Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2290 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-02-22
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Color, Dubbed, DVD-Video, Widescreen, Animated, NTSC
• Original language: English, Japanese
• Subtitled in: English
• Dubbed in: Japanese
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 117 minutes

Amazon.com
Hayao Miyazaki gained widespread attention in Japan for his complex ecological manga series, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1982), which he adapted for the screen two years later. One thousand years after a war devastated much of the Earth, humanity clings to existence at the fringes of a vast, polluted forest inhabited by monstrous insects. Only Nausicaä, the princess of the tiny realm of the Valley of the Wind, grasps the environmental significance of the forest. She sees beyond petty wars and national rivalries to the only viable future for the planet. In Nausicaä, Miyazaki began to explore elements he would develop more fully in his later films: daring, compassionate heroines; exciting flying sequences; colorful side characters; strong interpersonal relationships; and a call for an ecologically sustainable way of life. Nausicaä prefigures Sheeta in Castle in the Sky and Chihiro in Spirited Away, just as the rough and ready Asbel anticipates Pazu in Castle in the Sky and Ashitaka in Princess Mononoke. For years, Nausicaä was available in the United States only as the badly re-edited Warriors of the Wind. The new English dub from Disney presents the film in its entirety, with strong vocal performances by Uma Thurman, Patrick Stewart, Alison Lohman, and Edward James Olmos. (Rated PG: violence, frightening imagery) --Charles Solomon

DVD features
The extras include a choppy Japanese documentary on the creation of Studio Ghibli, with actors impersonating directors Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, and producer Toshio Suzuki at various points in the studio's history, and a standard collection of mini-interviews with the voice actors. The most interesting feature is the set of Miyazaki's storyboards, coordinated to the soundtrack. --Charles Solomon

Customer Reviews

The Work of a Giant (One Not Yet Fully Grown)
I wonder what my impression of this movie would have been if this were my first encounter with Miyazaki. Yes, Nausicaa has the same remarkable imagination of Miyazaki found in all his films. Fascinating and grotesque creatures abound throughout. Unfortunately, this film simply does not hold up in comparison to the three other Miyazaki films I have yet seen (Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, and Howl's Moving Castle).

The real problem is probably that Miyazaki had not yet matured as a feature director. There is too much dialogue when scenes would work just as well, or even better, if we were just allowed to be drawn in visually. And as a whole it is poorly plotted. Two hours was not too long for Spirited Away, but it is too long here. I suspect that part of the problem was transitioning from the original serialized story to a longer piece.

One of the greatest reasons that Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle are more mature films is because they didn't take themselves so seriously. The comic moments in both of those films easily survive translation. Nausicaa also pales beside Princess Mononoke, in this case because the two films are so similar. Hero works to save the remaining humans from rampaging forest creatures filled with rage at human abuse of the environment. In the case of Mononoke, the ecological message serves the plot and characters. In the case of Nausicaa, the ecological message is preachily rammed down our throats.

In the end, Nausicaa is more than decent, but it not Miyazaki's best. The problem is that it does not distinguish itself enough from other anime films. Don't watch it assuming that it will be another Spirited Away. Watch it to see where Miyazaki has been, and to realize how far he has come.

Considered to be Studio Ghibli's first film
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind is a landmark anime film directed by Hayao Miyazaki. The film is based off of a manga by the same name that was made by Miyazaki.

The film takes place one thousand years after the "Seven Days of Fire." This catastrophe destroyed human civilization and most of Earth's original ecosystem. A few scattered human settlements survive, but they are isolated from each other by the Sea of Decay (a lethally toxic jungle of fungus that is swarming with giant insects).

Nausicaa is the princess of the Valley of the Wind, and she possesses an unusual gift for communicating with the giant insects in the Sea of Decay (where she will go, while wearing a mask, to conduct scientific research). The valley is threatened when another state unearths a God Warrior embryo; the God Warriors were one of the giant, biological weapons used in the ancient war. The embryo is stolen by another state, and this state's ship crashes into the valley while transporting the embryo. The people of the valley are forced into armed resistance, and Nausicaa must find a way to bring a resolution to the situation.

This DVD release contains two DVDs. The second DVD just includes the storyboard version of the film. The first disc contains three extras: a "Behind the Microhpone" documentary (interviews with the English dub cast), a documentary entitled "The Birth of Studio Ghibli," and the original theatrical and TV trailers for Nausicaa. The documentary was very informative, but I was disappointed that Disney decided to overdub English over the Japanese audio, instead of leaving the Japanese audio and putting subtitles on the screen.

The film is wonderfully done, and utilizes its environmental undertones well. The writing, storytelling, lush animation, and music combine together to make this film a masterpiece.

An epic tale that deserves your attention.
This is one of the better animated films I've seen. The art is spectacular, the voice work is well done, and the story is fairly mature while still accessible. Some of the music in the soundtrack is questionable, but that's the 1980's for you. Other, more traditional symphony-made parts of the soundtrack are fantastic. Definitely a great film if you're into anime, Studio Ghibli, or Miyazaki.