SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
A haunting and graceful fable from director Isao Takahata, both melancholic and subtly funny, and made by a bold and unforgettable visual style.
When it comes to Studio Ghibli, Hayao Miyazaki is usually the first name on people’s lips. That in itself isn’t surprising, given the runaway success of films like Spirited Away, and only proves the strength and diversity of Ghibli’s repertoire that studio co-founder Isao Takahata receives far less attention. It’s clear he deserves more. Even after his passing in 2018, he continues to be hailed as a lesser-known titan of the anime world for films like Grave of the Fireflies and Only Yesterday, films which to put it mildly are not the studio’s usual fare. For his last film, he bridged the distance between his works and Miyazaki’s wildly imaginative Oscar challengers with the soulful, hand-drawn masterwork that is The Tale of the Princess Kaguya.
An adaptation of a Japanese folktale about a mysterious girl found by poor villagers as a baby growing within a shoot of bamboo, Kaguya is a rich distillation of hundreds, if not thousands of years of folklore and mythology. Steeped as it is, it may have become one of the studio’s least accessible works had Takahata not put the “adapt” in “adaptation”. As we witness Takenoko (little bamboo in Japanese) move to a mansion in the capital at the behest of her foster father, who seeks to raise her as a princess, the film turns sharply on its excesses. As the would-be princess struggles against the absurd rigidity of her new life, the film slyly mocks the ridiculousness of gender and social roles, taking on a delightfully impish quality without ever undercutting its more resonant, emotional moments. Its well-worn message: of embracing all the joy and sorrow that life has to offer, and acknowledging the corrupting influence of wealth and the superficiality of materialism, is given a wonderful new life.
In recent years, Disney has gone out of its way to tip the traditional damsel-in-distress princess figure on its head by introducing strong female characters and role models. However, Kaguya’s approach is more nuanced, befitting a heroine as playful and clever as the film she’s in. Takenoko works within her role to draw as much fun out of her life as she can, turning the tables on the many suitors seeking to win her hand and exposing their less-than-noble qualities in doing so. It serves as a welcome reminder that there are other non-Disney ways to approach such films, even though it takes a while to get there. Kaguya moves at a steady pace that drags its runtime over the two-hour mark, making it one of the studio’s longer offerings and sure to upset those not willing to sit in for the long haul.
However, it is easily one of animation’s greatest artistic achievements. Instead of opting for the traditional anime style or even for the plasticky 3D models of Western animation, Kaguya goes straight back to the drawing board, quite literally. Its world and characters are made by the textured strokes of a graphite pencil and gentle, almost minimalist watercolour that fades to nothing at the edges of the screen. At close glance, you can almost make out the rough texture of the paper or canvas underneath and in much the same way, the film pays homage to its roots in classic Japanese art. Every frame seems to have been meticulously hand-drawn over the course of several hours, taking a far subtler approach compared to the vibrant colours and loud noises of Spirited Away, though no less beautiful. The simplest of gestures, of someone brushing aside a curtain or tossing a cloth into a fire, are transformed into tiny moments of wonder; the cloth swirls as the fire crackles and the curtain becomes a rippling wave of colour as it’s pushed to one side. This stylistic art style stimulates your subconscious into filling in the blanks.
Kaguya serves as an elegant swansong for its late director; a masterwork that embraces its rich heritage and cultural roots to make a compelling argument for the cause of hand-drawn animation. The perfect addition to the Studio Ghibli roster, and perhaps the most unique.
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