Hayao Miyazaki is responsible for creating some of the finest animated films of all time. He recently announced his retirement from filmmaking. Therefore, his latest film, “The Wind Rises,” is officially Miyazaki’s very last film, but he goes out with a bang by creating one of the most intimate and beautiful films I have ever seen.
All of Miyazaki’s films are owned by Disney and are always dubbed into English to bring them to American audiences. Some anime classics of his include, “My Neighbor Totoro,” “Porco Rosso,” “Princess Mononoke,” and “Spirited Away.”
“The Wind Rises” is a Japanese animated film that tells the story of Jiro Horikoshi, whose life goal is to simply design beautiful aircrafts.
In 1920’s Japan, Jiro gets that opportunity when he begins to work as an airplane manufacturer. The film depicts Jiro’s everday life as he slowly but surely invents the ultimate Japanese fighter. During the film, Jiro meets the love of his life, Naoko. Naoko is ill but chooses to pursue a relationship with Jiro regardless. The two grow closer and fall in love as Jiro creates his plane.
“The Wind Rises” is an incredibly touching film. It is entirely character driven and beautifully told. Hayao Miyazaki has taken the time to painstakingly draw his backgrounds and characters with such care and beauty that just about every shot is worth framing in your home. The film is so intimate because we get to see the everyday life of ordinary people in such a realistic and beautiful way.
The audience experiences everything with Jiro; from failure to love loss and success.
The romance depicted in this animated film was just as powerful as the love found in Pixar’s “Up.” Jiro and Naoko’s relationship is incredibly touching. Every second the two shared on screen was imagined beautifully.
The film combines interesting dream sequences into its narrative. These scenes also serve to demonstrate how determined and committed Jiro is to the beautiful design of his airplane, rather than its capacity for destruction in war.
The American voice cast in the film is also great. Joseph Gordon Levitt plays a fantastic Jiro, as he perfectly captures the lead character’s gentle nature. John Krasinski of “The Office” also does a fine job as Jiro’s best friend and fellow engineer Honjo. Emily Blunt, Martin Short, and even William H. Macy also appear as voices in the film. The most surprising and enjoyable voice actor to hear, though, was none other than legendary filmmaker Werner Herzog.
Even if you are not a fan of Japanese Animation, the film is still worth seeing. “The Wind Rises” is a rare biopic that is entirely animated — and biopics are rarely animated. Hayao Miyazaki brings viewers around the world much joy with his films, and his final film is quite a film to go out on. Regardless of the fact that Miyazaki makes animated films, he is telling stories and depicting characters in ways never explored before and his directing is comparable to that of Stanley Kubrick, Alfred Hitchcock, and even John Ford.
This film is now in theaters with an English dubbed soundtrack. It is also nominated for an Oscarin the Best Animated Feature category.