by Scott Tobias

Of the many wonderful qualities associated with the films of Studio Ghibli注1—the Japanese animation[动画片（制作）] house co-founded by Hiyao Miyazaki注2， the visionary director of My Neighbor Totoro注3， Kikis Delivery Service注4 and Spirited Away注5—serenity[平静] may be the most key. Ghibli productions offer the stirring[激动的] adventures and magical creatures of their American counterparts[对手]， and often operate by a wondrously mysterious internal[内在的] logic， but they do so without feeling compelled[强迫的] to grab a young audience by the lapels. Even the name “Ghibli，” derived from[得自] an Arabic word for the Mediterranean[地中海的] wind， evokes[引起] the gentle breeze[微风] that seems to guide their movies to port[港口].

From Up on Poppy Hill， the second feature by Miyazakis son， Goro Miyazaki—the first being the poorly received 2006 Ursula K. Le Guin注6 adaptation[改写本] Tales from Earthsea—takes place in a seaside village that may as well be called Ghiblitown. Based on the graphic novel[图画小说] by Chizuru Takahashi and Tetsuro Sayama， the film is broadly accessible[可理解的] but makes no immediate appeals to children—no talking animals， no chase[追踪的] scenes or slapstick[闹剧]， nothing supernatural or even defying physics.

In fact， it could be a live-action[实景] drama without the stagings being altered in the least. Yet those gorgeous[漂亮的]， hand-drawn images bring lightness[精巧] and grace to a story that might seem drab[单调的] and pedestrian[呆板的] in the real world.

Opening in 1963， the year before the Olympic Games in Tokyo， From Up on Poppy Hill captures a period in which the country was eager to slough off[丢弃] the past and present the world with a bright， modern， revitalized[新生的] image. But the past still weighs heavy on Umi， a high-school student who may be a member of the postwar[战后的] generation， but who raises flags for her father each morning as a gesture of hope for his safe return. With his ship considered lost in the Korean War， Umi lives with her grandmother in a boarding house overlooking the sea， assuming responsibilities beyond what might normally be expected of a teenage girl.

Co-scripted by Hiyao Miyazaki， From Up on Poppy Hill makes its themes far too explicit[清楚的]. Barely a minute has passed before Umi says， via[经由] voiceover[画外音]，“Ever since the wars， it seems the whole country is eager to get rid of the old and make way for the new， but some of us arent so ready to let go of[放开] the past.” There are more elegant ways to situate[使位于] the audience in time and place， especially with that entire Latin Quarter subplot[次要情节] serving as a strong metaphor[隐喻] for a country that neednt entirely abandon the old in a quest[追求] for rebirth.

But its the warm tenor[中心，大意] of the film that ultimately[根本上] rescues it. Miyazaki renders[描写] the crises of Umis life with great feeling but without melodrama[情节剧]， which honors her spirit of self-reliance and her mature disposition[性格]. From Up on Poppy Hill makes her a proud stand-in for a generation thats trying to broker[作为中间人来安排] a peaceful reconciliation[调和] between a salvageable[可挽救的] past and a promising future. She bears the pressure beautifully.

《虞美人盛开的山坡》作为2011年的电影，一直不为很多人所知，在诸多方面也表现平平。但是正如下文所说，就动画本身而言，其精致美丽得足以填补故事平淡的缺点。另外，通过这部动画影片了解一下上世纪六十年代的日本风情，也算是一种不错的方式。各位蜂蜜，闲来无事，不妨一看《虞美人盛开的山坡》。

吉卜力工作室出品的电影有着诸多优秀品质——这家日本动画公司的创始人之一正是宫崎骏，这位极有远见的大导演执导了《龙猫》、《魔女宅急便》、《千与千寻》等电影。在这些品质当中，宁谧祥和也许是最重要的一环。就像其美国同行一样，吉卜力的作品中也有激动人心的冒险历程与各种各样的魔幻生物，情节的展开常常蕴含着特别神奇的内在逻辑性，但是他们的做法并不会让人感觉到那种一味迎合年轻观众的迫切感。就连工作室的名字“吉卜力”也是从一个形容地中海微风的阿拉伯词演化而来，仿如微风轻拂，将他们的电影轻轻送到岸边。

《虞美人盛开的山坡》是宫崎骏的儿子宫崎吾朗的第二部作品。他的出道作是2006年的《地海战记》——这部动画电影改编自娥苏拉·K. 勒瑰恩的作品，却以票房惨败收场。……