Nausicaa: Spirit of the Wind: A+
BY NEIL FAUERSO
For the first time since its release more than 20 years ago, Nausicaa,
Hayao Miyazaki’s animated magnum opus, is available (in a pristine
DVD transfer) in the U.S. For those unfamiliar with Miyazaki’s
work, this is undoubtedly his masterpiece. Even with a more primitive
form of animation, Nausicaa is quite simply one of the most imaginative
and fully realized sci-fi films ever made, its dense post-apocalyptic
landscape rivaled only by The Road Warrior or A
Boy and His Dog.
Nausicaa takes place several thousand years after nuclear war and environmental
wreckage have crippled the human race, creating a large and expanding
sea of decay. Princess Nausicaa, who knows the sea of decay and the
insects within better than anyone, is threatened by two rival tribes
who want to destroy her tribe and the extremely fragile insect ecosystem.
Once again, humans are faced extinction.
The wonderful thing about Nausicaa is how broad its appeal is. While
not for very young children, any child eight and above will be enchanted.
The sweeping visuals, sense of urgency and adventure, and vivid characters
and sets are comparable to Star Wars (I’m serious). But this is
also an affecting film for adults. Nausicaa deals with violence, pollution,
greed, and power with such a pure sincerity and empathy that it is more
relevant today than when it was first released. Miyazaki’s sense
of both goodness and moral ambiguity, and his compassion (there are
never any truly bad characters in his films), are comparable to that
of Renoir, Altman, or Herzog.
Although Nausicaa is a DVD release, I maintain that it will be the
best family film of the year. It is arguably the greatest animated film
of all time, or at least in the pantheon of greats (Akira,
The Incredibles,
any other Miyazaki films). Beautiful, complex, passionate, and realized,
it is what Waterworld, Dune, and the Matrix trilogy spent so much trying
to be and failed. It is perfect.
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