Many people know of Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli, and if you don't know, you should. Hayao Miyazaki is basically the Walt Disney of Japan, and Ghibli is his studio for making masterpieces of anime. There are many movies that are worth wacthing, but three in particular stand out for me, Princess Mononoke, Pom Poko, and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. These three movies have no connection other than theme, our fragile environment. One takes place in the past, one in the present, and one in the future, and together, they present a moving story of our environment.
The first, Princess Mononoke, takes place in Japan's feudal era, a time when, according to the story, gods actually still lived among men. The story begins with Ashitaka of the Emishi, an elk herder who must defend his village from the sudden attack of a great demon that appears to take the form of a giant spider made of worms that kills everything it touches. He manages to kill it before it reaches the village, but not before it touches him and scars his arm. Before the demon dies, the worms fade and reveal the wood boar god Nago. He is cursed and must leave the village, riding off on his elk, with no hope but to find the source of Nago's curse, hisonly clue a metal pellet lodged in the god and the trail of destruction he left in his wake. Eventually Ashitaka finds Iron Town, run by Lady Eboshi who is making guns for the shogun. Her gun business requires iron sand from the other side of the forest once protected by Nago who she shot to clear him out of her way. Unfortunately she still has to contend with another god, Maro the wolf and her two cubs, three if you count Mononoke. Mononoke is the nickname of San, a girl who was adopted by Maro when her parents sacrificed her to save themselves from Maro's wrath for defiling her woods. Being a mother herself, Maro was disgusted by the humans treatment of their own offspring and raised San to fight for the wild. Ashitaka is torn, on one hand he falls in love with San and feels for nature, on the other hand, he also sees that the people of Iron Town need Lady Eboshi and they will suffer as well if Maro wins the conflict. Adding to these problems, Ashitaka's curse worsens and Nago's rage threatens to kill anyone who gets near Ashitaka, he develops a strength that allows him to dismember his enemies with one strike form his sword or his bow and arrows. Then along comes a monk who offers Eboshi a reward from the Emperor if she can bring him the head of the Spirit of the forest, a deer like god who protects the woods silently and delegates much of it's responsibilities to lesser gods. Ultimately it falls on Ashitaka to strike a balance between all parties in order to free himself of his own curse.
Pom Poko brings us to the present with the plight of the Tanuki. Tanuki are a unique species of canine from Japan that resemble raccoons and are thus referred to as racoon dogs. In traditional folklore Tanuki are believed to be powerful shapeshifters, rivaled only by the Kitsune foxes and the Nekomata cats. In reality, the Tanuki are an endangered species. Pom Poko blends these two in a desperate conflict that is often tempered with humor. As New Tama Hills is being built in Tokyo and threatening the habitat of the Tanuki, they pull out every trick they've got to stop the humans, including taking human form. There really seem to be no limits on the Tanuki's abilities to shapeshift as they take on every concievable form to scare off humans. Ultimately they fail to stop it entirely, but they do make some progress, though they manage to keep it secret enough that nobody knows. The main character, if there is one, is Sasuke a young Tanuki, but the story jumps around so much that it doesn't even focus on him. Although it's an ensemble piece, verging on anthology, this story manages to still illustrate the plight of an endangered species while using it's tradtionally humorous nature to balance the story from being too depressing.
Finally, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, takes place in a distant future when biological weapons and giant monstrosities fought a war that all but destroyed the world and now what's left is being overrun by fungi and insects. The last place that seems to be safe is the Valley of the Wind, where ocean winds seem to blow the toxic fungal spores away and allow those who live in the village to remain safe. This is the home of Nausicaa, a girl who is bravely investigating the fungi and insects trying to determine what caused the current situation and if there is anyway to stop it. She is surprised to discover that nature is actually fixing istself, the trees are processing the fungal toxins and slowly, but surely, purifying the air while the giant insects are intergral to the survival of those same trees. The problem is that two warrign groups of refugees are coming toward the Valley of the Wind looking for an ancient giant, believing that it will have the power to stop the fungus and the insects, but Nausicaa knows that the giant will only make the problem worse by destroying the trees and allowing the toxic fungus to spread unchecked. In fact the giants were responsible for the current situation more than anything else.
Princess Mononoke shows us the past when we first lost respect for nature, Pom Poko shows us where we have gotten ourselves, and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind warns us that ultimately we will only be destroying ourselves. It is profound, and I highly recommend watching them as a marathon next Earth Day.
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