In the Anglosphere in general, the Nausicaä feature is broadly viewed as “that one Ghibli movie that’s not a really a Ghibli movie that I did not enjoy as much as Princess Mononoke, a film with similar themes”.
I think Nausicaä’s reputation in the West is less that of a highly influential work and more a sacrificial talking piece for anti-dubbing and localization discussion, because of Warriors and the Suzuki katana fluff piece. Let’s face it, that’s what generates noticeable engagement.
It’s not that Nausicaä isn’t a hugely popular or highly regarded work, but, overwhelmingly, that is what the focus is on. The studio-spun myth that these smart Japanese men put their foot down in a crusade against international compromise.
At best, it is viewed as a work that inspired others (mainly visually), rather than a great work itself. It has little of the cozy hallmarks of other works. While other Miyazaki works tackle similar mature themes, they are permeated by visual superficialities centered in beauty.
This creates an opposite problem, where Nausicaä is repeatedly presented as a case study for Miyazaki works not being devoid of conflict. “See, there’s war and strife and the protagonist intentionally murders several people.” etc., when the work, obviously entails more.
People like to dwell endlessly on the anti-war and ecological themes, when the greatest challenges Nausicaä, an intelligent young woman faces, is willful ignorance from her seniors, often men of authority, including her own father, who believes in foregone dogma until his end.
Kurotowa taken back by her ferocity aside, there are no overt “but you’re only a girl” exchanges in the film; that is left in the pages of the manga. It is the more subtly judgmental, invisible kind Nausicaä faces. If you know, you know.
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