Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (風の谷のナウシカ, 1984) by Miyazaki Hayao

Post By: Patrick Harris

Film analysis can be a valuable tool to not only break down films and understand more deeply the meanings that they carry but it can also be a valuable tool into understanding cultural concepts as well. Many Shinto concepts are incorporated into the film Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind and we will look to analyze these concepts as well as how they are portrayed in the movie through cinematic effects.  In this animated classic Miyazaki introduces Shinto ideas like purity, harmony with nature, as well as merging the natural world and human through various cinematic techniques including frame-within-frame shots, long shots, pans, tilts and other compositional and cinematic elements.

The Film Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind takes place a thousand years after the collapse of industrialized civilization. Much of the world has been overrun by a toxic jungle, which continues to spread everyday. Nestled safely in the valley of the wind the princess Nausicaa and the small kingdom she lives in have managed to stay away from the toxins that cover the land. She and the people of the valley understand the need to live in harmony with nature and have learned that it is really the humans who are the cause of the toxic forests and that the trees of the forest actually purify the water and soil. The animals of the forest are there to protect it from the humans. One day the Tolmekians, a war-hungry people, come to the valley of the wind promising to unite their kingdoms in peace and destroy the toxic jungle along with all of the creatures that live in it. Another group of people the, Pegites, would do anything to stop the Tolmekians including angering the animals of the forest into attacking them. Nausicaa finds herself in the middle of a war between these Tolmekians, their Giant Warrior and the Ohms who have all been stirred up in anger against the humans. In the end Nausicaa puts her life on the line and sacrifices herself to stop the fighting. Her sacrifice calms the rage of the Ohm, stops the war and brings peace and safety to the valley.

This film can be looked at in many different ways but by viewing the film through a cultural scope we can see many some of the most important cultural values in a film. Much like Princess Mononoke this film exhibits many characteristics of Shintoism and carries that theme throughout the movie. One theme in particular that is important in the film is the idea of peace and harmony between nature and humans. 

  The people of the valley of the wind and especially Nausicaa have built their way of life around living in harmony with nature even though at times the toxic jungle may seem threatening.  Other peoples including the Tolmekians and the Pegites however are unable to recognize this relationship and so Nausicaa is portrayed as the protector of nature and seeks harmony between nature and humans.  Not only is Nausicaa portrayed as a protector of nature but the composition of many of the shots shows her as the only one who truly understands and is in tune with nature.  Many long shots show Nausicaa surrouded by nature and in some of these shots she is even wearing the same color as the backgroud. This compositional symbolism helps show that she has achieved harmony between her and nature. 

Another way in which the film shows aspects of Shintoism is through its many shots that attempt to merge the natural world and the human world. In one of these shots the camera starts off showing the tops of trees and then tilts down slowly to show Nausicaa walking at the base of the tree to show this blending of the natural and the human worlds. In other shots (like the clip above) it pans from one side to another going from a human element to something more natural. One scene at the beginning of the film (shown in the picture below) shows the blending of the human and natural worlds by taking a shot of the village and zooming out to show that it is surrounded by mountains on all sides. These mountains help provide a frame-within-frame view of the town and show how this town is not only in harmony with nature but also the merging of those two worlds.

Along with harmony with nature the Shinto idea of purity and impurity play a big role in this film as well. The toxic jungle is portrayed as a major source of impurity and pollution to those that don’t understand it. So while the toxic jungle is portrayed as a major threat and a source of pollution to the Tolmekians and the Pegites it seams less much threatening to Nausicaa and those who do not understand the relationship between human and nature. The threat of the jungle becomes even less to Nausicaa when she learns that the forest actually plays a major role in the purification process of the land.

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind along with containing many shinto elements also contains many characteristics that can be seen within Japanese cinema in general.  Nausicaa fits within the cultural trend of having a Shojo or female adolescent as the main character in the story. Having a female as the main character often allows for these characters to take part in a more liminal story as they are already in a liminal part of their life.  This seems especially appropriate in this story as Nausicaa is a character seeking to connect the human and natural worlds. As a Shojo Nausicaa takes on the classic fighting girl archtype often seen in Japanese cinema. She not only fights others physically as seen in many of the scenes of the movie but she is also fighting for a cause that she believes in; the protection of her people and their harmony with nature.

This film’s portrayal through a variety of cinematic effects of Shinto values such as harmony with nature, merging the natural and human worlds, as well as purity and impurity allows for a unique view of Japanese culture through the scope of a distinctly Japanese animated film.