Top notch animé

Rating: 10/10 (24 March 2001)

It is all too often the case that outside of Japan, the animation genre is typecast as being strictly for kids. Also, when animé does come to the West, it is often bastardised by the studios that bring them to the English-speaking market, through heavy re-editing, thereby disjointing the story line, and amateurish dubbing. "Sailor Moon" is a case in point.
Princess Mononoke is a definite exception. The dubbing is on par with the original Japanese dialogue (although for a more authentic feel, you should check out the sub-titled version) courtesy of top writer Neil Gaiman, and the animation surpasses even Japanese standards.
The animation and voices are just half of what makes this film whole. The story line, although slightly complex, does not have the formulaic good-versus-evil scenario. It sends a message that nature is about understanding, rather than taming, it. And the characters are three-dimensional to boot.
Hopefully, Princess Mononoke will be the catalyst for the animé genre as a whole to reach a much wider audience. This is definitely animé for the non-animé viewer.
On a final note, Princess Mononoke was rated 'PG' by the censors in New Zealand. Personally, I think it should have been rated 'M', since there are various battle scenes involving gore.