Princess Mononoke (1997)


Princess Mononoke
(1997) on IMDb
9.0 /10

Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Release Date: July 12, 1997
Running Time: 133 minutes
Genre: Animation

Synopsis: Emishi Prince Ashitaka travels to far lands of the West in search of gods who can cure his curse but what he finds there, is a battle between Princess Mononoke and the villagers led by Lady Eboshi.

One of the trademarks of Hayao Miyazaki's films is the representation of imaginary worlds with mythical wonders. His films have a deeper message in them.  This film is about the conflict between man and nature but that doesn't limit its creativeness only to the theme. One can conclude more and more from this epic tale.

Princess Mononoke (right) Vs Lady Eboshi (left)

It revolves around three characters: Prince Ashitaka, Lady Eboshi, and Princess Mononoke aka San. Lady Eboshi, the leader of the villagers, manufactures iron. She's brave, clever and ambitious but doesn't care very much about the men of the village. For making iron they have to cut trees from the forest, due to which she becomes the enemy of San who wants to protect the forest at any cost and doesn't care if she dies in this fight. Raised by wolf gods, she considers herself a wolf too. Ashitaka wants both humans and gods (nature) to live together in peace and try everything he can to resolve the conflict.

Princess Mononoke

Both San and Lady Eboshi are strong female characters and leaders of their respective groups but none of them is pure evil or pure good. This film is a perfect example of women's empowerment. Bollywood must learn about women's empowerment from this Japanese anime.

Cinematographer Atsushi Okui has done a fabulous job. Nature is very much alive in this film. It emphasizes the beautiful depiction of nature with magical creatures and forest spirits, small villages, and gods of the forest representing different elements of nature. Creators have paid huge attention to minute details which ultimately results in an unforgettable watching experience. The scene where the Dear god roams through the forest at night as a giant nightcrawler is so mesmerizing and visually satisfying.

Dear God in Princess Mononoke

In the time of live-action films, Japanese anime has shown that they are still more effective and captivating than most of Disney's animation films. There are no emotions that can't be expressed by the characters in Miyazaki's films. High-quality animation and effective and balanced portrayal of love & hate, modernization & tradition and gods & men make this film a masterpiece

The ending of the film seems a little bit unsatisfactory. I was expecting a solid conclusion. The film is more violent and complex than other Miyazaki films with lots of war and fight sequences which makes this more suitable for the older audiences.

Overall Princess Mononoke is an excellent and brilliantly made film. It's very much ahead of its time. A visual feast. A must-watch. To date, it feels so fresh and powerful.




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