Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

After falling in love with My Neighbour Totoro by this same anime director, I decided to see if Nausicaa is just as great. And it is, but in a totally different way. It requires some fantasy on the viewer's part, and has a steampunk sciencefiction backstory, which will make it less approachable to some viewers. This imaginary world dragged me into an epic struggle, where a young girl is forced to chose between her friends or her passion, between fighting or surrendering and between her country or her life. (For connaisseurs: it's like Dune). A wild ride follows where the girl finds her way and I was on the edge of my seat. At times the message to follow your heart, be eco and 'make love not war' was a bit overdone, but this epic story was so exciting and delivered that message so strongly that it deserved to be a bit preachy. Amazing imaginary world crafting, beautifully drawn, a powerful message and just a great story. It sucked me right in and I'll be watching this over and over.

Watched this movie in 2024, a time when global warming is a major issue and gaining more attention. Miyazaki envisioned and warned us 40 years ago about the worsening destruction of nature and the interconnectedness of humans and the Earth through a beautifully animated film.