Several commentaries I've read today have pointed out that this is the one Miyazaki movie that features a middle-aged man as a protagonist, so that's another point of difference. One wag joked that this is why it was a favorite of middle-aged movie critics. But one of the better commentaries pointed out how much the movie communicates in glances between characters, too. There's at least one scene where the protagonist says almost nothing and yet conveys great depths of feeling. Quite remarkable. It definitely seems to be the Miyazaki movie most directly pitched at adults.