The march of technology, embodied in the dark iron forges of the ambitious Tatara clan, threatens the natural forces explicit in the benevolent Great God of the Forest and the wide-eyed, spectral spirits he protects. When Ashitaka, a young warrior from a remote, and endangered, village clan, kills a ravenous, boar-like monster, he discovers the beast is in fact an infectious "demon god," transformed by human anger.
Inflicted with its deadly curse, a young warrior sets out to the forests of the west in search of the cure that will save his life. Once there, he becomes inextricably entangled in a bitter battle that matches Lady Eboshi and a proud clan of humans against the forest's animal gods, who are led by the brave Princess Mononoke, a young woman raised by wolves!
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Reviewer: Steve
Date Added: 7 Sep 2004
Aaron's Rating:5.0
If you ever hear an ignorant person say traditional 2D animation is dead, laugh and tell them Disney dreck may be dead but old style animation is alive and well and thriving in Asia, particularly the work of Studio Ghibli.
The studio, who are based in Japan, are responsible for some of the best animated films ever made, including Disney.
You may have already seen director Hayao Miyazaki’s work with the Oscar-winning ‘Spirited Away’, but now that the early work of the studio is coming out, you can really revel in their breath-taking animation. ‘Mononoke’ has a story line that is easy to follow, totally surprising and original -- something that rarely happens in children’s cinema anymore. As with ‘Spirited Away’, I like the similarities between Maori religion and the belief in ‘Mononoke’ that forests and animals have spirits and our behavior as humans affects every living thing. The animation is just beautiful, and sometimes it seems that every leaf on every tree has been individually drawn. The characters are all fully realized, and not just there to be cute and used in a ‘happy meal’ promotion. For very young children (under 5’s), there is a bit of violence at the start (decapitations, demon monsters), and some of the characters did use to work in brothels, but the overall storyline is so involving and strong, if you are worried, just watch the film first to see if they will be alright with the more extreme parts of the story. And it goes without saying you should watch the films with your children. Not just because you can help them in the scary parts, but also it is a brilliant film that should become a family favourite. I cannot recommend this film strongly enough for fans of good entertainment for children. This is one of the best. And if you are an animation fan who has never seen this film, you are in for a treat. A beautiful film.
