When I first saw MIyazaki's "Princess Mononoke" in the late 90s I remember being absolutely gobsmacked by the notion that such a mature film could exist in the realm of mainstream animation. This was still the era of family-friendly ("commercially viable") Disney fare after all, and Studio Ghibli didn't have … (read more)

When I first saw MIyazaki's "Princess Mononoke" in the late 90s I remember being absolutely gobsmacked by the notion that such a mature film could exist in the realm of mainstream animation. This was still the era of family-friendly ("commercially viable") Disney fare after all, and Studio Ghibli didn't have quite the reputation that it enjoys today. I watched it again a few weeks ago while prepping for this piece, and there's not a single part of it that doesn't hold up to this day.

I struggled between Mononoke and Nausicaa as the second entry in my Princesses portrait series, as the latter was in many ways even more significant due to its age. "Nausicaa and the Valley of the Wind" was released a full 13 years before Mononoke, when I was just 3 years old. I didn't even get to see it until after I had already seen Mononoke, but both films are milestone achievements, and would probably make for a great double feature. I may still revisit Nausicaa later, but for now, I hope you enjoy my rendition of this amazing classic.