This Week in Anime
What the (Hot Goblin) Doctor Ordered
by Christopher Farris & Lucas DeRuyter,
Chris and Lucas see what the (hot goblin) medicine seller has to offer in the Mononoke The Movie: Phantom in the Rain film.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views of Anime News Network.
Spoiler Warning for discussion of the series ahead.
Mononoke: Phantom in the Rain is available on Netflix. The Mononoke TV series is available on Crunchyroll.
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Chris
Lucas, the new year is upon us, and thus, the time to challenge ourselves with resolutions. Maybe I'll look at attempting a Dry January.
Then again, seeing how 2025 is already shaping up, I can't imagine I'll last in that more than a day or two. In fact, I'm probably going to need some strong medication.
Lucas, the new year is upon us, and thus, the time to challenge ourselves with resolutions. Maybe I'll look at attempting a Dry January.
Then again, seeing how 2025 is already shaping up, I can't imagine I'll last in that more than a day or two. In fact, I'm probably going to need some strong medication.
Lucas
Honestly Chris, booze might be a healthier option than the water in Mononoke The Movie: Phantom in the Rain!
But, if I learned anything from this movie, it's that this humble medicine seller has the cure for what ails us if we're willing to acknowledge what's doing us harm. Are you down to chat about this late entry in the "best anime movie of the year" discourse?
Honestly Chris, booze might be a healthier option than the water in Mononoke The Movie: Phantom in the Rain!
But, if I learned anything from this movie, it's that this humble medicine seller has the cure for what ails us if we're willing to acknowledge what's doing us harm. Are you down to chat about this late entry in the "best anime movie of the year" discourse?
Hey, my other leading contender, Gridman Universe, was a movie that technically came out in 2023, so at least this movie has the correct time advantage.
To be sure, Mononoke the Movie: The Phantom in the Rain has been on Netflix for the past month. But after the busy holiday and year-end season, we finally had enough downtime to check it out! (With thanks to a tasteful editor who recommended it to us)
For that recommendation is another interesting wrinkle: neither of us has seen the original Mononoke TV series before!
In my defense of missing Kenji Nakamura's auteur spin-off anime that led into this one-of-a-kind film, I was in the process of kicking some of the deeper impacts the Catholic church had on me when I first gave it a try, and the abortion themes in the anime's first episode hit me like a ton of bricks.
While Phantom in the Rain movie didn't have any subject matter that affected me quite so viscerally, I appreciated its themes of female exploitation under a system that, while theoretically meant to empower them, ultimately turned them against each other for the benefit of the men who designed that system.
While Phantom in the Rain movie didn't have any subject matter that affected me quite so viscerally, I appreciated its themes of female exploitation under a system that, while theoretically meant to empower them, ultimately turned them against each other for the benefit of the men who designed that system.
Despite the original Mononoke still sitting undisturbed in my backlog, I was well aware of a couple of things: its design and animation are drop-dead gorgeous, and the themes of its stories can be A Lot. Its regular analysis of women's place in society (specifically during the late Edo period in Japan) was noted by TWIA's Nick and Nicky when they revisited the series back in 2022.
Anyway, the other good news about checking out Phantom in the Rain, apart from how, uh, good it is, is that Mononoke, being an anthology series, isn't one you need a lot of prior familiarity with to just jump into an entry. It's sort of like how you can just watch Glass Onion without having seen Knives Out, only this has slightly more malevolent ghosts.
Haha, that comparison to Rian Johnson's murder-mystery series is a great one! Mononoke is a supernatural mystery more than anything else, and I found the conceit of the medicine seller being unable to draw the magic sword that can kill the spook-a-dook of a given episode/movie until he uncovers its origins to be delightful and inspiring.
That comparison works on a thematic level, too. While Johnson's Knives Out movies do an excellent job attributing societal woes to late-stage capitalism, Nakamura's Mononoke works explore how women are oppressed in a patriarchal society free of that economic element. As I was processing my viewing of the film, one of my first thoughts was that it's a great reminder of why all progressive politics need to be intersectional; under any system, bad actors will find appropriately cruel ways to give marginalized people the short end of the stick.
That comparison works on a thematic level, too. While Johnson's Knives Out movies do an excellent job attributing societal woes to late-stage capitalism, Nakamura's Mononoke works explore how women are oppressed in a patriarchal society free of that economic element. As I was processing my viewing of the film, one of my first thoughts was that it's a great reminder of why all progressive politics need to be intersectional; under any system, bad actors will find appropriately cruel ways to give marginalized people the short end of the stick.
Jumping straight into the movie's themes (which, as you said, resonate across the whole franchise), it goes really hard on the idea of oppression as a constructed system rather than the actions of singular bad actors. When the leading ladies, Asa and Kame, arrive, they seem like the only ones who can tell something is rotten in the waters of the Ooku, but it turns out they're just so new that they haven't been conditioned to ignore the stench as a survival tactic.
If the riot of colors this movie is constructed out of weren't an indication, Mononoke ain't exactly subtle.
If the riot of colors this movie is constructed out of weren't an indication, Mononoke ain't exactly subtle.
That observation will get a big ol' YUP from me, Chris! Phantom in the Rain is loaded with different symbolism to drive this point home, but my favorite is the many women that make up its cast being rendered in and out of faceless conformity.
Outside of being a thematically appropriate way to let the EOTA animation team pour their talents into other parts of this production, it really drove home how the women who came to this place for the little bit of power and opportunity they're afforded in this society are ultimately rendered replaceable cogs who mostly keep each other down.
Outside of being a thematically appropriate way to let the EOTA animation team pour their talents into other parts of this production, it really drove home how the women who came to this place for the little bit of power and opportunity they're afforded in this society are ultimately rendered replaceable cogs who mostly keep each other down.
One interesting aspect of the film's story was that the men ostensibly manning this system had relatively little presence onscreen. They're there, and their influence is palpably felt in their authority and in the stated ambitions of characters like Kame. But as you noted, the majority of the opposition comes from the women within the Ooku itself—or arguably worse, indirectly through their indifference, which would lead them to ignore tasting your body in their drinking water if it spared them from getting thrown down the well for one more day.
Oh yeah, spoiler alert, by the way, but that well is absolutely lousy with corpses.
Oh yeah, spoiler alert, by the way, but that well is absolutely lousy with corpses.
Oh yeah, sorry gang, but it turns out that the place solely dedicated to producing an heir for the emperor is foundationally built upon the exploitation and suffering of women. Who could have seen that one coming?
I see why only a supernatural genius like the Medicine Seller could solve this mystery.
Killing supernatural horrors isn't even his main job! He's doing it as a side hustle, and even this weird-hot goblin man can figure out that stuff isn't great here from the get-go!
I do love the choice of the emperor having virtually no direct impact on the events of the film, and only five lines total. Moreover, the early introduction that his preferred partner is seemingly someone who rebels against the systems set up early that this entire system was rotten. It's just amazing writing all around on the thematic front.
The density of this film's writing can actually approach the density of its visuals, which is pretty damn impressive if you know what Mononoke looks like!
Especially considering that Phantom in the Rain has a bizarre, 10-minute-long credits sequence at the end, this movie packs so much into its brisk 90-minute runtime!
Of course, a lot of those layers of writing can be attributed to the point that Phantom in the Rain is actually setting up a whole trilogy of Mononoke films, which will presumably follow up on other pillars of the lousy leadership heading up this system. So, some elements of this movie that feel like they're left hanging will likely be followed up on in those sequels.
I know you called this film "one of a kind" earlier, and I agree with the sentiment of that spirit, but that's the cool counterpoint: they are, in fact, making more of them! I'm fine with that, as watching the Medicine Seller stroll in, solve mysteries, and shake down oppressors like some hot fantasy Columbo is a great (and great-looking) time.
I know you called this film "one of a kind" earlier, and I agree with the sentiment of that spirit, but that's the cool counterpoint: they are, in fact, making more of them! I'm fine with that, as watching the Medicine Seller stroll in, solve mysteries, and shake down oppressors like some hot fantasy Columbo is a great (and great-looking) time.
This is why Netflix has to meet anime industry standards and translate on-screen text. I watched the dubbed version of this movie and TOTALLY missed this sequel confirmation at the end! Come on, Netflix, the movie's doing you a favor by handling their sequel promotion, and you're squandering it!
I agree with you that I'm excited to have another convo when the sequel rolls around and that every scene of this movie was a visual spectacle. Did you ever find it overwhelming, though? This movie packs a lot in, and I think it all mostly works, but I was downright tuckered out between the maximal visuals and breakneck editing choices.
I agree with you that I'm excited to have another convo when the sequel rolls around and that every scene of this movie was a visual spectacle. Did you ever find it overwhelming, though? This movie packs a lot in, and I think it all mostly works, but I was downright tuckered out between the maximal visuals and breakneck editing choices.
Oh yeah, no discussion of anything Mononoke could go without talking about its visuals and Kenji Nakamura's killer direction. To start, you've got the textured paper filter it's animated on, which was the main thing I already knew about the style.
But seeing it properly cut together in motion, hammered home for me, "Oh right, Mononoke is a horror series!" Other anime with this kaleidoscope of colors might invite you to linger, to soak in the vibes. But in the hands of Nakamura and his rapid-fire editing and incredibly clever jump cuts, it instead bombards you with tension appropriate for the setting. Like Asa and Kame, viewers can feel how overwhelmingly wrong things are in the Ooku.
But seeing it properly cut together in motion, hammered home for me, "Oh right, Mononoke is a horror series!" Other anime with this kaleidoscope of colors might invite you to linger, to soak in the vibes. But in the hands of Nakamura and his rapid-fire editing and incredibly clever jump cuts, it instead bombards you with tension appropriate for the setting. Like Asa and Kame, viewers can feel how overwhelmingly wrong things are in the Ooku.
Ugh, that's exactly why I'm so torn, though! While every directional choice feels motivating and appropriate, it was ultimately overstimulating for me. I could try to make a more high-minded argument about how, with slower pacing, we could more fully experience the horror and oppression of the movie's themes and events, but at the end of the day, I think those creative choices just didn't click with me.
However, I love that Phantom in the Rain was brave enough to look unlike anything else I've seen this year!
However, I love that Phantom in the Rain was brave enough to look unlike anything else I've seen this year!
While watching, I could see how it would be too intense for some viewers to ride through all in one go. But I'm also the guy who didn't get nearly as stressed out watching Uncut Gems as many others apparently did, so I acknowledge I may take these things differently.
That's all without getting into the ridiculous psychedelic climax or the mystery's resolution, which leaves a lot unsaid and implied by the visuals, which, combined with the dizzying maximalism, almost certainly necessitates multiple viewings to internalize all of them.
That's all without getting into the ridiculous psychedelic climax or the mystery's resolution, which leaves a lot unsaid and implied by the visuals, which, combined with the dizzying maximalism, almost certainly necessitates multiple viewings to internalize all of them.
If we want to dedicate one of these chats to Uncut Gems, the DeRuyter family's 2019 Christmas Day movie of choice, I'd be down for that! Adam Sandler is basically an Oshi no Ko character, and that makes his work more or less anime!
But, to get back to this actual anime movie, I agree that multiple views are a must for Phantom in the Rain, even if I think the movie would be better if it presented its narrative a bit more clearly in its first past. Also, how do we feel about the plot of this very female-focused movie ultimately being resolved by a (weird hot goblin) man???
But, to get back to this actual anime movie, I agree that multiple views are a must for Phantom in the Rain, even if I think the movie would be better if it presented its narrative a bit more clearly in its first past. Also, how do we feel about the plot of this very female-focused movie ultimately being resolved by a (weird hot goblin) man???
Give Asa some credit; she does (mostly) figure out the horrors at hand and take action to break the cycle on her own. The Medicine Seller is just on hand to do the actual ghostbusting once other people have figured out that corpse-infusion might not be the next hot WaterTok trend. It says something that he's one of the only people racing in to try to stop these ladies from getting hurt by spirits, or each other, once shit hits the fan.
Oh god, I do not want to hear what "wellness" TikTok influencers think about corpse water.
I think it's also worth noting that the Medicine Seller, being a certified woman respecter, is apparently hard-coded into the production of Mononoke. In a pertinent move, when the scandal broke about the character's original VA Takahiro Sakurai having an affair with a woman he was deceiving, a lot of productions dropped him. Still, only Twin Engine
took the extra step of stating they were doing so specifically because his actions were anathema to the themes of the series.
It's sorta the "You're not just wrong, the rules also say you're a dick!" of getting canceled from your roles for your bad behavior.
I think that's a very fair reading, and good on the folks at Twin Engine for taking a hardline stance against this specific kind of misogynistic dirtbag-ery. I suppose, then, that both the movie and the anime are stressing the need for male allyship in helping women escape and address societal injustices. While less than heartwarming, this may be an important lesson to impart given current socio-political trends.
As we said, Mononoke, at least in this movie, seems to aim at overall systems rather than individual offenders. However, I am curious to see how the Medicine Seller might handle the royalty at the top as he presumably engages with them more in future films.
I can also bring up that, after watching Phantom in the Rain, I did some reading and came upon the apparent fandom understanding that the Medicine Seller in this movie is, in fact, a different individual than the one who starred in the TV series. That might explain why he seems a bit more compassionate than what I heard about the previous regeneration of this hot doctor. And alongside the real-world recasting, it might just be Nakamura and the rest of the team positing that there's still plenty of space to rethink our approach to systems and those they oppress if we want to find solutions.
I can also bring up that, after watching Phantom in the Rain, I did some reading and came upon the apparent fandom understanding that the Medicine Seller in this movie is, in fact, a different individual than the one who starred in the TV series. That might explain why he seems a bit more compassionate than what I heard about the previous regeneration of this hot doctor. And alongside the real-world recasting, it might just be Nakamura and the rest of the team positing that there's still plenty of space to rethink our approach to systems and those they oppress if we want to find solutions.
I, too, am curious about how future Mononoke films tackle systemic misogyny in systems where women's oppression is less overtly the end goal than in the Ooku. I do appreciate that the movies are casting a wider lens than (what I saw of) the anthology series, and I feel like that's an important step in making things better for any marginalized group of people. While acknowledging suffering is a significant first step, unless it's grounded within the circumstances that led to it, the media runs the risk of making this suffering seem an inevitable part of the human experience.
That being said, after watching Phantom in the Rain, I have nothing but confidence in Kenji Nakamura and the EOTA team's ability to address this subject matter deftly and in a style all their own.
That being said, after watching Phantom in the Rain, I have nothing but confidence in Kenji Nakamura and the EOTA team's ability to address this subject matter deftly and in a style all their own.
Same! I'm looking forward to seeing how future films follow up on this, and it moved the original TV anime up a few notches in the ol' backlog.
Maybe this funky pharmacist really does have the prescription for what I need going into 2025.
Maybe this funky pharmacist really does have the prescription for what I need going into 2025.
From here on out, I'm buying whatever he's selling!
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