Religion and Miyazaki
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, a 1984 Hayao Miyazaki production, depicts an environmentally devastated world that’s just a handful of giant bugs shy of our own potential reality. 1,000 years following the collapse of industrial civilization, protagonist Princess Nausicaä is left to mediate conflict between the violent warring nations to the East and West that ensnares her own peaceful subsistence community. Above the constant human conflict, the threat of encroaching decay looms; the Sea of decay — a toxic forest of fungus and hostile creatures — spreads, threatening what little of humanity is left (Nausicaä). Japanese reception of Nausicaä following its release was overwhelmingly positive; it would go on to become that country’s highest grossing film that year, additionally earning popular magazine Animage’s Grand Prix Prize (LaPierre, “Warriors of the Wind”; ). It’s popularity has endured with audiences today, earning countless accolades and awards. In a poll of over 80,000 responses, for example, Nausicaä earned the place of second best animated movie of all time (). From the nearly 40 years since its original release, Nausicaä has managed to retain its widespread adoration among Japanese anime-consumers and the general public alike.
The same cannot be said about the American market. Both upon its original release and now, Nausicaä fared incredibly poorly in the states. I couldn’t even call its performance here a flop, as “flop” implies a blunder of some proportion. The film has failed to make a ripple, even among American anime-enthusiasts. The film scored a measly 74% on Rotten Tomatoes’ audience score, with less than 50 ratings. Do not let this “passing” score deceive you. Compare this C- to the ratings of Princess Monoke, a thematically similar Miyazaki film. Mononoke earned a 94% with over 100,000 community votes. Even Howl’s Moving Castle — Miyazaki’s second least popular film on Rotten Tomatoes — scored a whopping 93% with over 25,0000 ratings. It’s not just that Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind received poor ratings fromAmerican audiences — it’s practically unheard of. Even weebs and Miyazaki fanatics are unacquainted with the film.
This poor audience response is downright confusing for a number of reasons, the most obvious being the film’s quality and artistry. In terms of both content and aesthetic, this movie is a masterpiece. I argue that it’s Miyazaki’s magnum opus. Considering Nausicaä was my first and (by far) favorite Miyazaki movie, I feel like I should disclaim that I may be somewhat biased in my cinematic opinions. The countless accolades and overseas approval, however, speaks for itself. From an anime fan’s perspective, there are even more reasons to consume and appreciate the film. Nausicaä birthed Studio Ghibli. Miyazaki and Isao Takahata would form the studio as a direct result of Nausicaä’s success, and the film is widely considered the studio’s honorary first release. This film also featured a first-time collaboration between Miyazaki and famed composer Joe Hisashi. Hisashi would go on to score all but one of Miyazaki’s films. There would be no Studio Ghibli without Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. Millions of us Americans have this one criminally underhyped movie for hours of lore and imaginative content.
Then what could possibly explain Americans’ downright strange reception of the film? It’s no secret that Miyazaki leverages his movies as subtle vehicles for larger recurring ideas, such as environmentalism and Pacifism. Shinto and Buddhist beliefs in particular are widely reflected through his vast body of work. I argue that this film’s level Buddhist and Shinto content is simply incompatible with our predominantly Christian American audience.
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind dramatically challenges the hierarchy of life that Christianity constructs, removing humankind from our perch atop Earth’s hierarchy. Through the Christan worldview, humanity is superior to any other form of life. God has fashioned us in his own image; we own souls, while other beings do not. We are to grow, spread, with the greatest regard only for our own species’ proliferation. Per Genesis:12, God intended for Adam and Eve to “fill the to “fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Therein exists the conflict with Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. The film reflects a Shinto reverence for life, both human and non-human. No one species is greater than the other in this film; in fact, as the movie progresses, the audience comes to understand that human activity is the antagonist of the film (expand).
While Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind’s less-than lackluster performance in the US is disappointing, it at least quells the fear that globalization equates to cultural homogenization. As time progresses, cultures certainly become more united (ie globalized) as cultural products diffuse across borders and seas. Some products such as Nausicaä, however, never globalize. Globalization can only occur along lines with precedent; our world’s increasing interconnectedness does not equate to one shared sense of culture. We retain a core baseline of values and ideologies. We even view the cultural products we do adopt through the lens of said baseline. What fits and is palatable is embraced. What does not align simply does not translate. In the case of Nausicaä, our American sensibilities prevent us from fully enjoying the film. We are unable to comprehend a life structure that is so radically different from our own. Americans are simply not equipped to understand the full context, meaning, or ideologies underlying foreign media. Globalization is not to be feared. Rather, we should embrace globalization and the interconnected community it affords.
https://web.archive.org/web/20080913111243/http://plaza.bunka.go.jp/hundred/bumon_anime.html
https://ghibli.fandom.com/wiki/Nausica%C3%A4_of_the_Valley_of_the_Wind
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/nausicaa_of_the_valley_of_the_wind
https://www.proquest.com/docview/232424787?pq-origsite=primo&accountid=14749
