Missing Miyazaki

At the age of 72, Hayao Miyazaki announced his retirement from film making. For those few of you who don’t know, Miyazaki is one of the most influential anime film maker with titles like Princess Mononoke, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, and Castle in the Sky.

Many people think Miyazaki’s films are overrated. However, few writers and anime directors have brought anime into the American mainstream as well as Miyazaki’s work has. His films show that animation is another medium for storytelling rather than something only for children. In fact, few Americans would even consider his movies as anime. They are, after all, released by Disney!

Unlike Disney films, Studio Ghibli’s movies deal with heavy themes; war is particularly a common theme in Miyazaki’s works. Most of his villains are morally ambiguous. They tend to be motivated by their own ideals and ideas of what is good for the world. The typical black/white stories Disney usually spins are not common fare for Studio Ghibli. The complexity of these stories show Miyazaki intended adults to watch them.

His works are the only anime works I know of that are blockbusters in the American movie scene. Other anime movies are niche novelties. Miyazaki’s films make people raise their heads.  The quality of the animation is dazzling. While it is not as detailed as other studios like Bones and Production IG, Studio Ghibli’s work comes to life. The small details like a belly jiggle are what make the screen come to life with Miyazaki’s believable characters. Even Marco Rousolini feels alive despite being a pig that flies World War I era planes. There is a liveliness to everything; the background is often alive with characters going about their lives. We never know who they are, but we see how alive the worlds are through them.

It is said that Miyazaki personally redrew 80,000 frames of Princess Mononoke. The manga artist is a hands on director. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind is his crowning manga achievement at seven volumes and millions of copies sold worldwide. Porco Rosso and The Wind Rises provide the source for their respective screen titles.

Although Miyazaki has retired, perhaps for the last time (He retired once before after Princess Mononoke), his work will leave a lasting legacy. Films like Spirited Away will remain to inspire the imagination of children and adults alike. They will continue to remind us that animation is not a media specific to children. It is as much a storytelling medium as live action film. In many ways animation is superior to traditional movie making. It has a magic to it that can pull us into an entirely different world; it can let us suspend our disbelief in ways life action cannot match.

The film world will miss Miyazaki’s hand. His influence is equal to that of Walt Disney. Luckily, his body of work will remain to inspire and entertain.

A while ago, I wrote a list about the most influential anime in America. By far, Hayao Miyazaki is the most influential anime director. He introduced anime to the American mainstream long before Pokemon became a household name.Studio Ghibli created films that parents wanted to go watch with their children. Heck, I’ve been to Studio Ghibli showings in theaters that had only a handful of kids. Most of the people were adults like me who are mesmerized by good storytelling and characters.  Few films have a sense of childlike wonder that Miyazaki’s films have.

The wonder and rich worlds Miyazaki’s team weaved pulls the viewer in and tugs at us to wonder: maybe, just maybe, there is a world like this somewhere.