Hayao Miyazaki is not a familiar name to most Americans. His niche audience are Anime fans and movie-philes like me. Little secret though; he shouldn't be. For this blog I want to take a flash back into the 90's. Any devout anime fan knows that in the 90's Manga art was shoddy and the only anime available to the general public or being aired on television wasn't exactly doing wonders to justify this unique little genre of entertainment; Toonami and Saturday morning cartoons was pretty much all one got.
Needless to say it's rare that any Anime get a theatrical release in America. Even a limited one. So for Hayao Miyazaki's Princess Mononoke (1997)(released in America in 1999) to garner a theatrical release in America (albeit limited) was a pretty big deal in certain circles. And considering the recent 'Go Green' trend sweeping the nation this movie easily came to mind.
Before we continue; I feel it is important to the reader to give you an idea of the body of this man's work and his accomplishments.
- When Princess Mononoke first came out in 1997. It was the highest grossing film in Japan only to be knocked from the throne by the Jame's Cameron epic Titanic. It took Titanic to knock a 'cartoon' from the top.
- A later released Anime of Miyazaki's Spirited Way has been the only Anime to ever win an Academy award. It also later trumped Titanic at the Japanese box-office for all time highest grossing film. (In Japan)
- He was named one of the Time 100's Most Influential People.
- Howl's Moving Castle another Anime released after Spirited Away was nominated for an Academy Award.
- He's also a feminist. So his movies leave the female character always more empowered and independent than lovestruck and useless. (Not really an accomplishment but I like it. I'd rather say Uma Thurman stomp some ass in Kill Bill than watch a guy 'solve all your problems with my penis'. <----- Say what you will about Family Guy they're endlessly quotable.)
- And finally; this was an Ebert pick for top 10 best movies of 1999.
Princess Mononoke is a historic fantasy film set late in Japan's Muromachi Era. You don't have to know what that is; the movie is fraught with so much fantasy that it may as well not be set in any sort of era at all.The movie starts by introducing us to the antagonist. An Emishi prince by the name of Ashitaka. (Again you don't have to know what Emishi is; I provide links only for the sake of any history enthusiasts out there) A demon that has taken the shape of a boar is attacking the village. In his defense of the village he fights the demon boar and it wounds him. He later finds out the wound is cursed.
He exiles himself from the village to keep the curse from spreading and ultimately killing himself and any he comes into contact with. A helpful monk leads him west. And he goes there in search of the God of the Forest; this is his only hope of breaking the curse.
His journey takes him west to a place called Iron Town ran by Lady Eboshi. This is where Miyazaki's recurring themes of feminism and environmentalism begin with the introduction of this town which becomes the focal point of the entire story, and the introduction of San; a human girl raise by the wolf spirits of the forest. Iron Town is a rather successful business, jealous feudal lords seek to take the profitable land from under her, boars and other angry forest spirits are attacking the village in retaliation against their diminishing forest. (They have to clear it to make charcoal to smelt it)
Everyone has something to lose. Lady Eboshi stands to lose Iron Town if not to the angered spirits of the forest then to the Daimyo. The forests spirits and all the animals dwelling within including the absolut
ely adorable Kudama (pictured left) all threaten to lose their home; along with San the human girl they raised seen on the cover. And Ashitaka stands to lose his life. And so the battle begins.What I like about this movie is it's complexities. No, character wants the same thing. Lady Eboshi wishes to keep control of Iron Town, San and the forest spirits want to keep their home, the helpful monk Jigo Ashitaka meets along the way to his journey wants the head of the God of the Forest (something rumored to grant immortality) as a result of a deal he struck with the Emperor of Japan himself, and Ashitaka wants the curse lifted from him. (Something only the God of the Forest can do)
One thing I like about Miyazaki's environmental theme as that it doesn't come off as preachy. It delivers a current comparison to today's environmental woes but at the end you don't feel like you've watched a two hour sermon. The animation is far from the anime norm too. (You know; giant eyes, poorly proportioned bodies. Don't let that throw you off Anime though! It's awesome.) And it's a story through and through to the core it is a story about a group of people just trying to make it. Each individual is an honest and thought out character and none of them are line fillers.
Another plus, the romance that develops between Ashitaka and San doesn't seem forced. Predictable but not forced. And even with love in the equation or strong 'Tarantino-esque' female lead doesn't lose her head or motivations. The characters stayed individual. San and Ashitaka stayed their own people until the situation was resolved.So what I didn't like about this movie. Honestly. I liked most everything about it. Of course there are some things lost in translation but it hardly does much to take away from the story. There are a few scenes in which one might get a little confused or uncertain about what is happening. Ultimately the different culture and history make it a little difficult to be completely drawn in. However it's not what you'd call a culture shock.
Ultimately there aren't a lot of flaws with this movie. Animated or not this movie does what not many others can do. And that's really tell a story. And you will feel that distinctly setting down to watch Princess Mononoke. You didn't just watch a movie. You watched a story. And after watching this movie you'll understand what I mean.
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