According to the UltimateDisney Website, Buena Vista plans to release two Studio Ghibli films directed by Hayao Miyazaki's partner Isao Takahata on July 16th.  Takahata, an extremely accomplished director, is best known in the U.S. for his emotionally devastating film Grave of the Fireflies (released here by CPM), the searing story of two young children who starve to death in the waning days of World War II.  

The two Takahata films that Buena Vista/Disney is releasing this summer, Pom Poko and My Neighbors the Yamadas, should have a strong appeal to American anime fans, though they probably won't have the wider popularity enjoyed by a Princess Mononoke or Spirited Away.

Like Princess Mononoke, Pom Poko, in which a band of raccoon-like tanuki attempt to stop the development of their habitat for a huge suburban development, has an ecologically-themed storyline.  But Pom Poko is so filled with Japanese folklore concerning the tanuki that American audiences may miss quite a bit of the film's impact; and it should be interesting to see how Disney/Buena Vista handles the tanuki's unfeasibly large testicles, which play an important role in the film's plot (and humor).  According to UltimateDisney Pom Poko is rated 'PG' -- and those who are familiar with Studio Ghibli films will realize which bulbous 'thematic elements' are responsible for the necessity of 'parental guidance.'

Unlike Pom Poko, which is based on an original story by Takahata, My Neighbors the Yamadas has its origins in a popular Japanese newspaper comic strip.  Both films will appeal to anime fans eager to learn more about Japanese culture and life in Japan.

Pom Poko and My Neighbors the Yamadas will be released in deluxe double-disk DVDs with a suggested retail price of $29.95.  The DVDs will include the original Japanese audio version with subtitles as well as an English language dub featuring well known vocal talents (Jim Belushi, David Odged Stiers, Jonathan Taylor Thomas etc.).

While it is unlikely that Pom Poko and My Neighbors the Yamadas will enjoy the kind of success on DVD that the Miyazaki-directed Ghibli efforts have, they should still do very well, at least in the anime context.  The Cat Returns, another non-Miyazaki directed Ghibli film, made it into the VideoScan Top 50 earlier this year, a feat that very few anime releases accomplish.