I've come a very long way since I first experienced Princess Mononoke. At the time, I was completely new to the world of Miyazaki and knew very little of what to expect; I wasn't a big anime guy, but figured that an action film was an action film. The poster looked great, and I was in the market for an animated film that would have an adult-edge, unlike the typical Disney product. Big bonus seemed to be that critics were losing their minds, and Miyazaki's rep hung over Mononoke like a rainbow. I was primed to have a religious experience. This was reputed to be the real deal.
What I ultimately got left me cold. The spiritual and environmental messages of the film struck me as a little creaky, and I was shocked to find myself uncomfortable with the animated "gore" in the film. I'm not opposed to a certain degree of violence, but the level of realism and decay in this film (in particular those dying boars with all of their mucus, guts and blood) turned me off; in fact, it sort of disgusted me. Nor did I need all this talk of "forest spirits". This wasn't at all what I was expecting from the "Walt Disney" of the east. I was looking for beautiful line animation and some fresh storytelling. Princess Mononoke seemed to me to be a heavy-handed message movie with limited action (???) and some weird creepy-looking human-faced creatures...I couldn't get my head around it and therefore dismissed it.Eight years later, I am a monstrous Miyazaki fan; my 4-year-old daughter devours any Ghibli films I let her watch (My Neighbor Totoro, Howl's Moving Castle, Cat Returns and most recently Kiki's Delivery Service are staples in the library.) Miyazaki's films are movies we enjoy watching together. And I love that she loves them. The films are consistently brilliant, magnificently told and jammed with the sort of lean and sophisticated storytelling that only Pixar seems capable of providing in North America. Most importantly, I've come to appreciate what now seems impossible for me to have missed: the stunning world-view and masterful animation of Miyazaki. The level of detail, the meticulous attention to design and the uncanny way of capturing real-world gestures and behaviour are distinctly Miyazaki.
Revisiting Princess Mononoke now, it's clear that this is the most epic, grand-scale film in Miyazaki's catalogue and to a newbie in 1999, it must have been a lot to absorb. It's essentially Miyazaki's Lord of the Rings. Loaded to the lid with exotic spirits, demons and with the fate of the entire forest world hanging in the balance, I think it might now be one of my favourite Miyazaki films. This is how things can change.
The violence is still there. Unlike everything else that I've seen in Miyazaki's library, this is a film that is certainly not intended for children. Beheadings, dismemberment, lepers, blood, death - all are par
t of the gigantic story and in striking contrast to the beautiful, natural imagery of the film. Miyazaki's world-view here seems clear: the natural world is a wonderful place, but it can be terrible too. Nature doesn't discriminate. Death is as much a part of the cycle as birth. Unlike the sanitized Circle of Life celebrated by Elton John in Disney's The Lion King, the natural world in Miyazaki's film has its share of predators and prey. There is real danger to be had.Something else that is distinctly Miyazaki. The villain of the picture is decidely un-villainlike. As the leader of the human tribe that is pillaging the forest for resources (in service of her iron mills), the person causing the most destruction is remarkably sympathetic, humanistic and caring. It is not just that she is willfully wiping out the forest, but rather that she is putting the needs of her village ahead of the animal kingdom. In turn, she cares greatfully for a cluster of lepers, and is surrounded by the young prostitutes that she saves from slavery. This is not some hand-wringing monster seeking world-domination. Nevertheless, she is keenly aware of the damage she is causing and feels no remorse for the cost of her iron mills. She actively seeks to kill the Spirit of the Forest and she is very, very dangerous. She might very well be seen as the remorseless face of Industry (albeit with a very, very excellent HR department.)
And that animation, ho! All of Miyazaki's films are flawless, crafted with the same precision and style as the absolute best (!) Disney films, however unlike the Disney house-style (which seems to be as much a product as the plush dolls and plastic dish-sets),
Miyazaki's characters are soulful. The world breaths and surprises. Look no further than Miyazaki's treatment of the Tree Spirits, tiny silent creatures that follow the main characters through the trees, mimicking their actions and occasionally twisting their pale heads sideways with a chattering click-click sound. (In large numbers, they sound remarkably like rain falling through the leaves.)Or consider the dynamic (and many) action sequences of the film, spectacular and fast-moving, drafted with an eye for geography and character first. The heart races. [It is astonishing to me now that my first impression of Mononoke was that it was light on action...?] All of this is breathtaking filmmaking - the absolute best that the medium has to offer a fan like me.
And there it is plain, something I couldn't have said 8 years ago: Princess Mononoke is a masterpiece. Here is a movie experience that should be sought out by anyone who professes to love film.
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