Exploring the Studio Ghibli Vault: My Neighbors the Yamadas

About:

Title: My Neighbors the Yamadas (ホーホケキョとなりの山田くん)

Released: 1999

Genre: 
• Animated

Director: Isao Takahata
Class Superlative: Most Ordinary

In a Land of Pure Imagination Everyday Situations

The daily lives of the Yamadas are presented in a series of relatable and humourous vignettes (with the occasional fantasy sequence). Like getting lost in a department store.

https://foreveryoungadult.tumblr.com/post/705372839226851329/my-neighbors-the-yamadas-%E3%83%9B%E3%83%BC%E3%83%9B%E3%82%B1%E3%82%AD%E3%83%A7%E3%81%A8%E3%81%AA%E3%82%8A%E3%81%AE%E5%B1%B1%E7%94%B0%E3%81%8F%E3%82%93-nonoko

And tackling schoolwork.

https://foreveryoungadult.tumblr.com/post/705373013119516672/yaydrienne-lets-go-lets-go-lets-go

And gaining remote control supremacy. 

https://foreveryoungadult.tumblr.com/post/705373087001083904/my-neighbors-the-yamadas-%E3%83%9B%E3%83%BC%E3%83%9B%E3%82%B1%E3%82%AD%E3%83%A7%E3%81%A8%E3%81%AA%E3%82%8A%E3%81%AE%E5%B1%B1%E7%94%B0%E3%81%8F%E3%82%93

Adorable Child Alert

Nonoko, who knows her way around a cake LIKE A BOSS.

https://foreveryoungadult.tumblr.com/post/705373125917999104/my-neighbors-the-yamadas-%E3%83%9B%E3%83%BC%E3%83%9B%E3%82%B1%E3%82%AD%E3%83%A7%E3%81%A8%E3%81%AA%E3%82%8A%E3%81%AE%E5%B1%B1%E7%94%B0%E3%81%8F%E3%82%93

Lovable Anthropomorphic Sidekick

I just seem to love snarky pets, like Pochi, the family dog.

https://foreveryoungadult.tumblr.com/post/705373307360378880/my-neighbors-the-yamadas-%E3%83%9B%E3%83%BC%E3%83%9B%E3%82%B1%E3%82%AD%E3%83%A7%E3%81%A8%E3%81%AA%E3%82%8A%E3%81%AE%E5%B1%B1%E7%94%B0%E3%81%8F%E3%82%93

Wait, WTF?

Whom exactly does the ‘my’ refer to in the title? Although I’d have to take it up with the source material that this movie is based on. 

And a fond farewell to the last of Isao Takahata’s films to be featured in these posts, since it’s pretty clear that I love the stories he tells*. My Neighbors the Yamadas was his most recent film, until this year’s (for Japan) The Tale of the Princess Kaguya. There’s actually a shout-out to the folktale that Kaguya is based on in Yamadas!

*In other words, I like the cut of his Ghibli. (I’M SORRY, I HAD TO.)

https://foreveryoungadult.tumblr.com/post/705373417862479872/my-neighbors-the-yamadas-%E3%83%9B%E3%83%BC%E3%83%9B%E3%82%B1%E3%82%AD%E3%83%A7%E3%81%A8%E3%81%AA%E3%82%8A%E3%81%AE%E5%B1%B1%E7%94%B0%E3%81%8F%E3%82%93

Famous Voices

• Jim Belushi as the dad
• Mary Katherine Gallagher Molly Shannon as the mom
• Tress MacNeille as the grandma
• Spy Kid Daryl Sabara as Noboru
• David Ogden Stiers as the narrator

Class Superlative: Most Ordinary

That description isn’t meant to be a bad thing; it’s just the truth. The Yamadas live in the real world, and they don’t have any special powers. There’s no big over-arching story, aside from a charming family, with little quirks and eccentricities, that really loves each other. 

https://foreveryoungadult.tumblr.com/post/705373487567618049/my-neighbors-the-yamadas-%E3%83%9B%E3%83%BC%E3%83%9B%E3%82%B1%E3%82%AD%E3%83%A7%E3%81%A8%E3%81%AA%E3%82%8A%E3%81%AE%E5%B1%B1%E7%94%B0%E3%81%8F%E3%82%93

And bonus points for a cameo from the Moonlight Knight!

https://foreveryoungadult.tumblr.com/post/705373520158474240/my-neighbors-the-yamadas-%E3%83%9B%E3%83%BC%E3%83%9B%E3%82%B1%E3%82%AD%E3%83%A7%E3%81%A8%E3%81%AA%E3%82%8A%E3%81%AE%E5%B1%B1%E7%94%B0%E3%81%8F%E3%82%93

Exploring the Studio Ghibli Vault