Princess Mononoke

Princess Mononoke came from the period when Hayao Miyazaki’s Studio Ghibli started making socially conscious films. This one plays upon a familiar theme that the studio dealt with several times which was humans have to be in harmony with the environment. That balance was upset when a woman warrior Lady Eboshi created a camp to mine iron to build guns which destroyed the surrounding area. It drove the local animals insane and they organized to get rid of the settlement. Princess Mononoke who was raised by wolves was part of this effort. The main character Ashitaka attempts to reconcile the sides. He’s also noteworthy because he is an Ainu character the original people of Japan who were wiped out by the Japanese colonizers. The Ainu are shown to be at one with nature when Ashitaka kills a giant boar who was turned into a demon due to a bullet from Iron Town. Afterward the Ainu pray for its soul.There are other issues at work in Prince Mononoke as well. The reason Iron Town was built was so that the local peasants could defend themselves from samurai who were massacring them. Lady Eboshi empowers the women who she freed from brothels, uses lepers to build her weapons, and protects the poor. Ashitaka also talks about how hate has created a demon within both Eboshi and Mononoke which will destroy them both if they don’t overcome it and make peace.It's definitely one of Studio Ghibli’s best releases.

I see so many reviews saying that this is one of the best anime movies of all time... Damn that - this is just simply one of the best movies of all time. It is the best kind of fairy tale - a dark fairy tale. Not your typical kid-safe story, but i watched it when i was a kid and i'm glad that i did. Re-watching as an adult, and it still hits that little place in me just the same.Personally, I do think this is Miyazaki's best work. It is a masterpiece. I have no complaints, it is a perfect film. The wolf mother's line - "My poor, ugly, ...beautiful daughter" is probably my favorite quote of all time.

I've saved myself for this movie for several years, long looking forward to seeing it, knowing it's considered Miyakazi's master work. I won't belabor points that have been made by others, for example, in one and two-star reviews, just state them quickly: 1) the Americanized dialogue is often mediocre and counter to the spirit and splendor of the original Japanese. There are numerous examples I could give, but I won't, just say that the dialogue, style, and tone of voice of Billy Bob Thornton, the ox-driver Kokoro, and supporting cast (soldiers cat-calling in the background, people squealing, jeering, etc.) are often incongruous and set the wrong tone. I made the mistake of watching the English dub first. Without exactly knowing why I just found some scenes "off", the tone uneven. The Japanese dialogue needed no "punching up" but American filmmakers are fond of hype and extraneous "color", sigh.Just listen to the original Japanese soundtrack (for attitude and tone of voice), and read the literal English translation of the original dialogue, it's much better. I hate it anyway when modern American slang and wisecracks muddy historical or mythical productions, and that's what the translators have done. The time frame here is roughly the 14th century. In Thornton's scenes the tone along with the dialogue is all wrong- he's playing some cool, possibly beat generation cat and speaking in modern cliches. ***SPOILER ALERT*** In the scene where Ashitaka saves and then escorts Kokoro back home, and the Kodama (baby tree spirits) appear, in the Americanized version Kokoro alternately whimpers and shrieks. In other scenes he sounds like a catty hairdresser. NONE of this is in the original. I didn't compare Jada Pinkett-Smith's lines (but her scenes are semi-comical, she plays a smart-aleck, so not as big a deal). Tone-wise Billy Crudup, Clare Danes, Minnie Driver and Gillian Anderson all did a great job- formal, sincere, classy, in keeping with the original, but again the modern Anglicized dialogue was sometimes incongruous.That said, the animation was fantastic, of course, a thing to behold, along with the music. I own all of Miyakazi's other films-  Spirited Away  is one of my favorite movies of all time. One thing extraordinary about Miyazaki is the complexity of his characters- bad guys aren't all bad and good guys aren't all good, and people/beings vary according to the situation. Though I might be in the minority, thematically and emotionally I think Spirited Away is a better film that Princess Mononoke, has more emotional and psychological depth (a matter of personal taste, of course). Princess Mononoke is about humanity's relationship with nature, along with self-serving interests, aggression, mistrust, and greed. Its themes and scale are grand, universal. Spirited Away has many of these same themes along with love, courage, generosity, trust, etc. It looks at these themes on a more intimate level.In a nutshell I thought Princess Mononoke was very good (in Japanese), original and evocative, like nothing else and must-viewing, but that Spirited Away was even better (if not in terms of animation, though it's lovely, in terms of themes, and HEART). I say all this in case you, too, are seeing this for the first time with high expectations and great anticipation. I encourage you to watch it in Japanese with the literal English translation (not the track for the hearing impaired), for the best possible viewing experience. Then see Spirited Away- they're like two sides of the same coin. Right now I'm going to go rent Bambi. P.S. It was evident that Princess Mononoke, along with  Dances with Wolves , were major influences on James Cameron's creation of  Avatar , so many similarities.

Possibly the best Ghibli film, for me. It's a choice between this and the excellent Spirited away although this film is more adult and universal, I feel, in content. One could argue that Spirited away is also similar but I think it's more of a childrens film albeit with semi-buried environmental themes (literally) bubbling to the surface from time to time. Everything about this film is fantastical in the true sense of the word. The art is exquisite and the story is both at times exciting and heart rending. There are dark moments so possibly not suitable for young children but I would say it's no more extreme than something like Watership down which also has its dark points but ultimately has the same value for young minds when it comes to illustrating that nature is red in tooth and claw and not everything is "like pokemon". A beautiful and beguiling film that basically has zero wrong with it. Put aside preconceptions about "Japanese cartoons" as this is an extremely strong piece of cinema with an interesting and unifying environmental angle that should appeal to anyone if they can see it without prejudice clouding their thoughts. I have been trying to get my wife to watch this for a long time and she refuses because "it's a cartoon". She genuinely has no idea what she is missing out on and, sadly, almost certainly never will. See this film, you will not regret it !

As a 17 year old i can't say that i am the fountain of all knowledge on film but within the first few minutes of Princess mononoke, i knew i was watching something special by its outstanding score, sublime animation/ design and adult nature.Arguably one of the best studio ghibli movies releases to date, Mononoke encapsulates everything i've come to adore from the studio. It is a sweeping epic filled with beauty, action, complex characters and enough thought provoking themes to completely justify its long run time.Without spoiling anything, Princess Mononoke is primarily about Humanity's relationship with nature (and vice versa), and the animosity between them. I had assumed that being a ghibli film, it was going to stand heavily in favour of nature, however Myazaki instead showed the audience the best and worst of both sides and let us decide who to support. Some of my friends including me supported the side of nature but a few other friends firmly believed the humans deserved their chance to progress, such a divide is a testemanf to handling of such prudent issues presented in this film.All in all, this has become my favourite animated film of all time and i strongly urge you to give it a chance because it may just blow you away.

When I heard that this film was finally coming out over here I was very excited. I'd never seen it before, but had seen other works of Hayao Miyazaki such as Totoro and Cagliostro. I was worried when I heard it had been bought and dubbed by Disney, fearing another mangled and edited poor translation as happened with Nausicaa /warriors of the wind.However, the translation is superb - done by no less than Neil Gaimen of Sandman fame - and the voice acting actually very good, with little of the poor acting and odd characterisation we've come to be used to. Perhaps the translation looses us some of the finer points, but none the less, it's superb.The film - What can I say? This is an epic tale that will draw anyone in who starts watching it, no matter how old they are. I watched this with my father, who's not a fan of animation (especially not Japanese animation), and he was enthralled, loving the beauty and the characters. It's certainly not a children's film, as it becomes quite dark towards the end. Dealing with themes such as mankind's effect on the environment and the destructive power of anger, this film tells the tale of the conflicts between a group of humans and a group of nature gods. Some scenes have echoes of Nausicaa, especially in character designs, and fans of Robert Holdstock's Mythago Wood books will find much they like here. Scenes of the Forest Spirit changing from the Night Walker to a multi horned, human faced deer that can walk on water have a strange magical pagan feel to them, and an eerie beauty.I'm trying not to say too much about the story as to give things away would be a crime if you've not seen the film before. I will say this : the ending is spectacular and satisfying - in some ways it reminds me of the finale of Akira - yet it still manages to remain open ended. The viewer and the characters are treated with respect and we're not given a cut and dried "punish the bad / reward the good" ending. Indeed, there are few characters in the film who can be viewed as purely bad. This is a good thing.This package doesn't have too many extras. You can see a nice trailer, a short making of film, and have the option to watch in the original language, which is always nice. You do get Helen McCarthy's excellent book on Hayao Miyazaki, and that is a superb bonus. Let's hope that we start to see more films given this treatment soon!

The first Ghibli film I saw was 'Laputa'. At first, I much preferred that to this, but now I prefer 'Princess Mononoke'.My reasons are that I think this film is genuinely deeper than 'Laputa'. Particularly the bits with The Forest Spirit. I don't want to give away the plot but I will say that, with this character, they've tried to depict a god and succeeded. I don't think what they've achieved with this is something to be sniffed at! I think the music plays a big part in this as well as the images. It reminds me of John Tavener's music, which is very spiritual.There is a great blend of action, reflection, humor, and darkness throughout the film. Overall, I'd say this film comes close to being a genuinely adult film. Much more adult than other Ghibli films. The story is very strong, and the themes of environmentalism are put across to the viewer without being at all patronising or cheesy.Being a musician, I always listen for the soundtrack and it is wonderful. Joe Hisaishi has really done something great here. And, cleverly, if there is really melodic music to be heard, the director always lets it be heard and doesn't bury it beneath action dialogue and sound effects.This film is well worth your money. I cried in a couple of places!

Bit darker than some other of the Ghibli films, nature vs humans. I still liked it. Characters are more colourful, not just black and white into the baddie, goodie categories. I always find with Ghibli films I fall in love with the side characters that can’t talk! Kodama, Soot balls, Yakul, all adorable and I wish they were real and I had one, just like Pokemon and the chameleon from Repunzel!