{"id":36187,"date":"2016-08-02T22:22:28","date_gmt":"2016-08-03T05:22:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/?p=36187"},"modified":"2016-08-02T22:22:28","modified_gmt":"2016-08-03T05:22:28","slug":"challenge-week-30-nausicaa-of-the-valley-of-the-wind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/2016\/08\/challenge-week-30-nausicaa-of-the-valley-of-the-wind\/","title":{"rendered":"Challenge Week 30: Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind"},"content":{"rendered":"

There are far too many Miyazakis on my unseen list, so I’m glad David gave me the push to get to this one. Sometimes overtly environmentalist stuff bugs me, not because I’m anti-environment – just because it often comes across preachy. I knew this was likely to be heavily pro-environment, but it worked for me quite well because the message is really one of symbiosis.<\/p>\n

In the film’s post-apocalyptic world, a toxic jungle filled with giant aggressive insects has developed, and is creeping closer and closer to the world’s few remaining human settlements, including the peaceful and fertile Valley of the Wind. Some of the other surviving kingdoms want to use an ancient Giant Warrior (one of the bioweapons that destroyed the world 1000 years ago, now lying dormant) to destroy the toxic jungle once and for all, but the Valley’s princess, Nausicaa, takes a much more pacifist approach, preferring to avoid or calm the insects rather than antagonize them, and definitely not in favor of razing the whole thing. Turns out she’s right, as the toxic jungle is actually cleaning the topsoil poisoned by the apocalyptic war and creating clean soil and water.<\/p>\n

\"tf-protect\"<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

That doesn’t take away the fact that the toxic jungle growing in that poisonous topsoil is still dangerous, not to mention the swarms of killer insects that live there. The ecosystem laid out here is complex, and humanity both caused it and is threatened by it, yet if given time to recover, the dangerous forest will ultimately make the world habitable again for humanity. I appreciated that it wasn’t a total reversal of “this jungle and creatures that we thought were dangerous were really just misunderstood and we can all be friends now” – they’re still dangerous, but also necessary.<\/p>\n

Of course the film looks beautiful, even when it’s showing ugly things – anime is always incredibly inventive when it comes to depicting things like mutant insects, and Miyazaki films walk the line between imaginative and grotesque better than a lot of anime. The Valley itself is a lovely oasis in a world of desert and toxicity, and you feel protective of it, especially against the invading ships and soldiers from the other far more warlike societies (let’s just say we can probably guess who was neutral in the apocalyptic war).<\/p>\n

\"tf-sanctuary-long\"<\/p>\n

I will also say how fun it was to see a girl in the role of The Chosen One. I know Miyazaki has done this for years (obviously, this movie is from the mid-’80s!), but it still feels unusual and cool. And her glider is awesome. All in all, greatly enjoyed having this in front of my eyes for two hours.<\/p>\n

Stats and stuff…<\/h3>\n

1984, Japan<\/em>
\nwritten and directed by Hayao Miyazaki<\/em>
\nstarring Sumi Shimamoto, Mahito Tsujimura, Hisako Ky\u00c3\u00b4da, Gor\u00c3\u00b4 Naya, Ichir\u00c3\u00b4 Nagai<\/em><\/p>\n

I’m ranking all my Challenge films on Flickchart (as I do all the films I see), a movie-ranking website that asks you to choose your favorite between two movies until it builds a ranked list of your favorites. Just for fun, I will average out the rankings and keep a running tally of whose recommendations rank the highest. When you add a film to Flickchart, it pits it against films already on your chart to see where it should fall. Here’s how Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind<\/em> entered my chart:<\/p>\n

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind<\/b> > Leave Her to Heaven
\nNausicaa of the Valley of the Wind<\/b> > Irma Vep
\nNausicaa of the Valley of the Wind < The History of Future Folk<\/b>
\nNausicaa of the Valley of the Wind<\/b> > When Harry Met Sally\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6
\nNausicaa of the Valley of the Wind < Breakfast at Tiffany\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s<\/b>
\nNausicaa of the Valley of the Wind<\/b> > The Nightmare Before Christmas
\nNausicaa of the Valley of the Wind<\/b> > Haywire
\nNausicaa of the Valley of the Wind < Waiting for Guffman<\/b>
\nNausicaa of the Valley of the Wind < The Innocents<\/b>
\nNausicaa of the Valley of the Wind < Metropolitan<\/b>
\nNausicaa of the Valley of the Wind < Into the Woods<\/b>
\nNausicaa of the Valley of the Wind < Ed Wood<\/b><\/p>\n

Final #605 out of 3687 films on my chart (84%)<\/p>\n

It is now my #3 Hayao Miyazaki film, my #3 Anime film, my #25 Coming of Age film, my #4 Post-Apocalyptic film, and my #2 film of 1984.<\/p>\n

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind<\/em> was recommended by David Brook, a friend and fellow writer at Row Three. Averaging together this #605 ranking with my #428 ranking of his other film, Harakiri<\/em>, gives David an average ranking of 516.<\/p>\n

A few more screenshots…<\/h3>\n

\"tf-camel\"<\/p>\n

\"tf-sample\"<\/p>\n

\"tf-bugs\"<\/p>\n

\"tf-valley\"<\/p>\n

\"tf-grandma\"<\/p>\n

\"tf-squirrel\"<\/p>\n

\"tf-closeup\"<\/p>\n

\"tf-pilot\"<\/p>\n

\"tf-sanctuary\"<\/p>\n

\"tf-lasso-bug\"<\/p>\n

\"tf-desert-bug\"<\/p>\n

\"tf-bait\"<\/p>\n

\"tf-thumbsup\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There are far too many Miyazakis on my unseen list, so I’m glad David gave me the push to get to this one. Sometimes overtly environmentalist stuff bugs me, not because I’m anti-environment – just because it often comes across preachy. I knew this was likely to be heavily pro-environment, but it worked for me […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":36206,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3027],"tags":[2990,3194,3195],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/tf-feat-nausicaa.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":35387,"url":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/2016\/01\/the-2016-movie-challenge-a-preview\/","url_meta":{"origin":36187,"position":0},"title":"The 2016 Movie Challenge: A Preview","author":"Jandy","date":"January 3, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Because I can't leave well enough alone, here's a brief rundown of (some of) what I'll be watching in 2016 for this crazy challenge. I currently have 50 people signed up to recommend me movies, and all but a handful have already chosen their picks, so this thing is scheduled\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2016 Movie Challenge"","block_context":{"text":"2016 Movie Challenge","link":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/category\/film\/2016-movie-challenge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/fc-keaton.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":35505,"url":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/2017\/03\/2016-challenge-debrief\/","url_meta":{"origin":36187,"position":1},"title":"2016 Challenge Debrief","author":"Jandy","date":"March 15, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Well, it's been almost three months since my year-long movie challenge officially completed, and it's taken me that long to decompress, rerank everything, and generally get ready to post a recap of the year. The short version: it was awesome! I watched a ton of movies I really liked, very\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2016 Movie Challenge"","block_context":{"text":"2016 Movie Challenge","link":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/category\/film\/2016-movie-challenge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/crop-400-Blows-watching.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":33575,"url":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/2014\/02\/judging-films-as-oscar-winners\/","url_meta":{"origin":36187,"position":2},"title":"Judging Films as Oscar-Winners","author":"Jandy","date":"February 19, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"As Oscar-season hits a fever pitch, of course lots of people are also looking at the history of the Oscars and what's won in previous years, and what maybe SHOULD have won in previous years. This is a fun pastime, one I've certainly indulged in it myself (as evidenced by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Film"","block_context":{"text":"Film","link":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/category\/film\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/Oscar-feat1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/Oscar-feat1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/Oscar-feat1.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":36096,"url":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/2016\/07\/challenge-week-27-birdemic-shock-and-terror\/","url_meta":{"origin":36187,"position":3},"title":"Challenge Week 27: Birdemic: Shock and Terror","author":"Jandy","date":"July 10, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"When I did the little preview post for this challenge with how much I was looking forward to various films, I listed this under \"I'm Terrified\" - not really so much because I knew it was supposed to be one of the worst movies ever made (I have a soft\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2016 Movie Challenge"","block_context":{"text":"2016 Movie Challenge","link":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/category\/film\/2016-movie-challenge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/tf-feat1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":161,"url":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/2006\/12\/semester-wind-down\/","url_meta":{"origin":36187,"position":4},"title":"Semester wind-down","author":"Jandy","date":"December 8, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"I know all I've posted about lately is school. But it has been sort of prominent in my mind. ;) Not as prominent as it should have been. I completely gave into my procrastination tendencies this week, writing my final paper for Metaphysical Poetry last night from 7pm-midnight, then collapsing--until\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Books and Reading"","block_context":{"text":"Books and Reading","link":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/category\/books\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":35654,"url":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/2016\/03\/challenge-week-10-the-keys-of-the-kingdom\/","url_meta":{"origin":36187,"position":5},"title":"Challenge Week 10: The Keys of the Kingdom","author":"Jandy","date":"March 12, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Although a 1944 film starring Gregory Peck in an Oscar-nominated performance sounds like something right up my alley, I never really thought much to seek out this film, largely because films specifically about priests or pastors often don't tend to do as much for me as you might expect. Either\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2016 Movie Challenge"","block_context":{"text":"2016 Movie Challenge","link":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/category\/film\/2016-movie-challenge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/tf-feat-Father-Chisolm.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36187"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36187"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36187\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36206"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.the-frame.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}