A QUICK review: PRINCESS MONONOKE

Everyone knows Miyazaki? Well, for those few that DON'T, Miyazaki is one of the greatest and most influential animators of OUR time; two of his MANY great films: Spirited Away (2001) and Howl's Moving Castle (2004), which I still need to SEE, were each nominated for an Oscar (for best animated feature) and Spirited Away actually WON! Phew.. thank heavens! 

Princess Mononoke (1997) is another one of Miyazaki's visionary films. The animation, needless to say, is divine... especially the 'forest spirit' [and its transformations]. A great thing about Miyazaki is that his DEMONS actually freak me out, in this film demons are covered in worm-like things that constantly wriggle... gross; also, he's not afraid to 'use' blood to give the audience that extra 'thrill' that we are thirsty for! 

It is AN imaginative and out-of-this-world film that captures the strange relationship between US and the ENVIRONMENT! Oh forgot about the characters... the protagonists are simply likeable (and BEAUTIFULLY drawn) and that's all you need to know (thank HEAVENS, the romance was not a big storyline... very cute though... and not at all 'Disney' or 'Titanic'). LASTLY, not a BLACK and WHITE story because if we hate the humans then we'd be hating ourselves... and most of us are too proud to do that. Great 'food for thought'!

Final Verdict: I can't rate it; it's just one of those movies you don't rate. It's too unconventional to be framed in a score out of ten. WATCH it with a FRESH mind and you'll love it!

P.S. Think of it this way, it's the THREE-DIMENSIONAL version of AVATAR (not that I don't love AVATAR for what it is). IT'S TRADITIONAL ANIMATION... don't get confused... I'm referring to the storyline not the visual!