Hayao Miyazaki: Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

by Brian Zitzelman

First, an introduction to what will come. For more than 20 years, Hayao Miyazaki has become one of the world’s most loved and equally unappreciated directors. In Japan, Miyazaki films are legendary and his skills are perhaps only seen to be eclipsed by Akira Kurosawa. Abroad, the director has found acclaim and success but as a creator of animated pictures, has often been spoken of in lesser leagues than recent greats despite a wealth of amazing work, rich in detail, depth and storytelling abilities. A thorough retrospective is in order for Miyazaki and in the week’s to come, an analysis of his fine tapestry of a career will be done, minus Arsene Lupin and the Castle of Cagliostro, due to the picture not being an entirely original creation.

In 1984, Miyazaki adapted his manga Nausicca of the Valley of the Wind into a full feature film. Originally released as Warriors of the Wind in the United States, the movie was edited to bits, discarding much of the environmental themes at the core of Nausicca and displaying a poster full of gallant male heroes in the foreground, neglecting the titular character to a small corner of the artwork. Thankfully, in 2005, the full release arrived on DVD, emerging as in Japan those many years ago as a sign of what a fantastic talent Miyazaki was from the outset.

Nausicca is the tale of a young princess living in a profoundly polluted world which threatens to only become worse. Over centuries, mankind has lived uneasily with the wildlife, choosing to burn and destroy any threat it may hint at. The rage between the two grows exponentially. The Ohmus, gargantuan insects with near impenetrable shells and a series of glowing eyes, roam the world, bringing with them remnants of the Sea of Decay, a vast forest rich with deadly pollen. Humans have grown increasingly fearful and some seek an ancient weapon to protect them, no matter the cost other neighboring villages. Princess Nausicca calls one of such neighboring areas home, the Valley of the Wind.

Merely from a story standpoint, Miyazaki’s first feature is a marvel. As is common in nearly all of his releases, the characters are a conflicted bunch, rarely one-note in tone. Nausicca is a strong and brave woman, a fine fighter and when upon her glider riding the skies, a genuine grace is easy to see. However, her skills make her uneasy; fearing the anger that she has for the warring surrounding nations may lead her to kill others out of hate, breaking into tears. Miyazaki builds fine tension by way of what depths Nausicaa will go to in order to help those who mean her harm. Equally, the film’s plot bursts with originality and finely tuned pacing. Too often fantasy tales are told with a rapid pace, leaping from one set piece to the next. Miyazaki turns from the notion, knowing when to feature a blistering battle in the skies burst through and when to allow for a character to lie quietly and bask in moments of tranquility. The patience Miyazaki exudes with his work is one of the key elements that set him apart from so many animation directors who too often seem unsure of whether or not he or she is as capable a creator as those working in live action film.

Not that Miyazaki is unable to relish in the advantages of his particular medium. The splendor of his designs is enough to make Nausicaa worthwhile alone. The oozing, unstable Giant Warrior, the energy of the sword fights and even the costumes could all likely be done with computer graphics or other means but are enriched with a grace under Miyazaki’s hand drawn eye. A dream by the princess, remembering an encounter with a baby Ohmu as a child is bathed in storybook yellows and browns, deep in color and appear as if a painting come to life. As a multitude of hands reach forth for the Ohmu, an earthiness cloaks the scene and one can not help but feel the sadness Nausicaa is remembering, accompanied of course by the moving score of longtime Miyazaki collaborator Joe Hisaishi.

The dream features Miyazki’s most common theme, being at one with nature. As is to be seen in Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke, the latter which acts almost like a sister film to Nausicaa, environmentalism is important to the director and he is willing to show multiple facets of the issue. The vast animal inhabitants of Nausicaa have the ability to be angry, vengeful and quite certainly dangerous, an equal to mankind in emotions. As is the case, the world is delicate, similar to people. Violence only breeds more violence; whether it is with rival villages or adjoining insects - the definition of the theme embodied by Kushana, the head of a warring nation. Having lost her hand to one of the insects, she marches forward to unite all of the disparate nations in order to free people of their fear of nature’s harsher elements. Kushana is the first of Miyazaki’s conflicted and classic villains.

Miyazaki’s film tells that inevitably, mistakes are made and accidents occur, and that only through unity with the world around us can any true sense of peace be achieved. When Princess Nausicaa and crew crash into the Sea of Decay, the group has angered its inhabitants. Rather than use her readily available firepower for protection, she asks forgiveness and becomes enveloped by an Ohmu’s tendrils. In that moment, oneness with nature occurs and she is let go, free of bloodshed. Miyazaki has the rare ability to make this clear and concise but with enough subtlety to refrain from preaching.

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