Review of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
Across the history of anime, as we know it, the works of Hayao Miyazaki have always been the most acclaimed and enjoyed in the public eye. Yet, well before his smash hits of Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke took the world by storm, Miyazaki’s first big success came in the form of a manga. Running from 1982 to 1994, this manga was a large financial success, and, despite initial resistance to the idea, Miyazaki eventually agreed to direct a film adaptation for release in 1984; thus came to be Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. The most remarkable aspect of Nausicaä that spoke to meimmediately was its incredible world. Set in the post-apocalyptic landscape of a world consumed by pollution, every locale from the titular valley to the toxic jungle is full of life and detail, they feel very much a real place I could see existing. The people too are adapted, and in a way that is largely realistic-feeling given the situation at hand. From their ways of daily life to the technologies they have developed to live in this new world, everything just feels very complete.
That wonderfully built world is only accentuated by the remarkable animation throughout the film. Even as a movie made before the proper formation of Studio Ghibli, the animation is nothing short of incredible, pleasing to the eye with popping colors and smooth, lifelike movement. While it’s not something as remarkable as the modern creations, for its time, made without any computer aid, it’s something truly special and evokes a feeling of nostalgia in its old-timey style.
Background music isn’t something I often take full note of unless it’s particularly bad or good. Nausicaä absolutely falls into the latter area, with its notable OST that perfectly fits each scene’s tone of adventure, mystery, nature, or whatever else. They’re fantastic and fitting tracks that really exemplify the already great elements of the film in its environmental and action sequences.
Unfortunately, this focus on a beautiful world and environments does come with its fair share of downsides, namely being in the plot and characters. While neither are anything atrocious by any means and are completely passable, it’s only the high quality of the other aspects that make these shortcomings apparent. None of the characters are particularly in-depth or compelling, mostly just existing to serve their narrative purpose for the plot, be it the kindhearted hero, the wise mentor, or the evil bad guy.
Characters not going much beyond filling a narrative purpose isn’t necessarily bad per se, not so long as the narrative itself holds up well. Regretfully, the plot is one of the weaker aspects of Nausicaä, being all together tropey, and generally predictable, though inoffensively so. Again, this wouldn’t be an issue on its own, as a standard story can still be held up with its strong characters. However, as discussed, that too is an area of lacking for Nausicaä, meaning that both aspects combined give the film a weaker-feeling narrative overall.
Nausicaä is a wondrous and beautiful movie that is only held back by its, not bad, but oftentimes tropey characters and narrative. The environments, animations, and music are all fantastic, and its only flaws really rear their heads in a critical, posthumous analysis, not taking away a thing from the experience within the moment. It is, in all, a truly stunning film to witness, one that captivates your attention till the very end.
Grade - A-