Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind Review
By Zachary Hines
First up: 1984's Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind - the story of the titular, unfortunately-named, mini-skirted princess, warrior, visionary, and insect-whisperer; with the power to tame the threatening, misunderstood arthropods that live at the edge of the remaining human outposts in a Japanese-speaking post-apocalyptic world. You'll be pleased to know the film unfolds just as breathlessly.
The Valley of the Wind, a peaceful, sequestered human settlement is violently coerced into joining a multinational war against the insects that control the greater face of the Earth. The wise people of this valley, however, are far less susceptible to the hubris that has clouded their neighbors' judgments and they know that doom surely awaits this misguided war. They turn to their young princess to save them, and, later, to redeem the whole human race. And Nausicaä must turn to guns, swords, air gliders, scientific inquiry, and, most importantly, compassion, to get the deed done.
Because of the film's marvelous action sequences, it's easy to lose track of the fact that Nausicaä actually spends a lot of time dealing with these problems through care and sympathy. In fact, with her generous view of life and Zen-like determination to achieve environmental harmony, Nausicaä could be viewed as the consummate martyr for eco-politics (just in time for the Kyoto Accord, too). Fortunately, though, this movie is not that reducible. Politicking is not really the film's intent - it is, instead, simply a stage for a classical struggle of against-all-odds heroics. But the fact is the movie is insightful and introspective, providing a re-imagining of the Earth's organization and reversing the man vs. nature power struggle. Consequently, Nausicaä's world is an intriguing one, filled with talking points that, when sufficiently examined, provide a powerful argument for giving rational inquiry a more dominant role in our society. But that's not really the film's intent either, despite the ongoing dialogues on most Nausicaä blogs and the years-long exploration of these issues in the original Nausicaä manga. With this movie, Miyazaki simply wants to entertain. (Something studios like Disney used to do before product placement and market testing.)
And wagering heavily on this humble intention, Miyazaki cashes out big time. Despite a brief dry spell in the later portions, the movie entertains, delivering a wonderful spectacle of animation. You won't be fidgeting and you won't be texting. The movie is filled with sweeping aerial battles, operatic sword fights, and cringe-inducing combat with giant insects -- all done under Miyazaki's expert brush, with the vibrant sense of motion and confident command of color and shadow that helped popularize and internationalize the entire Anime genre. Seeing that alone on the big screen is more than worth your ten bucks.
On the negative side, the film suffers from an abrupt, clipped ending, but that seems to be the fault of some budgetary or production constraint rather than Miyazaki's decision. And, as in a lot of his early work, the dialogue is stiff and stilted, with characters sometimes explaining the exposition to the audience under the guise of talking to themselves. And what's more is that, for all its inventiveness, it doesn't really compare to Miyazaki's later pictures (such as Princess Mononoke or Spirited Away), where the animation is more refined and gorgeous and his fantasies far outstrip the imaginative constructions of this comparatively dull valley. It is surely unfair to compare this early picture against his later works, I'll admit that -- but I won't skirt the issue, mostly because the point isn't negative. In fact, watching this movie again after spending more time with his later films only underscores the success of all his pictures and proves Miyazaki's clear vision. After all, all of the sentiments and leitmotifs that come to characterize his oeuvre (most notably female heroines with mysterious family dynamics) are here in force (albeit in their incipient stages), and only slightly less remarkable than they'll later become.
For Miyazaki diehards, finally seeing this movie in American cinemas will be a renewing experience, and the double-disc DVD a necessary component in the collection. For everyone else, an inspiring, well-told adventure of a fantastic otherworld awaits. And, some will also be pleased to know, the occasional hints at Nausicaä's animated ass are done a little more forthrightly than the way Disney's hidden innuendo is usually woven into its cartoons.
Aka Kaze no tani no Naushika, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Winds.
Facts and Figures
Year: 1984
Box Office Worldwide: $3.3M
Budget: $1000 thousand
Production compaines: Studio Ghibli, Hakuhodo DY Media Partners, Nibariki, Tokuma Shoten, Topcraft
Reviews
Contactmusic.com: 3.5 / 5
Cast & Crew
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Producer: Hayao Miyazaki
Screenwriter: Hayao Miyazaki
Starring: Sumi Shimamoto as Nausicaä (Voice), Mahito Tsujimura as Jihl (Voice), Hisako Kyōda as Oh-Baba (Voice), Gorō Naya as Yupa (Voice), Ichirō Nagai as Mito (Voice), Kōhei Miyauchi as Goru (Voice), Jôji Yanami as Gikkuri (Voice), Minoru Yada as Niga (Voice), Rihoko Yoshida as Teto / Girl C (Voice), Yōji Matsuda as Asbel (Voice), Mîna Tominaga as Rastel (Voice), Yoshiko Sakakibara as Kushana (Voice), Iemasa Kayumi as Kurotowa (Voice), Tetsuo Mizutori as Commando (Voice)
Also starring: Hayao Miyazaki