Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
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| Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind | |
|---|---|
| Image:Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.jpg Region 1 DVD cover | |
| Directed by | Hayao Miyazaki |
| Produced by | Isao Takahata |
| Written by | Hayao Miyazaki |
| Music by | Joe Hisaishi |
| Cinematography | Hideshi Kyonen |
| Editing by | Naoki Kaneko Tomoko Kida Shiyoji Sakai |
| Release date(s) | Image:Flag of Japan.svg March 4, 1984 |
| Running time | 116 min. |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (風の谷のナウシカ Kaze no tani no Naushika?) is a 1984 film by Japanese writer, illustrator, and filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki, based on his manga of the same name. The movie has environmentalist undertones and was presented by the World Wide Fund for Nature when it was released in 1984. Nausicaä is ranked as one of the 50 greatest science fiction films by the Internet Movie Database.[1] While created before Studio Ghibli was founded, the film is considered by some to be the studio's first film because of the involvement of Studio Ghibli's Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata and Toshio Suzuki[2]. It is often included as part of the Studio's works, including the Studio Ghibli Collection.
The movie won the Animage Anime Grand Prix prize in 1984.
Contents |
[edit] Plot synopsis
The story takes place 1,000 years after the "Seven Days of Fire," an event which destroyed human civilization and most of the Earth's original ecosystem. Scattered human settlements survive, isolated from one another by the Sea of Decay (腐海 fukai?). Literally translating as the Sea of Rot or the Sea of Fungus, the Sea of Decay is a lethally toxic jungle of fungus swarming with giant insects, which seem to come together only to wage war.
The primary protagonist, Nausicaä, is a charismatic young princess of the peaceful Valley of the Wind. Her name comes from the princess Nausicaa in the Odyssey who assisted Odysseus, and is transcribed into Japanese as ナウシカ, pronounced [naɯɕika]. In English, the Greek name is normally pronounced /nɒˈsɪkeɪə/, but in the soundtrack for the film it is /ˈnɔːsɨkə/. Part of her character comes from a Japanese folk hero known as "the princess who loved insects", while another part was inspired by the writings of Bernard Evslin, as he had written a more in-depth extrapolation of character of Odyssey's Nausicaa. [3]
Although a skillful fighter, Miyazaki's Nausicaä is humane and peace-loving. She has an unusual gift for communicating with the giant insects (particularly with the Ohmu, the gigantic, armored, caterpillar-like insects who are the most intelligent creatures in the Sea of Decay). She is also noted for her empathy toward animals, humans, and other beings. An intelligent girl, and inspired by the mentor figure Yupa, a wandering samurai type possessed of great wisdom, Nausicaä frequently explores the Sea of Decay and conducts scientific experiments in an attempt to divine the true nature and origins of the toxic world in which she lives. Her explorations are facilitated by her skill at "windriding"; flying with an advanced glider-like craft with a jet assist called a möwe.
The Valley of the Wind is threatened when another state, Pejite, unearths a God Warrior (kyoshinhei) embryo which is then stolen by a more powerful state, Tolmekia, translated in the manga as Tormekia. The God Warriors are one of the lethal, giant, biological weapons used in the ancient war. Both Pejite and Tolmekia hope to use the God Warrior against each other and, ultimately, against the Sea of Decay. While transporting the Warrior back to their realm, the Tolmekians are attacked by insects and subsequently crash-land in the Valley. The very next day, the Tolmekians invade the Valley to secure and revive the Warrior, eventually forcing the peaceful people of the Valley into armed resistance. The situation deteriorates as the fight to possess the God Warrior escalates out of control and the Sea of Decay strikes back against those who attack it.
The story holds deeper meaning than its depiction of war; there are both humanistic and ecological subtexts in Miyazaki's narrative. Even the insects seem to be working toward some secret harmony and the lethal fungal forest seems to have a vital role in Earth's new ecosystem.
[edit] Releases
The film was originally released in Japan on March 4, 1984, and sold almost a million tickets.[4]
[edit] Warriors of the Wind
A heavily edited and English-dubbed version of the film was released theatrically in North America, shown on HBO and released on VHS by New World Pictures & Orion Pictures in the 1980s as Warriors of the Wind. According to Nausicaa.net, the voice actors and actresses were not even informed of the film's plotline and more than 30 minutes of the movie were cut from the film because New World felt that "the parts were slow moving"[5]. As a result, part of the film's narrative meaning was lost; some of the environmentalist themes were diluted as was the main subplot about the Ohmu, altered to turn them into aggressive enemies. Most of the characters were renamed (for example, Nausicaä became "Princess Zandra"). The cover for the VHS release featured a cadre of male characters, who are not part of the film, riding the resurrected God Warrior — including a still-living Warrior shown briefly in a flashback. It was released around the world under various different titles, such as Sternenkrieger (literally "Star Warriors") in Germany.
Many fans of Nausicaä, along with Miyazaki himself, dislike this version; Miyazaki suggested that people should put it "out of their minds." [6] Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki have asked fans to forget its existence and later adopted a strict "no-edits" clause for future foreign releases of its films. On hearing that Miramax co-chairman Harvey Weinstein would try to cut Princess Mononoke to make it more marketable, one of Studio Ghibli's producers sent an authentic katana with a simple message: "No cuts".[7]
[edit] 2005 English re-release
| Ratings | |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom: | PG |
An uncut and re-dubbed version of Nausicaä was released on DVD by Buena Vista Home Entertainment on February 22, 2005 for Region 1. This DVD also includes the Japanese audio track with English subtitles. Optimum Home Entertainment released the film in Region 2, and the Region 4 DVD is distributed by Madman Entertainment. The 2005 DVD version made it around the world uncut.
[edit] Production
Nausicaä was produced with animators hired for the one movie and paid per frame.[4] One notable animator was Hideaki Anno, who later produced Neon Genesis Evangelion. Anno was assigned to draw the challenging God Warrior's attack sequence, which according to Toshio Suzuki is a "high point in the film".[4]
[edit] Cast
The film stars the following voice actors in the 1984 Japanese and 2005 re-dubbed English versions:
| Character | Japanese | English 2005 dub |
|---|---|---|
| Narrator | (none) | Tony Jay |
| Nausicaä | Sumi Shimamoto | Alison Lohman |
| Lord Yupa | Goro Naya | Patrick Stewart |
| Kushana | Yoshiko Sakakibara | Uma Thurman |
| Kurotowa | Iemasa Kayumi | Chris Sarandon |
| Mito | Ichirō Nagai | Edward James Olmos |
| Lastelle | Miina Tominaga | Emily Bauer |
| Asbel | Yōji Matsuda | Shia LaBeouf |
| Mayor of Pejite | Makoto Terada | Mark Hamill |
| Prince Milo | Cam Clarke | |
| Obaba | Hisako Kyōda | Tress MacNeille |
| King Jihl | Mahito Tsujimura | Mark Silverman |
| Muzu | James Arnold Taylor | |
| Gikuri | Jōji Yanami | Jeff Bennett |
| Lastelle's Mother | Akiko Tsuboi | Jodi Benson |
| Gol | Kōhei Miyauchi | Frank Welker |
- Children's Voices by Paul Butcher, Ashley Edner, Molly Keck, Richard Miro, Jordan Orr, Aimee Roldan, Grace Rolek
- Additional Voices by Newell Alexander, Rosemary Alexander, Tom Amundson, Stephen Apostolina, Mitch Carter, Robert Clotworthy, David Cowgill, Wendy Cutler, Ike Eisenmann, Jean Gilpin, Nicholas Guest, Bridget Hoffman, Sherry Hursey, Rif Hutton, Edie Mirman, Peter Renaday, Lynnanne Zager
[edit] Manga
Miyazaki's manga version of Nausicaä was written over a period of 13 years, with breaks taken to work on Studio Ghibli films. Serialized in Tokuma Shoten's Animage magazine, the first chapter was published in February 1982, and the last chapter in March 1994. As can be expected, the story of the manga is far more complex than that of the film. The tale depicted in the film roughly corresponds to only the first quarter of the manga (which is all that had been written at the time the film was produced), with significant differences in plot.
In addition to the plot, there are other significant differences in the story – the characters are more developed and the environmentalist tone is more sophisticated, echoed in the complex worldview of Princess Mononoke. Nausicaä herself is portrayed as being much more potent, with abilities that are not always explained.
The Nausicaä manga is published in English by VIZ Media. Earlier editions of the English manga and fan translations often used the title Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind, omitting the definite article.
[edit] Möwe
The Möwe (メーヴェ Mēve?, sometimes transliterated as Mehve) is a fictional one-person plane/glider. Möwe is the German word meaning seagull, and refers to the vehicle's form and color, as well as the proximity of the Valley of Wind to the Sea of Decay.
It is unarmed, though the pilot can deploy non-lethal flash grenades to disorient pursuers. It can store a rifle/shotgun on the back. It does not provide any protection from the elements for the pilot, who is completely exposed to the wind. Although its performance specifications are not clear, it is slow enough to allow the pilot to hold onto and control it with nothing more than his/her arms and body weight. The möwe also possesses V/STOL capabilities.
The möwe has an approximate wingspan of 5.8 meters (1/20 model measured to be 29cm), and is only 12kg according to the design notes.[8] In 2004, the Japanese-led OpenSky Aircraft Project began attempts to build a real-life, working Möwe.[9]
[edit] See also
- Editing of anime in American distribution
- Ohmu
- Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind (video game)
- Nausicaä Kiki Ippatsu (video game)
[edit] References
- ^ SciFi chart, IMDb.
- ^ [1]
- ^ First volume of English manga of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind published by VIZ Media, back cover.
- ^ a b c Studio Ghibli, The Birth of Studio Ghibli video, c. 2003 (included on UK Nausicaä DVD)
- ^ FAQ, Nausicaä.net.
- ^ FAQs, Nausicaa.net
- ^ Brooks, Xan. "A god among animators", The Guardian, 2005-09-14. Retrieved on 2007-05-23. "There is a rumour that when Harvey Weinstein was charged with handling the US release of Princess Mononoke, Miyazaki sent him a samurai sword in the post. Attached to the blade was a stark message: 'No cuts.' / The director chortles. 'Actually, my producer did that.'"
- ^ Möwe with Nausicaä 1/20 scale model, Studio Ghibli Plamodel Collection, Bandai, 2004, Copyright: 2 horsepower(二馬力)
- ^ Opensky Project
[edit] External links
- Kaze no tani no Naushika at the Internet Movie Database
- Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (anime) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
- Info and review of Warriors of the Wind with audio clips
- Review of Warriors of the Wind
- 風の谷のナウシカ (Kaze no tani no Naushika) (Japanese). Japanese Movie Database. Retrieved on 2007-07-19.
Studio Ghibli films | |
|---|---|
| Pre Ghibli films | Hols: Prince of the Sun · Panda! Go, Panda! · Lupin III: Castle of Cagliostro · Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind |
| Ghibli films | Castle in the Sky · My Neighbor Totoro · Grave of the Fireflies · Kiki's Delivery Service · Only Yesterday · Porco Rosso · I Can Hear the Sea · Pom Poko · Whisper of the Heart · Princess Mononoke · My Neighbors the Yamadas · Spirited Away · The Cat Returns · Howl's Moving Castle · Tales from Earthsea · Ponyo on a Cliff |
| Studio Ghibli short films | Nandarou · On Your Mark · Ghiblies · Ghiblies Episode II · Mei and the Kittenbus · The Night of Taneyamagahara · Mizugumo Monmon · Iblard Jikan |
| Related articles | Hayao Miyazaki · Ghibli Museum · Nausicaa.net |
zh-min-nan:Hong-kok ê Nausika cs:Naušika z Větrného údolí de:Nausicaä aus dem Tal der Winde es:Nausicaä del Valle del Viento eo:Kaze no Tani no Naushika (filmo) fa:ناوسیکا از دره باد fr:Nausicaä de la vallée du vent ko:바람계곡의 나우시카 hr:Nausikaja iz vjetrovite doline it:Nausicaä della Valle del Vento (film) nl:Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind ja:風の谷のナウシカ pl:Nausicaä z Doliny Wiatru pt:Kaze no tani no Naushika ru:Навсикая из долины Ветров sv:Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind th:Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind uk:Наусіка з Долини Вітрів zh:风之谷
Categories: 1984 films | Adventure anime and manga | Anime of the 1980s | Drama anime and manga | Fantasy adventure films | Fantasy anime and manga | Post-apocalyptic science fiction films | Science fiction anime and manga | Seinen | Japanese films | Japanese-language films | Studio Ghibli | Films directed by Hayao Miyazaki | Films distributed by Disney | Viz Media
