DVD Review

Earthsea at its darkest and deepest

On a war galley struggling in worsening seas, the captain calls on his weatherworker to ease the storm before his ship is destroyed. Not only does the weatherworker find that his power over the wind and waves has failed him, from the ship's battered deck he witnesses two dragons fighting overhead - an extremely bad omen.

This is the dire opening to the feature film Tales from Earthsea, set in a world of myth and magic. Based on the Earthsea novels by Ursula K Le Guin, the film marked Goro Miyazaki's directorial debut and comes from the Japanese anime powerhouse, Studio Ghibli.

On Earthsea, the delicate balance of the world is shifting out of control and the magic once commanded by mankind is failing. Crops wither in the field and disease spreads throughout the land. It is up to Archmage Sparrowhawk to travel through deserts, cities and abandoned farmland to unravel events that threaten to end life on Earthsea.

Tales from Earthsea has a Middle Earth feel and the same high quality artwork and musical score you would expect from Studio Ghibli - makers of Howl's Moving Castle, My Neighbour Totoro and the Academy Award-winning Spirited Away. However, Tales from Earthsea has darker overtones with themes touching on slavery, drug use and the value of human life. The plot is not spoon-fed to the audience and requires more thinking than the average animated movie. It is a great story of good versus evil with bad guys you will love to hate.

Released by
MADMAN ENTERTAINMENT Pty Ltd
Web: www.madman.com.au