Castle in the Sky
Miyazaki is so good at making animations not because he is good at a particular technique, but because he is so good at everything about the medium. I'm angry at myself for not watching Castle in the Sky and denying myself the joy of seeing such a good piece of art.When you watch Castle in the Sky it can be easy to miss some of Miyazaki's skill because his ability is so integrated into the work. The characters move from crazy high energy scenes, to delicate conversations between children, and the transitions seem so natural, so artful in the best sense of the term, that you don't notice how amazing it all is.
I watched a dubbed version on DVD, and I'm generally impressed, with the exception of James Van Der Beek's voicing for Pazu. He sounded more like an adult pretending to be a young boy, than a young boy. The other voices I found just fine, and Mark Hamill does a great job for Muska, the true villain of the story. Muska comes across as calm, menacing, and dangerously intelligent.
The design of the flying machines (this animation is filled with them) are outlandish, but the viewer is swept up in this world of fanciful devices and a total lack of basic aviation safety. And there are robots, great robots, delightful robots. Battles, don't forget the battles with lots of guns and explosions. Most of the design seems to have a vaguely Teutonic look, except for the castle in the sky itself which is a whole world unto itself.