Review of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind Nausicaa is a beautiful anime. It has a raw nostalgic touch to it (because its old) but it is still very enjoyable. Since I only watch modern anime I was surprised to see something like this. Since this is made by studio Ghibli, this is a movie you’ll probably love to. Beautiful, unique, engaging and more. Story The story is simple and elegant. There is no over complicated theme or noticeable plot holes. We follow the adventure of Nausicaa. It is a young girl without ideals. She has a big heart for both human and monsters. You can almost feelher deep respect for the living things. What is done great is that she doesn’t have an unbearable good side. Her character is well balanced.

The plot is simple and follows one event. Prevent an army from the destruction of the remaining world. The setting is a sort of post-apocalyptic world where forests are poisonous but only insects can survive in it. While people in the valley live peacefully, the other nations are fighting the forest and each other. Sadly the valley gets entangled in this mess.

While there is very little world building, the art work and the environment where the story takes place gives surprisingly a feeling of a vast and wide field. It is hard to explain, but get the idea of “it feels like that world has more to offer than that meets the eye”.

Just watch the movie how it will unpack. Its simple, yet a rewarding story.

Art
It’s the old studio Ghibli style. Simple and clean, yet attractive. The style still has its own charm. The forests feels organic and the ships feel sci-fi. The character designs however are simple. It keeps the audience focused on the action.

I like it how Nausicaa soars through the skies. She flies as elegant as a ballerina. For an movie so old I like how well animated it is. You can see the experience she has as a wind glider (mention in the movie) as well see the reference of the title “and the valley of the wind”

The aircrafts give me good sci-fi vibes. While the details of how they work are left out, it feels like a common item in that world. The way how they move as if they were real is also well done.

Sound design
Well it is a classic Ghibli production. The sound effects are so to say “funky”. The music supports the scenes very well with a mix between electronic music and a real orchestra. However I think the volume was sometimes a bit to much, but further than that, it has all the good points.

Voice acting is done very well. Except the old grandma’s voice, I liked every character. You could definitely hear the charm of the commander or the hope in Nausicaas voice. The voices represent the characters in a good way.

Overall
This anime is still very valuable nowadays. Even after some decennia it still has its charm along all the well animated anime now. I had multiple times where I went “wow I didn’t expect that from an old anime”. It is worth your time and a great addition to your Ghibli knowledge.