When I first heard Hiyao Miyazaki's announcement that The Wind Rises would be his last film before retirement, I was heartbroken. Miyazaki has captured the hearts of young and old alike with his past films -- My Neighbor Totoro, Oscar winner Spirited Away, and Oscar nominee Howl's Moving Castle, just to name a few. The stories he brings to the screen are magical and breathtakingly beautiful; watching them is like looking at a series of paintings. However, I found out that Miyazaki recently revoked his retirement (he's apparently tried to retire six times before), so I am relieved to say that there will be more to come after The Wind Rises... though that fact does nothing to deteriorate the brilliance of this story.
Scoring an Oscar nomination itself, this fictionalized biography follows Japanese engineer Jiro Horikoshi from his childhood, when the nearsighted boy realizes he will never be a pilot, all the way to adulthood, as his career designing fighter planes takes off (sorry, couldn't resist) in World War II. Jiro, polite and kind-hearted from the beginning, is quite literally never able to keep his head out of the clouds -- he loves airplanes, even to the point of dreaming up conversations with Italian aeronautical engineer Caproni, from whom he takes much inspiration. And as an adult, his love for his work even competes for his attention with the woman he loves.
What is probably most interesting to think about is the different perspective that the story opens up to you, not only revealing the Japanese side of WWII, but also presenting art as something that surpasses all the ugly purposes we attach to it. Jiro's love for airplanes enabled him to look past the fact that he was creating fighter planes for the war... the structure and design was all he cared to focus on.
For those who love Miyazaki for his whimsical surrealism, it isn't quite as prevalent in this film, but fear not -- there are still the dream sequences, and we even get a little glimpse of animism in the foley work, some of which is clearly derived from the human voice. And the visuals are gorgeous: the scenery is breathtaking, whether it's the Japanese countryside or blue skies. There were times in the film where the story seemed to drag just a bit, but the artwork allowed me to pass the time until my attention was caught again, and I was once more immersed in Jiro's tale.
The Wind Rises is now playing at the Midtown Cinema, so come on over and give it a go!
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