Anybody reading this who knows the name Hayao Miyazaki probably won’t need any convincing from me to check out his latest film Ponyo. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the Japanese master animator, he is widely and ever-increasingly recognized as one of the greatest filmmakers working today, and you owe it to yourself to sample his work, even if you’re one of those unfortunate individuals who “won’t watch cartoons.” Many American animators, notably those who work at Pixar, are quick to acknowledge him as a major influence on their work (a prime example being the recent Up). While most of his films are extremely kid-friendly, their emotional, philosophical and artistic subtleties can be appreciated at any age. They are often characterized by their strong female protagonists, their reverence for nature (sometimes reflecting ancient Shinto traditions), a fascination with flight and flying machines, a powerful sense of place, and the value of innocence and courage. And they’re gorgeous to look at.
His latest masterpiece, Ponyo, is among his gentler and brighter films. Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid,” its title character is a small fish who transforms herself into a young human girl after falling in love with a boy who lives in a house by the sea. We first meet her in a dreamlike tableau under the sea, where she wanders away from her father, a wizard-like guardian of the ocean who was once a human himself. After being threatened by a bottom-trawling fishing net, she finds herself trapped in a glass bottle. She is rescued by Sosuke, the young boy, whose finger is cut when he breaks the bottle. She licks his cut and magically heals it, but after tasting his blood becomes determined to become a human herself. To do so, she unleashes her father’s magical elixirs into the ocean and disturbs the balance of nature. She rides a living tsunami ashore and reunites with Sosuke and his mother, who shelter her from the elemental storm. Then, in some of the film’s most charming scenes, she revels in the pleasures of human life on land–tea, honey, ham sandwiches, and electricity.
It’s interesting to note that at no point in Ponyo does any character consume any kind of seafood. The coastal village in which it is set is not unlike Taiji, the infamous fishing town featured in the recent documentary The Cove. Most of Miyazaki’s films have strong environmentalist themes, but the message here, while very subtle, is also very focused. Japan’s love of seafood is unparalleled, and its exploitation of the ocean is extreme. When one looks at satellite images of the Earth at night, the Japanese fishing fleet can in fact be mistaken for a network of bright cities floating in the sea. In one of Ponyo‘s more abstract and fantastic scenes, a group of sailors in fact spot what they think is a sprawling city on the horizon, only to discover that it is really a vast cluster of ships trapped in a huge, unmoving tidal wave. One gets the sense that Miyazaki might be encouraging younger generations to lay off the sushi for a while and opt instead for a delicious bowl of ramen.
But while the environmental parable is potent and mystically apocalyptic in its ramifications, it’s really a sideshow to a very sweet, innocent love story. Humanity’s pollution of the sea gets a startlingly clear-eyed depiction, to be sure, but Ponyo is certainly no depressing condemnation of the human race. The people who populate the story are overwhelmingly humble, adaptable and generous, and our love of the sea and the ships that sail it is joyfully celebrated. The young boy, Sosuke, defies cynical expectations and remains steadfast and loyal to Ponyo, right to the very last, iconic frame. The film’s overall sweetness is reflected in its luminous palette and crisp but rounded shapes. The musical score by the director’s longtime collaborator Joe Hisaishi lends a gentle dreamlike majesty to Miyazaki’s sea, occasionally rising to a Wagnerian crescendo.
Incidentally, Disney’s English dub, essentially overseen by Pixar, is phenomenally well-done, with the voice talents of Tina Fey, Matt Damon, Liam Neeson, and Cate Blanchett, among others. The American studio has had a long relationship with Miyazaki’s Studio Ghibli, and they continue to embrace his work with genuine passion and respect. That said, it is also worth watching it in the original Japanese with subtitles, which offer a slightly more literal translation and reveal a bit more of Ponyo’s Shinto underpinnings. - [DVD] [Blu-Ray]
Animation/Adventure/Family/Fantasy
Rated G
DVD Release Date: 3/2/10
[...] PONYO – Reviewed by Will [...]