Miyazaki, i take my hat off to you.

Rating: Null/10 (5 May 2004)

Princess Mononoke - Miyazaki's finest work?
Princess Mononoke is set in ancient Japan at the dawn of the Iron Age and is loosely based on Japanese mythology. The film is fundamentally about the eternal conflict between man and nature. However this is film is unique in that there are no typical `bad guys' who are common in films with such conflicts and the film does not take one side (either nature or man) over another. Instead Hayao Miyazaki has succeeded in creating a complex and interesting story with multiple conflicts like humans against humans, humans against nature, and even nature against itself in an animated universe where all actions have consequences and choices are not as black and white as simply being right or wrong.
Princess Mononoke begins with a brave, young warrior (Ashitaka) defending his village from a cursed boar on a wild rampage. After the giant boar threatens members of the village, including Ashitaka's sister, he is left with no choice but to kill the boar. Ashitaka succeeds in killing the boar but in the process becomes infected by the same curse which turned the boar into a demon. Ashitaka then leaves the village in search of the cause of his and the boars curse and hopefully a cure. As the adventure progresses Ashitaka meets Princess Mononoke or San who is a human girl raised by wolves taught to hate and despise all humans and everything they stand for. Ashitaka journey then takes him to Iron Town a rising mining colony and finds the source of his curse in the creation of the gun. Ashitaka finds himself in the middle of an ongoing battle between the humans of the town and the creatures of the forest.
Possibly the only negative thing about this film would be that because it is animated it will not get quite the cult following in Europe as it has in Japan because they are generally made for kids. Although the content and complex moral conflicts are focused on the more adult audience the enriched detail and colourful environment of Miyazaki's world will be welcomed by all ages.
Often when Japanese films are converted to English language the dialogue becomes heavily Americanized often using sub-par performances from the vocalists. However, in the case of Princess Mononoke there is a much stronger line-up including Minnie driver, Billy Crudup, Billy Bob Thornton, Clare Danes and Gillian Anderson. Secondly, the translation seems a fairly accurate representation of the original language version.

Like all of Miyazaki's films, Princess Mononoke is a morality tale about love, friendship and unity in many ways. However what makes Miyazaki's work so impressive is that he manages to suggest so much with such simplicity and subtlety. Princess Mononoke speaks volumes but without the use of any heavy-handed clichés or long-winded quantities of excessive dialogue. Possibly one of the finest qualities in Princess Mononoke is how Miyazaki portrays friendship and love between Ashitaka and San with such remarkable innocence and beauty.
*****