Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Only Yesterday Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf July 12, 2016

As Studio Ghibli ends operations, one of their earliest efforts finally makes it to American audiences. Better late than never. 1991’s “Only Yesterday” is the company’s fifth feature and, for an animation house known for creating faraway lands and fantastical creatures, it’s also one of their most human, turning to memory and regret to inspire an emotional journey of a woman who yearns to reclaim and reassess an earlier, simpler time in her life. Gorgeously animated in the distinct Ghibli style, director Isao Takahata manages to understand the erratic flow of childhood impulses and curiosity, while pinpointing the moment when nostalgia transforms into personal need. “Only Yesterday” is 25 years old, but it remains surprisingly relevant, warmly conceived and executed from beginning to end.

In the 1980s, Taeko (voiced by Daisy Ridley in the dubbed version) is in her late twenties and living an isolated life in Tokyo. Ready to clear her head and get away from her urban surroundings, Taeko elects to take a train to the country, with plans to join her extended family and help with the safflower harvest, getting back in touch with nature. During the long journey, Taeko works through memories of her life as a curious 5th grader, where mischief and frustration were part of her daily life. Welcomed by Toshio (Dev Patel), who escorts the visitor to her destination, Taeko begins to piece together the fragments of her early development, trying to reconnect with the child she once was and the woman she’s meant to be.

The storytelling approach for “Only Yesterday” is a tightly edited collection of memories experienced by Taeko as she takes an overnight journey to the country. There’s no grand build-up to the past, just thoughts that pass through her mind as she travels to a place that once held great wonder for the little girl, reawakening a year of maturity that altered the course of her life. Takahata gracefully builds these parallel stories, with Taeko experiencing a welcome party in the form of Toshio, a laid-back fellow who’s also an organic farmer, passionate about his crops, sharing his interests with his temporary companion, who’s especially sensitive to his presence, but can’t quite piece together the clues.

The other half of “Only Yesterday” returns to the 1960s, where Taeko, as a restless pre-teen, begins to sample life’s humiliations and challenges, experiencing trial and error as she tries to make sense of the whole journey. While the screenplay is episodic, it’s endearingly so, appreciating the difficulties of life at this age, with Taeko struggling to make sense of math (a failing grade brings tremendous shame to the family), studying her first crush on a young baseball player, and highlighting her battle with a future of menstruation, making her a target for teasing from male classmates. The juvenile experience is exceptionally observed in “Only Yesterday,” which captures the highs and lows of turbulent emotions, and the writing also understands the intimacies of family as distinct personalities are recalled. The whole picture feels frighteningly authentic, with effective sensitivity that brings Taeko’s memories to life. She’s a complicated kid and the production respects her evolution into womanhood, eventually straightened out by society and her own insecurities. Through it all, animation subtleties are significant, as Takahata orders up precise reactions and works through small moments of fantasy, keeping the spirit of the effort alive.

Only Yesterday Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation is remarkable for the fact that it takes a 25-year-old film and makes it look as though it was completed in 2016. Without sacrificing a filmic appearance, "Only Yesterday" finds an ideal home on Blu-ray, where the feature's exceptional artistry is put on display, resulting in a long line of pauseable moments. Colors are bright and communicative, identifying timelines with subtlety (contrasting softer hues that underline innocence with bolder ones to emphasize the modern world), handling primaries with care. Delineation is never threatened, and textures for the hand-crafted effort are easily observed. Source is clean and sharp, offering interesting detail on characters and distances during exterior visits.

Only Yesterday Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix isn't built for a dynamic listening event, but it carries the softer mood of "Only Yesterday" wonderfully, leading with precise dialogue exchanges that register with deep emotion and lighter playfulness. Scoring efforts are supportive and evocative, delivering precise instrumentation. Atmospherics aren't charged up, but group activity is presented with precision, while train movement is felt.

Only Yesterday Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Feature-Length Storyboards (119:15) present "Only Yesterday" in its raw form, with both Japanese and English-language audio tracks.

• Making Of (46:10, SD) is a rather amazing BTS exploration produced for Japanese television in 1991, covering the production process for "Only Yesterday," focusing intensely on the relationship between producer Hayao Miyazaki and director Isao Takahata. Longtime friends, partners, and rivals, the animation kings electrified the animation world in 1988 with the releases of "My Neighbor Totoro" and "Grave of the Fireflies." Now the pressure's on to follow up their hits, finding "Only Yesterday" plagued by production delays, requiring heavy work from Takahata and his team of animators, while Miyazaki tries to keep the business side stable, protecting creative interests. Most aspects of craftsmanship are covered (including a field trip to a safflower farm), but candor is most valued here, painting an honest portrait of the animation process.

• "Behind the Scenes with the Voice Cast" (7:44, HD) collects interviews with Daisy Ridley, Dev Patel, and Ashley Eckstein. Discussing character and interpretation issues, the trio also shares their admiration for the material.

• "Interview with the English Dub Team" (16:31, HD) highlights a post-screening discussion of "Only Yesterday" with actress Eckstein, producer Geoffrey Wexler, English-language screenwriter David Freedman, and director Jamie Simone. Approaching what was once considered an "undubable" movie, the group discusses what was needed to bring the picture to America, and why it took so long to do it. Ridley doesn't appear due to "Star Wars" commitments, but offers well wishes via text.

• Foreign Trailers and TV Spots (7:30, HD) collect four pieces of Japanese promotion, including a few teaser trailers.

• And a Theatrical Trailer (1:46, HD) is included.

Only Yesterday Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Only Yesterday" retains a few pop culture touches that probably made more sense in 1991, but its heartbreak is universal, isolating traumatic incidents and friendly mischief that shapes identity, with Taeko longing to restore the sense of adventure she shared as a kid. It's amazing how easily the picture taps into primal feelings, helping to understand Taeko's mission as she files through a particular time, finding restoration in the strangest of places. "Only Yesterday" is beautiful, patient work, adding to the Studio Ghibli tower of achievements, offering a riveting break from the more fantastical titles typically imported to local art-houses. Here, the concentration is on the human experience, with all its fragility and growth. Takahata constructs a cinematic time machine that's nearly impossible to resist.