Princess Mononoke

Hayao Miyazaki, Japan, 1997, 134 minutes

Somewhere in another time, another place there live a people who one day are ravaged by a boar monster. They are saved by their brave Prince Ashitaka who unfortunately is wounded in the battle. The wound has infected him and the village oracle tells him sooner or later he will die. The only possible remedy is contained in a ball of metal found in the monster's body. It came from the west and if Ashitaka goes there to find the source of the ball which enraged the boar he might find a cure. He travels far, through the forest which in Japanese religion is a dwelling place of the spirits and even sees the great forest spirit himself. He leaves the mediaeval world of his home and comes to a city which is on the cusp of an industrial revolution. The city dwellers are aided by a mysterious woman who has given them firearms to destroy the forest spirits who are angry at the incursion of progress. However the humans are still afraid of the wolf spirit and of Princess Mononoke, a human girl adopted by the wolves who is determined to halt progress and the threat to the natural world. As the film progresses and Ashitaka straddles the two warring sides he has to try and get them both to see sense but as the spirit of nature itself is threatened can he get the two sides to realise neither can hope to obliterate the other?

This is a fabulous film, based on Japanese mythology and its blurred lines between the world of humans and the world of nature, combined with the tensions that go with industrialisation, social change and the spiritual make for one of the most breathtaking and gripping fantasy films of recent years. The animation is truly stunning, proving that cartoons are not for kids.

While ultimately this is a fantasy film the issues it deals with are very pertinent to the world we are living in today. Our treatment of the planet is an increasingly important topic and we need to learn to coexist peacefully with the environment. The old and the new, progress and nature, it is an extremely thought provoking film.

Studio Ghibli have been creating wonderful worlds since the late 70s and it is astonishing that the genius of Miyazaki was not widely known in the west before Princess Mononoke. If you only know him through Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle then prepare for a real treat. Existing fans will need no further excuse.

Review by Louise Oliver
Written for EUFS Programme Spring 2008