This document provides a compare and contrast essay analyzing the films Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke directed by Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki. Both films showcase character development through maturation, are set in ancient Japan, and feature Miyazaki's signature beautiful and unique artistic styles. The essay discusses how the main characters Chihiro in Spirited Away and San in Princess Mononoke grow in maturity through overcoming challenges. It also describes the ancient Japanese settings and influences in the films, as well as Miyazaki's imaginative and eccentric character designs.
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Spirited away vs. princess mononoke
1. SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING AND DESIGN
THE DESIGN SCHOOL
FOUNDATION IN NATURAL BUILD ENVIRONMENT
NAME: JONATHAN LIM WEI JUN
STUDENT ID NO: 0321119
FILMS SELECTED: SPIRITEDAWAY X PRINCESS MONONOKE
WORD COUNT: 992
ENGLISH 2 (ELG 30605)
WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT 1: COMPARE – CONTRAST ESSAY
LECTURER: CASSANDRA WIJESURIA
SUBMISSIONDATE: 1ST
OCTOBER 2015
2. SPIRITED AWAY vs. PRINCESS MONONOKE
By Jonathan Lim
Animationhasbrought aboutmanygreat filmsforthe pleasure of many.Though
conventional thoughtsregard animationasnonsensical and inane material prevents movie goers
fromwatchingthem.However,HayaoMiyazaki,Japanese animatorandfilmmaker,haschangedthe
game since 1984 withhisastonishingartstylesandempathyfilledscenesinhisfilms.His
philosophical perspective towardsanimationhasaltered the mindsetof manyincluding myself
towards animationfilms.He exemplifieshisworkwith amazingfilmssuchasSpiritedAwayand
PrincessMononoke.
SpiritedAway tellsatale aboutimpatientandimpetuous 10-yearoldgirl,Chihiro,whoislatergiven
the name Sen,trappedon an enormousfloatingbathhousewithmystical creaturesandspirits.Her
onlymeansof escapingthe bathhouse isgettinghername backfromthe ownerof the bathhouse,
Yubaba,a witch. She alsohasto rescue her parentswhohave morphed intopigswiththe helpof
othereccentriccharactersin the bathhouse.While inPrincess Mononoke,revolvesaroundthe
prince,Ashitakaashisarm has beencursedbya mad boar god.He travelsto foreignlandslooking
for a cure andstumblesupon San’s(orPrincessMononoke),agirl raisedbythe wolf god.Ashitaka
discoversSan’s struggle againstthe emergence of mechanization. He thendecidestoaid Santo
preventthe destructionof the forest,animalsandthe spiritsthatdwell withinit.Albeitthe
difference of the plotandstory,bothfilmselucidate similarelementsascreationsfrom Hayao
Miyazaki. Asbothfilmscontainsimilaritiesbetweencharacterdevelopment,settingandcharacter
art styles.
The maturityand developmentof a character isessential toanyfilm.Thiselement
elucidatesstagesof the character’sjourneythroughoutthe film.InSpiritedAway,ChihiroorSen
whostarts out as a very petulantandimpetuous character,“a10-year-oldgirl namedChihiro,who
isn'tone of those cheerful little automatonsthatpopulate manyanimatedfilms.”(RogerEbert,
SpiritedAway Review,2012). However,asshe surmountsproblemsshe facesduringhercaptivityin
the floatingbathhouse,Sengraduallydevelopsasense of maturity. Toexemplifythis, Senbecomes
altruisticbysacrificingagiftherbal cake she plannedonusingtoreturn hertransformedparents
back to normal to calm an enragedlonelyspiritnamely,No-face.Sencomments:“Iwassavingitfor
my parents,butyoucan have it.” On the otherhand, San or PrincessMononoke,hasbeenraisedby
wolvesherwhole life.Thisleadtohermisanthropicattitude andtoherbelief thatshe isawolf.Until
she fallsinlove withAshitaka,she isseentohave acknowledgedherhumanside throughhis
affection.Alas,theyare unable toleadthe lifeof the otherandonlysee eachotheroccasionally.
In bothfilms,HayaoMiyazaki placesthe film’ssettinginancientJapan.Although,bothfilms
are of differenttime periods,he capturesthe essenceof ancientJapanthroughthe animated
workingsof the films. The settinginSpiritedAwaybringsChihiro/Senintothe SpiritRealmwherethe
surroundingenvironmentisthatof the Meiji Period.Bythe wayof illustration,Yubabaisseen
dressedinWesternclothingandheroffice lavishedwithEuropeanfurniture andembellishments.
Whilstotherlowerclassedcharactersare dressedinJapanese kimonosincluding Sen. Onthe other
side, PrincessMononoke explicitlyfillsthe settingwithancient Japanese cultureandarchitecture.
For example duringtheirperiod,the core settingtakesplace atthe village IronTownwhere headof
3. the town,Lady Eboshi favorsthe womeninthe village.Hence,thistheme conflictsthe traditional
male hegemony inancientJapan asa twistinthe story. Anotherexample iswhenAshitakatakesa
tour aroundIron Town,takingnotice tothe village’spremodernarchitecture and surroundingthe
village are highpointedtree trunkslinedtoformawall to protectthemselvesfromsamurai
enclaves.
StudioGhibli,the animationfilmstudioHayaoMiyazaki usedtoworkfor hasalwaysbeen
well knownforitsbeautifulartstylesandbizarre characters.Theyare soeccentricallyandartfully
designedthat“some fantastical beings have the abilitytomake youfeel likeyou’re being
transportedtofar away worlds.”(whatculture.com, 2015). SpiritedAwaybringsspiritsand
elementalgodsto life withcolorfulpalettessuitedtotheirpersonalities.A malodorousstinkspirit
turns outto be a rivergodwitha skeletonface asa headand a lithe waterbodyafterSencleans
him.Hayao Miyazaki wasinspiredbypersonal experience toportraythe pollutedrivergod,he said:
“I cleanedariveronce, my local river.Andthere reallywasabicycle.Itwas stuckin there.Tenof us
wrappeda rope aroundthe bars and slowlypulleditout.We reallycleanedupthe river,andthe fish
are back.And that’swhyI addedthat scene.”(mentalfloss.com, 2014).In comparisontothat isthe
forestgodfrom PrincessMononoke.The forestgodappearsasa deerwithmanyantlers duringthe
day andat nighttransformsintoa giantglowingtranslucentbodyknownasthe “night-walker”.
Asidesthe night-walker,the kodama(tree guardian) are tinyghostswithfeaturessuchas
expressionlessfacesandmakingarattlingnoise whentheycranktheirheadsside toside. These
characters are intrinsicHayaoMiyazaki’sfilmsastheyare the stuff that makeshisworkso unique.
All of Hayao Miyazaki’sworkhassimplybeenawe inspiringall aroundthe world.Because of
hisstyle,techniqueandphilosophytogenerate these greatanimations,hisname isplasteredonthe
wall as perhapsthe world’sgreatestanimatorsandfilmdirectors.HayaoMiyazaki still continuesto
draw animationalthoughretired.Evenstill,hisfilmswill always astonishpeople ashisfilms
captivate the audience withempathy,amazingcharactersandhisphilosophy.HayaoMiyazaki
continuestosurprise hisaudience afterhisretirement,he states “Inordertogrow youraudience,
youmust betraytheirexpectations.”
