Nausicaa Week 2

I expected to have some revelation this week when watching the film again; I did not. Watching it a second time was very similar to the first time. I only noticed a few details that I did not understand before and I also figured out which scenes I like the best.

One of the small details I noticed was that the three princesses all have the same style of earrings. It doesn't really provide me with any revelation except that the three women are connected in more than just being princesses. Perhaps they were actually sisters. I would probably have to read the manga to really find out about that.

Another thing i thought was really interesting was the finite border between desert and toxic jungle. They always say the forest is spreading but at the same time this border makes me thing that it is a very delicate ecosystem and that is one reason for the bugs to protect it like they do.

One of my favorite images of the film is definitely the tapestry sequence during the opening credits. I really enjoy the contrast between the human depiction of the giant warrior and the giant warrior itself. The humans have illustrated it really extravagantly when they are actually aesthetically simple. The following shots of the giant warriors walking amongst the burning ruins are my favorite. Their walk is very unified and something about it hypnotizes me. Its ominous beauty is very striking and rather than evoking fear, it glorifies them in their efforts. Also, the same inaccurate depiction comes into play with the man dressed in blue in the tapestry in the Valley of the Wind. The man on the tapestry is supposed to be Nausicaa but the image has been interpreted inaccurately by man. I think this is also a comment on the heroines Miyazaki so often presents; we expect there to be a hero but we are given a heroine. With the inaccurate depiction of the giant warriors we should have known that the other tapestry was incorrect.