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Nausicaa & Mononoke

Yeah, I noticed the similarities too. I don't think Mononoke was a re-telling, I think it was more about preventing what happens in Nausicaa. Nausicaa is about how nature strikes back against humanity; while Mononoke is about nature and humanity living together. Although at the end of Nausicaa, humans and nature are at peace, but only after most of the world is destroyed, so I think Mononoke is about how we can live in peace with nature without having most of the world destroyed in the process.

It's the other way around. Mononoke is about how we stopped being able to live in peace with nature, and Nausicaa is about how finally we will able to do so again. If you take Mononoke, On Your Mark and Nausicaa together, you have a perfect trilogy. In Mononoke, spoiler[humans destroy most of the few remaining forest spirits, and work out their own destiny no longer in harmony with nature. That San and Ashitaka can't be together even though they clearly love eachother is symbolic of this]. In On Your Mark we see the results of this, spoiler[with the earth's surface no longer habitable. We also see the winged girl though, who represents hope for the future]. In Nausicaa, we see spoiler[the final redemption of humanity. Yes, much of the world's surface has become the Sea of Corruption/Toxic Forest, but don't forget that this forest was created by human beings to cleanse the world, the dangerous insects having been engineered and put there to protect it].

It's not the only example of common threads from his works, his use of young girls as heroins is another good one.

Then in Mononoke spoiler[Nature and humans already live together, but are growing apart. How Ashitaka helps the forest god, and and tries to "see with eyes unclouded by hate" shows how he is willing to continue living in peace, despite of the other characters].

Or his love of flying, a theme wich occurs in every single movie except Mononoke

spoiler[Yes, much of the world's surface has become the Sea of Corruption/Toxic Forest, but don't forget that this forest was created by human beings to cleanse the world, the dangerous insects having been engineered and put there to protect it].

Man's relationship with nature is a thread that runs through many of Miyazaki's works.

angel_lover wrote:

spoiler[Yes, much of the world's surface has become the Sea of Corruption/Toxic Forest, but don't forget that this forest was created by human beings to cleanse the world, the dangerous insects having been engineered and put there to protect it].

Em, that's the spoiler for Nausicaa manga, not anime.

DCRavenX wrote:

Man's relationship with nature is a thread that runs through many of Miyazaki's works.

In fact, Miyazaki-san was quite annoyed for being branded as such.

I'm afraid such simplistic "I wrote it so it means what I say" won't do at all in these Postmodern days. Meaning is constructed by the viewer/reader, not the creator. If you don't want to be branded someone who keeps on making works about Man's relationship with nature, don't keep making works that people can clearly see are about Man's relationship with nature.

angel_lover wrote:

I'm afraid such simplistic "I wrote it so it means what I say" won't do at all in these Postmodern days. Meaning is constructed by the viewer/reader, not the creator. If you don't want to be branded someone who keeps on making works about Man's relationship with nature, don't keep making works that people can clearly see are about Man's relationship with nature.

I think the point that Miyazaki is trying to convey is that his movies are not just about the environment, the relationship between man and nature is only one theme intersparsed with many others. A good example would be the non-Miyazki movie Pom Poko, which ends off with an obvious plug for conservationism, but yet deals with so much more than just that. Themes of survival, love, and nostalgia for a simpler time all figure prominently in the movie. Just because Miyazaki-san made two movies which highlight man vs. nature does not mean he needs to be pigeonholed into being an "environmentalist director."

Just because Miyazaki-san made two movies which highlight man vs. nature does not mean he needs to be pigeonholed into being an "environmentalist director."