The Old School Otaku Lounge

Looks like the Wind Rises made the nomination despite it not really being officially released yet in the U.S.. A few months back a lot of people thought this would be a shoo-in win because of the crappy year for animated films, and people weren't expecting much from Frozen... but of course, Frozen has become an audience darling over the past few weeks and made a thousand billion dollars so now THAT'S the favorite to win.

Saw it last night. Very ambitious, and very different from past Miyazaki films. For all those people who have been saying that he's been repeating himself for the past 10 years, this film is definitely a sharp left turn away from his usual style. The politics of the film are surprisingly downplayed--some people have complained about this, but after years of Miyazaki hammering home certain political messages, for once he pretty much portrays history as-is, while only occasionally suggesting how certain events and actions will later lead to disaster. It's actually pretty refreshing to see, but it's not for everyone to take. I know a lot of people wished he used more of a sledgehammer.

I really dig how so much of the film is so concerned with the engineering aspects of the narrative. Huge, huge swaths of the film are devoted to discussions about mechanical design and problem solving, which makes this really self-indulgent in an endearing way.

The funny thing is, as the film drew to a close, I couldn't help but find some similarities between this and Wings of Honneamise--the slow pace, the length, the focus on the details--it's really the least crowd pleasing and most overtly personal film Miyazaki has made at Ghibli ever. Even more than Porco Rosso, which still functions as a crowd pleasing lighthearted adventure when all is said and done. And for that I really respect Kaze Tachinu.

Good news! It was finally released internationally. I guess this means that a Japanese DVD will come soon, and then I can finally watch it subbed (Ghibli movies released in Japan are always subtitled, fortunately). If political messages were left out, then it's to my relief. If there were any, they would've gone over my head when I saw it in the theater last summer. From what I got from the movie with no translation and only my rudimentary understanding of Japanese, it's just a story that focuses on the man's dedication to building the best airplane he could, and the tragedy of his love. That's all this movie needed to be. No heavy-handed moral about war or the environment or whatever. I'm tired of being preached at (Star Trek: Into Darkness comes to mind).

Some critics and audiences are still salty about Pearl Harbor, and many of them demanded a cathartic (for them) moment where Jiro at the end realizes the error of his ways and feels some sort of deep shame or guilt or some such for creating a weapon that killed hundreds of Allied soldiers. That never happens in the film, of course. Jiro feels regret over being unable to control the direction of his lifelong dreams, but that's about it. "White washing history" is what they're calling it. I think there are solid arguments for both sides of the issue.

On the other hand, I feel like the film did a pretty good job of showing why Jiro didn't think about the world around him that much. We know Miyazaki would never have made Jiro into a bloodthirsty flag waver, but he doesn't make him into a guy who balks at making fighter planes, either. While he would rather make a great plane instead of a great FIGHTER plane, he's in the best situation that allows him to fulfill his dreams within the political structure the state allows him to fulfill them. He's a well meaning but flawed character and Miyazaki acknowledges this. Carl Horn in an ANNpodcast did a pretty good job of discussing theories on what Miyazaki was probably going for, and it wasn't so much about portraying history as it was telling this story about a man who Miyazaki in some way feels a certain kinship to, while at the same time repurposing Jiro into a Miyazaki avatar in other ways. One gets the sense that there are some deeply personal elements in the film that, to a casual viewer, might seem superfluous. I, for example, originally agreed with those people who thought the romance subplot with Naoko was tacked on, but after thinking about it from a standpoint of what Miyazaki is saying as it relates to him personally, I am looking at it a little differently now. It seems cliched and idealized at first glance because of all the gooey love talk between them, but on further reflection I do think Jiro's romance with Naoko has a deeper meaning relating Miyazaki's thoughts and dreams on work and family. That scene where Jiro moves his work table beside Naoko while he holds her hand with his left and draws with his right hand seems to be the key moment Miyazaki was ultimately working towards in that subplot. As Carl Horn said, there may be some wish fulfillment at play here, while at the same time Miyazaki's acknowledgement of how unrealistic it is as well.

"Audacious" is what Carl Horn described this film, and I have to agree. I'm glad Miyazaki didn't play it safe here. I can easily see people discussing the various meanings of Kaze Tachinu 20 or 30 years from now. It's that meaty.

In a lot of ways it also reminds me of the controversy over Scorsese's recent "Wolf of Wall Street". They wanted to see Jordan Bedfort punished because he is an EVIL WALL STREET CROOK AND IT IS PEOPLE LIKE HIM THAT'S WHY AMERICA IS IN A DOWNWARD SPIRAL, and Scorsese didn't offer that kind of catharsis for the audience. Many audiences, ultimately, want to still see good triumph over evil, and to see people to get punished severely for doing bad things (or in Jiro's case, doing something that led to bad things).

I would hate it if they white-washed it. I hate history revisionists adding their own bias. If the man had specifically stated his remorse so that it was a historical fact, then they could reflect that somehow in the movie. I don't care what side of the war anybody was on; the Mitsubishi Zero was a well-designed, iconic fighter plane from WWII. If Americans demand that the movie villify the man for designing it, then that is absurd.

A friend of mine on YouTube (rebelsatcloud9) is building a Tamiya Zero plane in tribute to this movie, and it isn't the first Zero he has built. The thought of, "Oh no, this is so bad because it was used to kill Americans" never crosses my mind when I look at the plane. Someday I'd like to build a Messershmidt and put all the swastika decals on it. It doesn't mean that I am a traitor or a closet Nazi. It was a well-made aircraft, an icon of the war, and it should be celebrated as such. The man who designed that plane did so believing that was doing what's best for his country. If there was a movie made about him, I wouldn't mind watching it, I guess. Now if there was a movie dedicated to the man who designed the shower room gas chamber for concentration camps, that would be a different story. So if Miyazaki makes a movie showing the love of flight that a man had and it was used to make a Zero, I am fine with that. It's not like it's a movie portraying the hopes, dreams, and loves of the man behind the infamous Unit 731. "Oh, live vivisections sure are fun and all, but will I ever find love?" Puke-tastic.