Review of The Wind Rises

The Wind Rises is a controversial movie that has something that will upset everyone. It upset the Japanese Nationalists because it has a pacifist message. It upset the American Nationalists because it portrays the Japanese as victims of the war instead of evil aggressors. It upset the feminists because Jiro's wife is a submissive and traditional woman. It upset the history buffs because it mixes fact with fiction endlessly. But even though it makes everyone a bit peeved, it is still a good movie. Miyazaki's nuance at every issue he brings up is impressive, even when it makes you mad. There is a very weaksense of time in this movie and has frequent time skips and dream sequences that occur often enough to feel confusing. Jiro's life becomes a blur. This was a stylistic choice so that the audience can focus on the message Miyazaki is trying to tell: that flight is beautiful. Miyazaki loves planes but hates war. His choice to tell a fictionalised life of the man who made one of the deadliest planes in World War II is a peculiar one, but the final product is a thoughtful and beautiful movie. The sound design decision to record voice lines for all of the motors and vehicle noises shows what the tone of the movie is: a bit serious and a bit fun.
This is a very impressive movie with many flaws and many moments of genius.