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Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind Director: Hayao Miyazaki Number of Items: 2 Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen Format: Color, Widescreen, Animated Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested) Running Time: 118 minutes Studio: Buena Vista Home Vid Region Code: 1 Product Group: DVD Release Date: 2005-02-22 Buy from Amazon |
 "Please Ignore John Q. Public's Review"Please ignore John q. Public's review, as he obviously hasn't seen this film. Glancing at his other, mostly negative reviews, he reviews things like Brittney Spears biography, which he obviously didn't read, but just wanted to post a negative review to be a jerk. This is Hayao Miyazaki's second film, and the first one he really wrote with his own character designs. It is one of my favorite films of all time and is based on his long running manga (which seriously expands the story, in case you are interested). Yes, it is not like Loony Tunes, but rather a mix of Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings. It is not to be confused with typical Japanese anime, though. "A classic Miyazaki --- but graphic novel version better"For a lot of Miyazaki fans from 80s, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind gave them the defining moment of anime experience. In Japan, though a lot of people did enjoy it, anime had always been seen as a sort of geeky pleasure, only kids and those adults who were a bit recluse and anti-social really got into it. The quality of Miyazaki's films did really change that landscape (at least for Miyazaki's films). You'll see why after watching this classic --- Miyazaki was already doing it in early 80s! The theme of the film reflects the days when Cold War was still in progress, and Miyazaki's own struggle in reconciling the world shared both by the strong and the weak --- he was made deeply uncomfortable by Darwinistic thoughts back in the day. The world dominated by the poisonous plants and mutated insects instead of human being is the reflection of the thoughts. Human's greed and misuse of civilization led to their own demise, and it is the human who became the weaker in the world of Nausicaa. How do the human survive in the world dominated by now antagonistic mother nature? You'll find out by watching this film!! If you have seen Miyazaki's Princess Mononoke, you will see the common underlying theme. However, Nausicaa is much more satisfying in that the film was completed when Miyazaki was still unsure of how human can reconcile their destructive thoughts and actions with the mother nature, of which they are only a tiny part after all. To me that ambiguity made Nausicaa less preachy. It is true that the *true* Nausicaa story does not end the way the film version does. When Miyazaki had to finish the movie, the graphic novel version was still in progress, so the film version does not really end the way Miyazaki really wanted to end; I think he wasn't sure at the time if ending it with a resurrection of messiah of some sort was the best idea. Anyhow, if you really come to love Nausicaa, I really recommend the graphic novel version. The story is a few orders of magnitude more elaborate and enjoyable. I definitely recommend this film to anyone, not just kids. This is the film that made Miyazaki a very well respected film maker. "My favorite Miyazaki film"I am glad that Disney has decided to release this movie in Region 1, enabling me to view it on a Region 1 player. I understand that Miyazaki initially began work as an animator in 1963 at Toei Animation and there met Isao Takahata (Anime Explosion, the What?Why? &Wow! of Japanese Animation, Drazen, Patrick, Stone Bridge Press, Berkeley, 2003). Together, Miyazaki and Takahata with Yasuo Otsuka, made an animated feature, Prince of the Sun, Hol's Great Adventure (hint..hint... will someone release this on DVD? Will some anime festival please show this in the United States?). Lupin III, Castle of Cagliostro was co-written and directed by Miyzaki for Toho Studios in 1979/1980. However, I think it is safe to say that this is the first Ghibli Studio full-length movie. But enough of history... Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind is my favorite Miyazaki film. I am sure that other reviews will summarize the plot, so I will not discuss that in this review. Instead, I will say that as in Princess Mononoke, there are strong ecological overtones and strong female roles in this film. The Princess Nausicaa exhibits independence, intelligence, kindness, compassion, bravery and leadership. Nausicaa has a strong interest in animals, including insects, which Miyazaki apparently cites as supported in Japanese folklore from a story from the twelve century collection entitled Tsutusmi Chunagon Monogatari (Drazen, 2003). What more could one ask from a role model, let alone a female one. The animation is superb. While perhaps a little simplistic, remember this is circa 1984, it is still very enjoyable. The attention to detail, realism and color, stand the test of time and are watchable over and over again. Miyazaki's flying machines, as in Castle in the Sky, are a treat. Another production note is that this movie marks the arrival of composer Joe Hisaishi who contributed the film score, the first of many Ghibli movies he scored (Drazen, 2003). There is a plot. There is a story. There is character development. Perhaps not enough plot twists. Perhaps too predictable. There is some violence. This is a story of a prophecy. This is a war story, a war between the animals (the Ohmu) and man, between men (the different nations), between loyalty to one's own values and one's homeland (Asbel). It is a relatively complex story, animated or not. I am only sad that, not knowing Japanese, I wonder if I am losing something in the translation and dependence on the whim of the dubbing script? (Drazen, 2003). Sometimes the film might also appear a bit preachy. However, despite these caveats, I think this film deserves status as an essential anime in any collection. I am glad that Disney has finally released this for viewing in Region 1 (the United States). At least we won't have to depend on Quinton Tarentino to force Disney's hand or watch an American reissue a la Shall We Dance or Point of No Return [La Femme Nikita]. Where can I get a stuffed Teto doll? My Princess Nausicaa lunchbox...er.. bento box. "The best anime I have ever seen."I have had a Japanese DVD for a couple of years - The DVD is so good I never missed voices in english. "Just good all the way around"I first saw the english version "Warriors of the Wind" when I was a little kid. Somehow we recorded it, and I practically destroyed the tape watching it over and over. And as I grew up, I found more about the film to love, rather than growing out of it. And everyone in my family loved it as well. Then one day I lost my beloved tape and so began searching for a copy on the internet. Only then did I find out the film wasn't the whole of the story, but was actually inferior to the original. I found a rather poorly subtitled Japanese version, and gobbled up the suddenly new film. As I was searching for a copy (not easy to find, btw) I came across stories that Disney was going to re-do the english version and release it in the states in the near to distant future. I was bouncing off the walls! I'm so excited to see it coming out now. I do think Disney should have gone to theatres though. I can't wait to see what has been done to this special story of mine. Nausicaa was my hero, and no one had ever heard of her. I hope now others can share in the joy I have for all these years. |
