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Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

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This article is about a film. For the manga of the same name, see Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (manga).


Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

Region 1 DVD cover
Directed by Hayao Miyazaki
Produced by Isao Takahata
Written by Hayao Miyazaki
Music by Joe Hisaishi
Cinematography Hideshi Kyonen
Editing by Naoki Kaneko
Tomoko Kida
Shiyoji Sakai
Release date(s) Image:Flag of Japan (bordered).svg March 4, 1984
Running time 116 min.
Country Japan
Language Japanese
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (風の谷のナウシカ Kaze no tani no Naushika?) is a 1984 film by Japanese writer, illustrator, and filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki, based on his manga of the same name. The movie has environmentalist undertones and was presented by the World Wildlife Fund when it was released in 1984.

Contents

[edit] Movie

[edit] Synopsis

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The story takes place 1,000 years after the "Seven Days of Fire," an event which destroyed human civilization and most of the Earth's original ecosystem. Scattered human settlements survive, isolated from one another by the "Sea of Corruption" (fukai, sea of rot/fungus in Japanese), a lethally toxic jungle of fungus swarming with giant insects which seem to come together only to wage war.

The title character, Nausicaä (Naushika transcribed into Japanese), is a charismatic young princess of the peaceful Valley of the Wind. Her name comes from the princess in the Odyssey who assisted Odysseus; part of her character comes from a Japanese folk hero known as "the princess who loved insects", while another part was inspired by the writings of Bernard Evslin, as he had written a more indepth extrapolation of character of Odyssey 's Nausicaa. <ref>First volume of English manga of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind published by VIZ Media, back cover.</ref> Although a skillful fighter, Miyazaki's Nausicaä is humane and peace-loving. She has an unusual gift for communicating with the giant insects (particularly with the Ohmu, the gigantic armored caterpillar-like insects who are the most intelligent creatures in the Sea of Corruption). She is also noted for her empathy toward animals, humans, and other beings, and for her skill at "windriding", flying with an advanced glider-like craft with a jet assist called a mehve.

The Valley of the Wind is threatened when another state, Pejite, unearths a God Warrior (kyoshinhei) which is then stolen by a more powerful state, Tolmekia. The God Warrior is one of the lethal giant bioweapons used in the ancient war. Pejite and Tolmekia hope to use the God Warrior against each other and, ultimately, against the Sea of Corruption. While transporting the Warrior back to their realm, the Tolmekians are attacked by insects and subsequently crash-land in the Valley. The very next day, the Tolmekians invade the Valley to secure and revive the Warrior, eventually forcing the peaceful people of the Valley into armed resistance. The situation deteriorates as the fight to possess the God Warrior escalates out of control and the inimical fukai strikes back against those who attack it.

The story holds deeper meaning than its depiction of war; there are both humanistic and ecological subtexts in Miyazaki's narrative. Even the insects seem to be working toward some secret harmony and the lethal fungal forest seems to have a vital role in Earth's new ecosystem.

As she is forced to aid prisoners, villagers, enemies, mutant insects, and artificial bioweapons, Princess Nausicaä increasingly becomes a Joan of Arc figure—a warrior maiden inspired by a supermundane vision to defend all life against destruction.

[edit] Releases

Image:Wotwuscover.jpg A heavily edited and English-dubbed version of the film was distributed and shown on HBO and released on video in the 1980s as Warriors of the Wind. According to Nausicaa.net, the voice actors and actresses were not even informed of the film's plotline and more than 30 minutes of footage was cut from the film. As a result, much of the film's narrative meaning was lost; much of the environmentalist themes were purged as was the main subplot about the Ohmu being altered to turn them into aggressive enemies. Most of the characters were renamed (Nausicaä became "Princess Zandra"). The cover for the VHS release featured a cadre of male characters, who are not part of the film, riding the ressurrected God Warrior — including a still-living Warrior shown briefly in a flashback.

Most fans of Nausicaä, along with Miyazaki himself, dislike that version; Miyazaki suggested that people should put it "out of their minds." [1] Studio Ghibli has asked fans to forget its existence, and has subsequently adopted a strict "no-edits" clause for future foreign releases of its films. (A common rumor tells of Miyazaki sending Miramax co-chairman Harvey Weinstein, overseeing the distibution for the Disney release of Princess Mononoke, an authentic katana with a simple message: "No cuts"<ref>"A god among animators" by Xan Brooks, The Guardian, September 14, 2005 "There is a rumour that when Harvey Weinstein was charged with handling the US release of Princess Mononoke, Miyazaki sent him a samurai sword in the post. Attached to the blade was a stark message: 'No cuts.' / The director chortles. 'Actually, my producer did that.'"</ref> when he heard that Weinstein would try to cut the film to make it "marketable.") An uncut and re-dubbed version of Nausicaä was released on DVD by Walt Disney Home Entertainment on February 22, 2005 for Region 1. This DVD also includes the Japanese audio track with English subtitles. Optimum Home Entertainment released the film in Region 2, and Region 4 DVD is distributed by Madman Entertainment.

The Nausicaä manga is published in English by VIZ Media. Earlier editions of the English manga and fan translations often used the title Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind, omitting the definite article.

[edit] Cast

Image:Theswordlord.JPG The film stars the following voice actors in the 1984 Japanese and 2005 re-dubbed English versions:

[edit] Manga

Image:Nausicaa7.jpg

See longer article: Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (manga).

Miyazaki's manga version of Nausicaä was written over a period of 13 years, with breaks taken to work on Studio Ghibli films. Serialized in Tokuma Shoten's Animage magazine, the first chapter was published in February 1982, and the last chapter in March 1994. As can be expected, the story of the manga is far more complex than that of the film. The tale depicted in the film roughly corresponds to only the first quarter of the manga (which is all that had been written at the time the film was produced), with significant differences in plot.

In addition to the plot, there are other significant differences in the story – the characters are more developed and the environmentalist tone is more sophisticated, echoed in the complex worldview of Princess Mononoke. Nausicaä herself is portrayed as being much more potent, with abilities that are not always explained.

[edit] Mehve

Nausicaä flying her Mehve over the Valley of Wind

The mehve (Japanese: メーヴェ) is a fictional one-person plane/glider. It is unarmed, though the pilot can deploy non-lethal flash grenades to disorient pursuers. It has an approximate wingspan of 4 meters, and does not provide any protection from the elements for the pilot, who is completely exposed to the wind. Although its performance specifications are not clear, it is slow enough to allow the pilot to hold onto and control it with nothing more than his/her arms and body weight. The mehve also possesses V/STOL capabilities.

The name 'mehve' is an adaptation of the German word 'Möwe', meaning 'seagull', relating to its form and white color. Also note that the Valley of the Wind is near the sea and it is the constant wind from the sea which protects its inhabitants from the toxic atmosphere of the Sea of Corruption. Recently, the Japanese-led OpenSky Project has attempted to build a real-life, working Mehve.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

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[edit] External links

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The Works of Hayao Miyazaki
Films Director, Screenplay, and Storyboard: The Castle of Cagliostro • Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind • Castle in the Sky • My Neighbor Totoro • Kiki's Delivery Service • Porco Rosso • Princess Mononoke • Spirited Away • Howl's Moving Castle
Screenplay and Storyboard: Panda! Go, Panda! • Whisper of the Heart
Chief Animator and Concept Artist: Gulliver's Travels Beyond the Moon • Horus: Prince of the Sun • Puss in Boots • Flying Ghost Ship • Animal Treasure Island • Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves
TV Series Director, Screenplay, and Storyboard: Lupin III • Future Boy Conan • Sherlock Hound
Scene Design and Layout: Heidi, Girl of the Alps • 3000 Leagues in Search of Mother • Anne of Green Gables
OVA Director, Screenplay, and Storyboard: Lupin III's Greatest Capers
Manga Story and Art: Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind • The Age of the Flying Boat
Misc. Director, Screenplay, and Storyboards: On Your Mark • Mei and the Kittenbus • Mizugumo Monmon
Future Projects: I Lost My Little Boy


 

v • d • e</span> 

Studio Ghibli Films
Pre Ghibli Films

Hols: Prince of the Sun (1968) • Panda! Go, Panda! (1972) • Lupin III: Castle of Cagliostro (1977) • Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind  (1984)

Ghibli Films

Castle in the Sky (1986) • My Neighbor Totoro (1988) • Grave of the Fireflies (1988) • Kiki's Delivery Service (1989) • Only Yesterday (1991) • Porco Rosso (1992) • Ocean Waves (1993) • Pom Poko (1994) • Whisper of the Heart (1995) • Princess Mononoke (1997) • My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999) • Spirited Away (2001) • The Cat Returns (2002) • Howl's Moving Castle (2004) • Tales from Earthsea (2006)

Studio Ghibli Shorts

Nandarou (1992) • On Your Mark (1995) • Ghiblies (2000) • Ghiblies Episode II (2002) • Mei and the Kittenbus (2003) • The Night of Taneyamagahara (2006)

See also...

Ghibli Museum • Katsuya Kondō • Yoshifumi Kondō • Gorō  Miyazaki • Hayao Miyazaki • Kazuo Oga • Yasuo Ōtsuka • Toshio Suzuki • Isao Takahata •

zh-min-nan:Hong-kok ê Nausika

cs:Naušika z Větrného údolí de:Nausicaä aus dem Tal der Winde es:Nausicaä del Valle del Viento eo:Kaze no Tani no Naushika fr:Nausicaä de la vallée du vent hr:Nausikaja iz vjetrovite doline it:Nausicaä della Valle del Vento (film) ja:風の谷のナウシカ pt:Kaze no tani no Naushika sv:Vindens krigare th:Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind zh:风之谷

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