Every Studio Ghibli Movie Ranked Worst To Best
23. Tales From Earthsea (2006)
The first film to be helmed by Miyazaki's son Gorō, Tales From Earthsea is a loose and unfortunately dull adaptation of Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea novels, as well as the studio's first real flop.
Miyazaki had tried for decades to gain the rights to Le Guin's work, and finally won the author over with the success of Spirited Away. Unfortunately, coming off the back of Howl's Moving Castle, he wasn't available to bring his passion project to life.
It's one of the greatest what ifs in Ghibli's history, because whilst the animation here is typically stunning, Gorō's lack of filmmaking experience is evident throughout, to such an extent that the movie actually feels quite passionless.
If Miyazaki had directed, perhaps things would have been different, but at this point Gorō wasn't ready, and the thin, uneventful movie suffers massively as a result.