Although the more Western themed Ghiblis like Howl's and Arrietty do very much suit English dubs, so I'm not being a sub-snob, it's just I wanted to avoid loads of noisy kids on the opening release day, so asked for one of their Japanese audio/english sub screenings. Neither here nor there for me really, I just booked my ticket for Friday, in the original language with subtitles. We'll end up owning three or four different versions of Arrietty before all is said and done! And the die-hard collectors among us always enjoy any excuse to justify buying yet another version. I wouldn't guess the issue would become a deal-breaker for Ghibli fans on either side of the pond as long as the dubs are written and performed well and hew to the original Japanese script, we'll be happy. Right now, I'm guessing the Optimum UK dub won't be included when Disney publishes Arrietty on Blu-Ray here in the States, and vice versa. It's going to be very interesting to compare the two different soundtracks next year. That's not necessarily better or worse, just different.

The Disney voice cast will no doubt have that Southern California, Disney Channel vibe. It adds a sense of authenticity to the movie, which is transposed to modern suburban Japan. Given that Mary Norton's novels are the basis for Ghibli's adaptation, it sounds better with a British voice cast. You should enjoy these movies while you can. You may not have Studio Ghibli to enjoy forever. I really hope this movie is successful when it arrives in theatres. What's most surprising to all is that they have produced a unique English-language dub for this version. Optimum UK has released this terrific trailer for the British release of Arrietty.

The cat returns english trailer