The Castle of Cagliostro

This film is a timeless classic, over 30 years old and still very loved! It's part of the Lupin III franchise which I haven't actually seen any of, but I don't think that limited my enjoyment at all. It's very clear through out the film who every one is. Lupin III is a notorious thief, and with his friend Daisuke Jigen  they rob billions of dollars from the national casino. The celebrations are short lived though, because it's not long before Lupin realises that what they've stole is actually counterfeit money. That's when they feel the need to attack the Castle of Cagliostro. Not only is it the centre of the counterfeit money, they also have an imprisoned damsel and a hidden treasure. But with all those things to find Lupin gets himself into a lot of trouble!

A humorous action-packed adventure with just a sprinkle of romance, it's a brilliant mix of genres from Hayao Miyazaki. This is actually Miyazaki's first feature length production which just says something about what a brilliant man he is. The comedy is almost slapstick like, they even use cheesy sound effects! Probably because it's so old, but that doesn't make it not funny, it's not like it's tacky comedy! However, the romance is a lot cooler than the comedy, it's quite subtle and there's no reason to believe in it's sincerity, but watching Clarisse cling to the hope that Lupin brings is so sweet!! 

The art is dated but the quality is still good! Lupin's face resembles that of a monkey but Clarisse is every bit the beautiful dame! She has brilliant blue eye's that sparkle really well, I especially liked it when she was drugged and her eyes looked dead but when the drugs wore of a slow glimmer crept in to them. Brilliant. But what was really brilliant was all the contraptions. Miyazki's trademark steam powered boats and flying contraption and also in this film cogs. The amount of detail that went into the clock tower must have been tiring enough but to then have a whole fight scene on the moving cogs is the best thing in this film!!

Lupin III is a very well thought out character I think, although not originally conceived for this film, he has been portrayed as a man of many qualities. Despite being dubbed a playboy by his friend, his relationship with Clarisse stays very pure and caring. He may be superhuman in the things that he does but he is still quite clumsy and not all his plans work. This makes him very interesting, believable yet impossible at the same time!! And his friendship with Jigen is just brilliant!! They stay together even with Lupin's ridiculous plans!

Okay, I may have over-useed this word a bit, but this film is brilliant!! I can't think of a word more fitting. The fight scenes and car chases are not only well animated, but also super fun to watch. The plot has everything you could possibly include in a crime story without complicating it. And, well, it's Miyazaki!! That says it all really. I'm so glad I finally got round to watching this!!

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