The Tale of Princess Kaguya

In the mountains, a humble Bamboo Cutter discovers a little girl house in a shoot of Bamboo.  He brings her to live with him and his wife, neither knowing what is about to unfold before them.  In no time at all, the little girl ages from infant to toddler to teenager with a need to experience everything the world has to offer.  When the chance of a more prosperous life presents itself, the Cutter and his wife take their “Princess” to the capital, where she trains to become a true Princess of the land.  But is a life of luxury and glamour the true wish of the newly minted “Princess Kaguya”?  This is the tale of a girl who came from the Moon to live with humans…and changed the world forever.

I like Disney films.  That’s a weird way to start off an Anime review but I say that because there are some things in life I don’t understand.  Yes, Disney is the Ultimate Domination King of the Animation World and has given us hundreds of classic films that shaped many childhoods.  Ok, why am I bringing this up?  Because as much as I love Big Hero 6…how the hell did it beat The Tale of Princess Kaguya for Best Animated Movie of 2013?  I…I just…I cant even…I mean just watch five minutes of this movie alone and you’d see a mistake had been made giving BH6 that award.  Princess Kaguya might not be a totally perfect film but at the very least I do believe it is beyond the shadow of a doubt the most beautiful movie I have ever seen in my life.

Indeed, Studio Ghibli has outdone itself with this one.  While Miyazaki and his masterpiece resume tend to get most of the credit, Isao Takahata deserves the same amount of praise (basically except for one very rare occasion, if Miyazaki isn’t directing a Ghibli flick, it’ll be directed by Takahata).  The man who gave us Grave of the Fireflies and Only Yesterday has delivered his best work to date.  Kaguya is like seeing an Art Students final project being put on display in a museum and being allowed to walk through and experience the story in chronological order.  It’s all hand drawn with nary a digital touch.  Even the moments when the animation gets a little scribbly and charcolly in an epic running scene, the movie looks freaking flawless.  This is one of those rare examples of saying a water painting has come to life.  There aren’t a lot of Anime, or animated films in general, possessing this kind of artistic majesty.  And I don’t think this movie could be made in any other artform than what’s on screen.  Honestly, if I was grading this movie based on the quality of animation alone, this would get a 10/10.

Of course, the movie does need characters worthy of such a beautiful looking production.  Kaguya herself is fantastic.  Her journey from wide eyed youth to somber young adult and everything in between is the beating heart of the film.  It’s so clear that the country life is where her heart lies and seeing her being taken futher away from that clenches the heartstrings.  This goes double for when Kaguya tries to hold on to some semblance of that old life, whether its running around like a wild child or tending to a garden she’s trying to turn into a mini model of her old home.  Kaguya touches the lives of everyone she meets and the viewer is included in that list.  We’re seeing life through a very unique set of eyes with Kaguya, which makes the films more dramatic and heavier moments all the more effective.  There’s an equally strong supporting cast watching and guiding Kaguya’s journey.  Kaguya’s adoptive parents both shine in their own ways: her Father trying to make her life more glamorous (and his more prominent by effect) and her Mother trying to find ways to keep Kaguya happy by allowing her to engage in activities she used to do back in the mountains.  While he isn’t in the movie very long, Satemaru stands out as Kaguya’s oldest friend from her childhood days who has a profound impact on her later years as a love interest.  Special shout out goes to Kaguya’s hand maiden, who’s got a cute design that makes me chuckle and she definitely gets some of the films funniest moments.

As I said, unfortunately, it isn’t a completely perfect film.  While I was always interested in everything going on, I did start to feel the films runtime of a little over two hours.  One segment goes on particularly longer than need be: Kaguya being sought after by five suitors far older than she is.  This takes up more of a chunk of the movie than I thought and yes, there is a little bit of payoff in a certain dramatic bombshell to kick off the last act.  I’d argue, however, that there could have been more clearer build up to that aforementioned bombshell instead.  A key revelation regarding Kaguya kind of comes out of nowhere unless you’re semi familiar with the folklore tale the movie is based on.  The movie just didn’t need to be as long as it was…not that I wasn’t enjoying all of the dazzling imagery.

While I often cite Spirited Away as the ultimate Hayao Miyazaki epic (though that tends to go back and forth with Princess Mononoke), The Tale of Princess Kaguya is the ultimate Ghibli work for Isao Takahata.  The tale of a girl who came from the Moon to live a human existence gets a visual experience unlike any other with characters full of heart and soul and an overall production that is the prime example of how an animated feature film should be handled.  And while I have my gripes in a couple of areas, I’m always going to remember more how invested I was in this movie because Kaguya is a girl to root for…and this movie’s gorgeous presentation helped me remember why Anime is such a unique artform.  It may not look like traditional by normal standards, but The Tale of Princess Kaguya is Anime: new, different, ahead of it’s time…and something you could stare at for hours and still find new ways to fall in love with it.

9.5/10