Mononoke Hime (Princess Mononoke)

Announcer:

Animation has a tradition of its own in Japan and is much more influential there than it is e.g. in Europe. The animated "Princess Mononoke" was seen by more people there than "Titanic". By the way, it is not pure computer animation, but 70% good old hand-drawn art. A silverscreen epic about gods and samurai, about enchanted forests and lost tribes.

The n-tv movie tip for Easter, by Xenia Richters.

Voice-Over:

Princess Mononoke knows how to fight. Not quite as elegant as the live-action heroes in the Oscar-winning "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", but she knows exactly what she is fighting for: The gods of nature are in danger.

(Eboshi dialogue: I'm going to show you how to kill a god...)

Hayao Miyazaki, the Kurosawa of animation, is an almost god-like role model even for the greatest in Hollywood. A perfectionist, a skilled artist par excellence and a great story teller on top of it all.

Miyazaki's fairy tale combines melancholy, fighting spirit and humour. His message: Respect the environment, protect nature and don't forget where your limits are.

A message that younger audiences will have no problem understanding and one that will not bore adults, either. Because most of Miyazaki's images are of such beauty that they almost always can outshine sentimentality and kitsch.

(Action sequence, movie dialogue)