Note: I am aware that it has been more then a month since my last entry. I do apologize to everyone who has been waiting patiently for the next update. This review was not easy, as it is from one of my favorite directors of all time, Hayao Miyazaki. Seeing how this is his last theatrical film before retirement, I wanted to do something special in honor of him. So this review will be split into two parts, as I will be analyzing this film in great detail, as well as talking about Miyazaki and his work as a director. Whether "The Wind Rises" should be considered as last years film, or this this years film, I strongly feel this movie is probably the strongest animated film I will see in theaters for a long time.
This first half of my review will be less anaylizing, and more on Miyazaki. I will get to the bare bones of the movie in the next part.
Thank you so much for your patience.
In his latest, and possibly final film, Japanese director, Hayao Miyazaki tells the story of Jiro Horikoshi, an aircraft designer of the 1920's and 30's. The movie follows him as a little boy, dreaming of becoming a builder of beautiful airplanes. After being inspired by the famous Italian designer, Caproni, he decides to devotes the rest of his life in learning how to build planes. We follow Jiro through his journey from school, to Germany, to ultimately the creation of the infamous Mitsubishi A5M. But this film is also a love story, as we see Jiro meet and fall in love with a women named Naoko. And from there, the film shows how his love for airplanes, and love for Naoko come together in both an inspiring and, at times, heartbreaking ways.
This film is actually loosely based on two stories. One of them is the real life biography of Jiro Horikoshi, a Japanese aircraft designer. And the other is a novel of the same name written by Tatsuo Hori, about a women inflicted with tuberculosis. As such most of the events that are witnessed in the film, are in fact not based on the life of the real Horikoshi, but were used for the creation of this story.
Going into this review, I new it would be difficult. Unlike the last two films I had reviewed, "The Wind Rises" is probably the most personal in terms of its themes, message, and also because of its creator itself, Hayao Miyazaki.
Now, Miyazaki is one of my favorite directors of all time. There are few who carry the imagination and visual creativity that he poses. Not only is he a master of fantasy films, but also one of the best storytellers ever, capable of making the simplest of tales into genuine works of art. Needless to say, I grew up with many of his films, and have tremendous respect for him and his animation studio, Studio Ghibli.
So when I had gotten word of his retirement, and that his last theatrical film would be "The Wind Rises", I promised myself that no matter what, I was going to watch this movie. And when the time came for me to finally see it, my expectations were met with wonderful results.
I suppose the first thing I like to mention is that the story, while based on the life of a real aircraft designer, the movie takes many liberties to change facts and disregard some of the personal details of Jiro Horikoshi. Characters that are portrayed to be close to him did not actually existed, so we the audience never truly learn anything about Jiro, in terms of his family life, or the relationships he had outside his occupation.
Usually for a biographical film, this is not only a risky decision to make, but can also take away from the movie. If you're going to make a movie about a real person, than you should be as faithful to their real life as possible. Sometimes there are liberties that must be made, but making too many changes can be utterly distasteful. This, however, is not the case for "The Wind Rises".
First off, going back to Miyazaki again, while the movie was heavily advertised as the directors finale theatrical film, this was not the first time that he had contemplated the idea of retirement. For reasons that I will not go into at this moment, Miyazaki had considered to retire right after finishing "Princess Mononoke". That was not the case, as Miyazaki continued to work. Why exactly, I couldn't really say, but I do find it interesting that when he finally decided to end his work as a director, Miyazaki ended it with a film like this one. Infact, this is probably one of the most personal films he has ever made, and it's mainly for that reason why the film itself is so beautiful and powerful.
If I had to choose two films that were extremely personal to Miyazaki, I would say "Porco Rosso" and of course "The Wind Rises", mainly because both capture a certain opinion he had at the time in his perception of political beliefs and what he thought of himself as well. For those who have not seen Porco Rosso", I will not go into great detail about it, as that is a film that should be seen instead of spoiled. But what I will say is that there are similarities between the protagonist in the movie, and Miyazaki. Both are cynical, somewhat grumpy people, but not mean spirited. On top of that, Miyazaki has been known to doodle himself as a pig, for whatever reason it maybe.
Something I feel that should also be stated is that the last two films ("Ponyo" and "Howl's Moving Castle") that he directed, although praised by the critics, many fans (particularly the older ones) felt that they lacked the story-telling he had portrayed in his earlier works. They didn't quiet capture the same magic that Mayazaki's other works ("Spirited Away" or "My Nieghbor Totoro") had did. Thankfully, I feel that "The Wind Rises" makes up for the weaker elements of those films, and allowed Miyazaki to end on a high note..
To be continued....
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