stunning

Rating: 8/10 (2 August 2005)

I was a little startled by Princess Mononoke. Having seen Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle and heard their director Miyazaki referred to as Japan's answer to Walt Disney, I wasn't expecting the considerable violence of this movie. It was appropriate for the movie certainly, but it sure startled me.
But if you're not looking for a Disney flick, this is one impressive and wildly imaginative movie. Many scenes are absolutely amazing, and the last half hour is truly stunning, even though I watched it all on TV.
The attitude of the movie is very interesting. This is basically technology vs. nature, but even though the film's sympathies lie more with living with nature, the technology side is not portrayed as evil but instead for the most part as good people with a different world view. The absence of black and white thinking in films is rare and always appreciated.