Panda! Go Panda!
Label: Manga Entertainment.
Release date: 6th July 2009
Certificate: U
Discs: 1.
Running time: 67 mins approx
Video: Widescreen
Sound: English 2.0, Japanese 2.0
Subtitles: English.
RRP: £15.99
Brief synopsis:
Comprising two half hour features both set in rural Japan in the early 1970s, Panda! Go Panda! follows the adventures of Mimiko, a young orphan who lives in a sleepy costal village with her grandmother. When her grandmother is called back to Tokyo for a family gathering, Mimiko is left to mind the house in her absence but for this plucky young girl this isn’t anything to be worried about, instead it’s the start of a great adventure. Mimiko returns home to find an unexpected visitor in her house and is excited that it might be her first ever burglar. Instead it turns out to be a baby panda called Panny who’s escaped from the local zoo. Soon they’re joined by Panny’s bamboo loving father who’s been entranced by the large bamboo patch behind Mimiko’s house. It’s not long before these three form a close knit family who embark on a series pf wacky adventures involving such events as visits from the local constabulary or saving a train full of zoo animals from a mighty flood.
Comments:
When it was originally announced that Panda! Go Panda! was to be screened as part of Sci-Fi-London 8’s anime all-nighter, nestled snugly between the likes of Ghost In The Shell 2.0, Afro Samurai: Resurrection and Naruto The Movie 3, there were a fair number of incredulous voices expressing surprise or even displeasure about it’s inclusion. All this changed on the night however as we were very pleased to hear that after the screening the response to this feature was generally positive. In fact, some of the very same people who’d commented negatively before-hand or had gone in to the screen thinking that they’d just use it as a chance to catch a quick nap remarked later on just how much they’d enjoyed it. Now if that isn’t a glowing recommendation already, I don’t know what is.
Created in the early 70’ whilst Japan was in the grip of “Panda Fever”, by legendary anime writer, producer and director and later founder of Studio Ghibli Hayao Miyazaki (Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro) and directed by Isao Takahata (Grave of the Fireflies, My Neighbors the Yamadas), Panda! Go Panda! is a delightful tale not just for children but for all Studio Ghibli lovers.
While this feature from the days long before Ghibli even existed doesn’t delve into the more adult subplots of later Ghibli works, it does contain an intrinsic message about the importance of families, not just those of blood but also of extended and adoptive families. That said, there’s a lot in Panda! Go Panda! that’s immediately recognisable as Ghibli even though it predates the studio itself by over a decade. Most recognisable is the influence it had on My Neighbor Totoro and could even be said to be a kind of prototype for this later work.
If you’re an anime fan with young children – or like me you’ve become and first time uncle or aunt recently – and would like something to watch with your young wards before they become too tainted by the dismal tripe that passes for Kid’s TV these days, then look no further. Old-skool anime fans will delight in this blast from the past with it’s ridiculous-though-fun dub track and it’s smattering of incredibly weird moments while kids will love the bright colours, gentle & easy plot and most of all, a huge jolly talking panda. What more do you need than that?
When I say bright colours, I really mean Bright, with a capital “B”. Either the Japanese really know how to look after their old films or, as is more likely, this release has been heavily re-mastered in recent years. There’s not an ounce of degradation to be seen in the visuals and the audio is nice and crisp. The transfer to DVD has been done very well which is a good thing as, with the animation being so basic (come on, is over 35 years old), a dodgy encode would be immediately evident.
I referred to the Dub as ridiculous earlier, which isn’t to say it’s bad; far from it as, intentionally or not, it’s very funny. It’s just that I’m not entirely sure what in the name of all that’s large and fluffy Papa Panda’s accent is supposed to sound like. Is he a Rasta panda? A Germanic panda? Maybe he’s an Eastern European panda… either way, he’s… odd, but lots of fun with it.
All told, Panda! Go Panda! is a great film from an altogether more innocent and bygone age to watch with friends, with children or even with children of friends and about as far from the brain-numbing excesses of modern “Kids TV” as you’re likely to get.
Extras:
Original Japanese opening animation; Biographies of both Writer/Creator Hayao Miyazaki and Director Isao Takahata.
Panda! Go Panda! will be available on DVD from most online and high street retailers from 6th July 2009. As usual, both Amazon and Play, are currently offering a hearty discounts on this release..
Reviewer: Penfold