Princess Mononoke

"In ancient times, the land lay covered in forests, where from ages long past, dwelt the spirits of the gods. Back then, man and beast lived in harmony. But as time went by, most of the great forests were destroyed. Those that remained were guarded by gigantic beasts, who owed their allegiances to the Great Forest Spirit. For those were the days of gods—and of demons."

- Lord Okkoto

Princess Mononoke (Japanese: もののけ姫 Hepburn: Mononoke-hime, "Spirit/Monster Princess") is a Japanese epic historical fantasy anime film directed and written by Hayao Miyazaki. It was animated at Studio Ghibli for Tokuma Shoten, Nippon Television Network, and Dentsu.

Summary
After a tough battle against a demonized boar god and after his right arm got cursed by the corruption, Ashitaka heads to the western lands, but he cannot return to his homeland. He's then involved in an ongoing struggle between the gods of the forest with a human girl named San, and a group of humans led by Lady Eboshi.

Why It Rocks

 * 1) Amazing hand-drawn animation that still looks good today. It also greatly helps the already beautiful character designs and backgrounds pop a lot more (they still would wither way, but the animation really helps it pop).
 * 2) Astonishing action sequences with gore and violence. This makes the film stand out from the crowd much more given how Studio Ghibli rarely uses action or violence in their movies.
 * 3) An amazing story about a boy going on a journey to undo a curse place on him that will slowly destroy his soul and body if it isn't lifted by a certain amount of time. It also has an incredible theme and possible moral (one that isn't outright shoved into the audience's face) about not letting rage consume you.
 * 4) * The story is also very morally ambiguous. As like Spirited Away, another Studio Ghibli film famous for it's acclaim, there isn't a true villain or Good vs. Evil theme in the story. As Lady Eboshi and the citizens of Irontown (as will be discussed in further detail later in WIR# 7), in spite of their antagonistic positions, aren't truly bad people, but instead are more like real people if anything.
 * 5) Excellent editing that captures the film's tone very well.
 * 6) Amazing voice acting in both the sub and the dub. There are also little to no dialogue changes from the original Japanese version and the English one, a common trait with Studio Ghibli films.
 * 7) It's a more mature anime film than what Studio Ghibli has made before. As it has a lot more death, fighting, and morally grey characters than not just most Studio Ghibli films, but also most kids films in general. And it's also worth noting that unlike most Studio Ghibli films which received G ratings, this one was given a PG one, which it fully takes advantage of.
 * 8) Irontown (the town that was at war with the forest spirits due to them taking the forest's resources) feels like a well-rounded, working, political town, rather than a straight-up evil town (unlike most films with places in a similar position to Irontown, which would simply portray them as outright evil). They feel like real people who have understandable reasons for why they need the forest's resources.
 * 9) * Most of the people living in the town are actually good people, they just need the forest's resources to make weapons in order to fight the Emperor's army that continuously attack the town.
 * 10) * Lady Eboshi, the head of the town, is willing to do anything if it means protecting her people due to the constant attacks from the Emperor's army. Even if it means going to war with the forest Gods in order to obtain more iron sand (on top of the already frequent attacks from the Emperor's army).
 * 11) Awesome soundtrack, which consists of tracks like The Legend of Ashitaka, The Demon God, Kodamas, The Forest of the God, The World of the Dead, Ashitaka and San, and many more.
 * 12) Wonderfully written and complex characters.
 * 13) * Ashitaka, the main protagonist, is very stern and determined to achieve his goals, not allowing the setbacks he faces over the course of the story to stop him from going to cure the curse inflicted on him by the demon killed in the beginning, and saving his village.
 * 14) * San (or Princess Mononoke) is a girl who acts, behaves, and resembles a wolf due to the fact that she was raised by wolves themselves. San is the Princess of the Wolf Gods. Her desires to protect the wolves she considers her family is to the point where she wouldn't hesitate to kill or sacrifice herself for them.
 * 15) * Lady Eboshi, as previously mentioned (in WIR# 5.2), is the prime example of a morally grey character. As her desire to produce weaponry in order to protect her people pushes her to do some borderline amoral deeds, similar to San's willingness to protect the wolves she considers her family.

Bad Qualities

 * 1) The movie doesn't tell how Irontown was founded, which could've made for an interesting backstory for the town.
 * 2) Ashitaka's curse on his arm was never really fully utilized during his journey to have it lifted.
 * 3) The romance between Ashitaka and San/Princess Mononoke can feel shoehorned in depending on your view.
 * 4) The title can be seen as misleading, due to the fact that Princess Mononoke isn't actually the main character, as it's actually Ashitaka that serves as the protagonist of the film.

Reception
The movie was critically lauded by moviegoers and fans alike and got a 92% approval rating from the review aggregate site, Rotten Tomatoes.

The Daily Yomiuri's Aaron Gerow called the film a "powerful compilation of Miyazaki's world, a cumulative statement of his moral and filmic concerns." Leonard Klady of Variety said that Princess Mononoke "is not only more sharply drawn, it has an extremely complex and adult script" and the film "has the soul of a romantic epic, and its lush tones, elegant score by Joe Hisaishi and full-blooded characterizations give it the sweep of cinema's most grand canvases".

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