Spirited Away

It never ceases to amaze me that a sixty-nine year old man has the ability to empathize so much with young children and adults alike. Because in Spirited Away, I think Miyazaki clearly demonstrates that at heart he remains, or at least wants to remain, as innocent and excitable as a ten-year-old girl kid. The fact that all of his films are centered around the teenage generation additionally says something about the importance of our youth. For me, I would like to compare Spirited Away as the Yin to Catcher in the Rye’s Yang. While Holden Caulfield reveals the angst and the confusion surrounding the process of maturing and growing up, Chihiro shows the better side of this transformation with the acceptance of her new surroundings and outgrowing her pouty personality in the beginning. The fact that Miyazaki adheres to the theme of teenage heroes in all of his films speaks to the importance of that phase of our lives, it also speaks to the importance that Miyazaki himself places upon the innocent and honest qualities of a person, best embodied in none other than ordinary children. Chihiro is supposed to be an ideal person, despite her shortcomings, and her experience is an ideal experience. This premise is in great contrast with any shojo anime, and even with Japanese animation in general. Chihiro may be a traditional Japanese girl as the film starts; but as the narrative unfolds, she develops not just into a woman, but into a real heroine. Chihiro’s actions are not only examples of what children should follow (bravery, honesty, humbleness, care for others etc.) but what we all should learn to do. In addition, I think Miyazaki’s disdain for the human ego and the progress of modernity shows clearly throughout the film, as both magic and technology are antagonists in the film, and in the end bettered by Chihiro’s wits. Among others, Miyazaki’s personal and earnest portrayal of a young hero in midst of overwhelming difficulties is one of the reasons why I enjoyed the film so much.

Princess Mononoke

When I first saw it, Princess Mononoke had been the first Miyazaki film I have seen. It was recommended by a friend for whom the movie is one of his favorites. For this friend, who is a forestry/environmental economics major now, Princess Mononoke embodied everything that he personally believed, as the unity between humans and nature and their subsequent destructions are concepts that personally interested him. I am sure that the great animation by Studio Ghibili did much to add to his enjoyment of the film; but still the film mainly appealed to him on a specific ideological basis. For me, who never had any experience with Japanese anime before this point (I admit I looked down upon the genre for much of the same reasons that everyone did), it was a revelation as any that I have had. Essentially, what I had felt was that I had never seen a movie quite like Princess Mononoke. But the feeling did not just echo that of a small discovery, but that of a eureka. It was apparent almost from the beginning that Mononoke did not follow a traditional narrative, something which intrigued me and, given the beauty of animation, kept me in my seat. I think if the same narrative was transposed upon a live-action film or any other film of a lesser workmanship, I would have stopped soon after Ashitaka killed the two men in the fields, but Miyazaki kept me watching. As the film went on, the narrative grew even more incredulous, and the plot grew even more unconventional; and I, unexpectedly, enjoyed even more of the film as the plot widened. There have been many ecological films made, but to find any of them not directly referring to the modern environment is a monumental task. Miyazaki teaches his audience the lesson of environmental disaster using a tale of ancient forest gods and human encroachment- together they create a fresh new perspective on our contemporary problem. I would never have imagined such a storyline would be feasible and successful, but somehow the director managed to connect together the dynamic elements of parable, epic, action film and love story to make such an acclaimed film.

Porco Rosso

Before watching Porco Rosso for the first time, I was apprehensive about the plotline of a fighter -pilot turned pig with romance mixed in up somewhere. But apparently, I made the mistake of forgetting that this is not just a potentially cliched film made by any director- but by the ever-ingenious and ever-innovative Hayao Miyazaki. If I remembered that, I wouldn’t have gone in expecting the traditional and clichéd story of another Casablanca, and I wouldn’t be pleasantly surprised. In yet another demonstration of the power of Anime, Porco Rosso combines the expected progression of a romance story with the completely unpredictable nature (physics) of animation- and in turn creates a cross-genre film that Miyazaki was able to manipulate according to his imagination. Throughout the film, our expectations of a classical love story or a thrilling action movie are erased bit by bit as comedy and outrageous acts juxtapose with the otherwise seriousness and beauty of the plot. In the end, we find ourselves on an exciting rollercoaster ride through historic scenes, yet at the same time brought to a different reality where pigs can fly and pirates are unusually friendly towards children. Not everything is happy-go-lucky though, and the main conflict between Marcus and Curtiss is as well done as those in any other Miyazaki film. At heart, the battle between the two main men is a serious, life-threatening duel over a woman. This easily gives rise to a poignant and solemn atmosphere, as the loser can potentially lose everything. In addition, Miyazaki injects a truly sentimental background story regarding Marcus and Gina such that the audience is genuinely touched. On the other hand, throughout the film, not one moment is the viewer bogged down by the pressure of Marcus’s task at hand. Instead, we are taken through the movie at a pleasurable pace and almost never worried or held in suspense. At the very start, we know that Marco will emerge victorious in the conclusion since this is a Miyazaki film. Nevertheless, we still cheer for him through all the trials and obstacles that beset the poor pilot even if we know the ending. This characteristic, I think, defines the films of Hayao Miyazaki- for as long as a person is true and honest, at the end of the day good things will come.