Princess Mononoke

…anime such as Miyazaki Hayao’s Princess Mononoke (1997) are the modern equivalent of the epic folk adventures once filmed by Mizoguchi Kenji (The 47 Ronin, 1941) and Kurosawa Akira (Yojimbo, 1961; “The Bodyguard”). Kon Satoshi’s Perfect Blue (1997) suggests the early Japanese New Wave films of director Oshima Nagisa with…

…stage for 1997’s Mononoke-hime (Princess Mononoke), a blockbuster that broke Japanese box-office records. The film revisited some of Miyazaki’s recurring themes, such as the conflict between human progress and natural order and the persistence of the spiritual world alongside the mundane. In addition, its depiction of kodama (Japanese tree…

…in animated features Mononoke-hime (1997; Princess Mononoke), Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001; Spirited Away), and Hauru no ugoku shiro (2004; Howl’s Moving Castle).

…Miyazaki’s blockbuster hit Mononoke-hime (Princess Mononoke).