HBO Max’s aggressive strategy for 2021 dominance, debuting films simultaneously in theaters and on the Warner Media direct-to-consumer platform, has just revealed an additional surprise. Thanks to HBO Max’s deal with Japanese animation powerhouseStudio Ghibli, the studio’s latest,Earwig and the Witch, will debutalmostsimultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max. It’ll hit select theaters on February 3 and start streaming on February 5, per a tweet from Studio Ghibli’s USpartner GKids.
What’s super cool about this, too, is that you can choose the original Japanese language track (the movie premiere on Japanese TV last month) or the newly recorded English dub withKacey Musgraves,Dan StevensandRichard E. Grantproviding voices for the first fully computer-animated Studio Ghibli feature.
Earwig and the Witchis based on a novel byDiana Wynn Jones, whoseHowl’s Moving Castlewas adapted by Studio Ghibli co-founder and figureheadHayao Miyazakiin 2004. This new adaptation was directed by Miyazaki’s son,Goro Miyazaki, who has directed two previous films for the studio –Tales from EarthseaandFrom Up on Poppy Hill. The synopsis for the film sounds magical and is perfectly Ghibli-y: “In 1990s England, Earwig, a 10-year-old orphan girl who grew up without knowing that she is a witch’s daughter, is taken from the orphanage by a strange duo and starts living with them.” And whilesome fans have questionedthe studio’s use of computer animation, it’s worth noting that Goro directed the animated television seriesRonja, The Robber’s Daughter, which was pretty enchanting and also fully computer generated (the series used a more videogame-y cel-shading technique, while the movie is fully Pixar-style 3D animation).
The film received an Oscar-qualifying run, which means it will compete with frontrunners like Pixar’sSouland Cartoon Saloon and Apple TV+’sWolfwalkersand while it’s tough to find proper reviews of the film online (odd, considering how widely it was broadcast on Japanese TV last month; it’s the studio’s first made-for-TV-movie since 1993’s lovelyOcean Waves), one fromblog Unseen Japanseemed to be positive, with some caveats: “I can say that I enjoyedEarwig, but I can’t say that unreservedly.” You know what, I’ll take it!
Earwig and the Witchremains the first Studio Ghibli production sinceWhen Marie Was Hereback in 2014. (2016’sThe Red Turtlewas an international co-production.) After that, Miyazaki had decided to close up shop and that’s what they did, sadly (co-founder and arguably the greatest artistic voice at the studio besides Miyazaki,Isao Takahata, passed away in 2018). But withEarwig and the Witchcoming out and Miyazaki working on a new feature film (he just turned 80 this week), supposedly with a smaller crew and a longer, more relaxed schedule, we can hope that there will be further Studio Ghibli adventures on the horizon. It’s admittedly a huge thrill to get a new Studio Ghibli movie, even if it isn’t totally up to snuff. So the HBO Max announcement is very exciting indeed.
