The Tale of the Princess Kaguya

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I have to say, right off the bat, this is the type of movie I was truly hoping to see while going through these Ghibli titles. This is something that delves into Japanese culture and traditions, being based on a Japanese folktale, 'The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter', in which a mysterious baby girl is found inside the stalk of a glowing bamboo plant.

The bamboo cutter, Miyatsuko (Takeo Chii/James Caan) and his wife (Nobuko Miyamoto/Mary Steenburgen) who found her eventually have her named Kaguya (Aki Asakura/Chloë Grace Moretz) and raise her as royalty.

As one may imagine, the rest of it has to do with the pressures of an otherwise free-spirited girl being raised in such a way. The whole thing is really quite real and depressing, but it's very well done. You know, like 'Grave of the Fireflies' but a bit less morbid.

Perhaps what is to be appreciated most as a takeaway from this has to do with men being blind to beauty. You see, a large part of this movie consists of several suiters of noble standing attempting to win the affections of Kaguya. I won't say how its done, because it's actually quite interesting what Kaguya comes up with for their challenge.

There is usually something to be said about the strong female leads in the Ghibli films, and this one is no exception. Yes, she's pretty strong-willed, but most of the strength of her character comes from how fleshed out she is. She's forced into this seemingly traditional princess role against her will, and it's not like some Disney romantic comedy. All in all, it actually gets quite harsh, and we totally end up feeling for her and empathizing with how difficult the situation must be.

What 'The Wind Rises' pulled the trigger on for a few years ends up continuing with this title as well; that being the Oscar nomination. However, this time around the winner was 'Big Hero 6'. I'd be lying if I said I was disappointed in the end result, but I have to admit that this film may have been more deserving altogether. It's not everyday we get introduced to something as seemingly culturally significant as this, and it loses to another superhero movie. I LOVE 'Big Hero 6' and I'm saying that.

At the end of the day, this is definitely one of the more emotionally powered Ghibli films, and that's something I always appreciate. If it can manage to make me say "woah" at least once, I'm pretty satisfied with its emotional pull. And unlike 'Fireflies', this is one I may very well want to revisit in the future. 'Fireflies' was great and all, but it's up there with 'Schindler's List' for devastation. This was more a sad, yet hauntingly beautiful film - especially when you take into account its soundtrack and seemingly traditional, 2D animation. For my money, THE Ghibli film anyone interested in Japanese lore should check out.

5/5

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