imaginations
By S. James Snyder, Special to Metromix
“Ponyo” (2009)
For so many animation fans around the globe, Hayao Miyazaki is a legend who operates in a class all his own. The master animator from Japan has delivered such epics as “Princess Mononoke” and “Spirited Away,” the highest-grossing film in the history of his native country.
His latest, “Ponyo” (opening Aug. 14), is a loose adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s fable “The Little Mermaid.” But nothing about this incarnation resembles the Disney musical of 1989.
The opening of “Ponyo” is as stunning as any animated sequence ever filmed, replete with a symphony of sea life ascending from the depths, accompanied by a mystical singing chorus. In Miyazaki’s eyes, life under the sea is a mythical oasis of magical potions, rebellious children and limitless adventure.
Check out nine other animated films with fantasy worlds that leave us awestruck.
