Product Description
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Claire Danes (THE MOD SQUAD), Minnie Driver (GOOD WILL HUNTING),
and Billy Bob Thornton (ARMAGEDDON, SLING BLADE) head a cast of
hot Hollywood stars who lend their talents to this exquisitely
animated, overwhelmingly accled adventure epic! Inflicted with
a deadly curse, a young warrior named Ashitaka (Billy Crudup --
WITHOUT LIMITS) sets out for the forests of the west in search of
the cure that will save his life. Once there, he becomes
inextricably entangled in a bitter battle that matches Lady
Eboshi (Driver) and a proud clan of humans against the forest's
animal gods...who are led by the brave Princess Mononoke (Danes),
a young woman raised by wolves! Also starring Gillian Anderson
(THE X-FILES) and Jada Pinkett Smith (SCREAM 2), this monumental
struggle between man and nature will have you transfixed with
amazement as stunning artistry blends with epic storytelling to
create a uniquely entertaining motion picture!|As of 2001,
PRINCESS MONONOKE is one of only two films to ever break $150
million at the Japanese box office -- the other is TITANIC.
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Before it ever arrived in the U.S., this epic, animated 1997
fantasy had already made history as the top-grossing domestic
feature ever released in Japan, where its combination of mythic
themes, mystical forces, and ravishing visuals tapped deeply into
cultural identity and contemporary, ecological anxieties. For
international animation and anime fans, Princess Mononoke
represents an auspicious next step for its revered creator, Hayao
Miyazaki (My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service), an
acknowledged anime pioneer, whose painterly style, vivid
character design, and stylized approach to storytelling take
ambitious, evolutionary steps here.
Set in medieval Japan, Miyazaki's original story envisions a
struggle between nature and man. The march of technology,
embodied in the dark iron forges of the ambitious Tatara clan,
threatens the natural forces explicit in the benevolent Great God
of the Forest and the wide-eyed, spectral spirits he protects.
When Ashitaka, a young warrior from a remote, and endangered,
village clan, kills a ravenous, boar-like monster, he discovers
the beast is in fact an infectious "demon god," transformed by
human anger. Ashitaka's quest to solve the beast's al curse
brings him into the midst of human political intrigues as well as
the more crucial battle between man and nature.
Miyazaki's convoluted fable is clearly not the stuff of kiddie
matinees, nor is the often graphic violence depicted during the
battles that ensue. If some younger viewers (or less attentive
older ones) will wish for a diagram to sort out the players,
Miyazaki's atmospheric world and its lush visual design are
reasons enough to watch. For the English-language version,
Miramax assembled an impressive vocal cast including Gillian
Anderson, Billy Crudup (as Ashitaka), Claire Danes (as San),
Minnie Driver (as Lady Eboshi), Billy Bob Thornton, and Jada
Pinkett Smith. They bring added nuance to a very different kind
of magic kingdom. Recommended for ages 12 and older. --Sam
Sutherland