By Timothy Lee

When it comes to the medium of animation, there are very few directors who make films as influential and creatively rich as Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki. Since his feature-length directorial debut, The Castle of Cagliostro, Miyazaki has consistently proven to be a masterful storyteller, wowing audiences with movies filled with creative and imaginative set pieces, characters, and worlds that are unlike anything else in both Japanese anime and Western animation. Miyazaki’s imagination and ambition have no limits, from the Ohms and the Dune-like setting of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind to the spiritual world and its inhabitants of Spirited Away. Each of his movies receives the same level of attention and detail, yet the result is a series of movies that feel distinct in tone, story, and thematic expression.

Even in 2023, Miyazaki’s voice as an artist has remained relevant and stood the test of time as his latest film, The Boy and the Heron, is receiving widespread attention and universal acclaim. It earned over 7 billion yen at the Japanese box office, tickets for the movie were consistently sold out at various film festivals, and its English dub cast includes a bevy of high-profile of A-list actors that include Christian Bale, Robert Pattinson, Florence Pugh, and Willem Dafoe. It is rare for an animation director to receive this much critical acclaim and respect, leaving many people wondering: how did all this happen? 

How did a man who has famously been attributed to the meme, “Anime was a mistake,” become one of the most beloved figures in the anime and film community? What makes Miyazaki’s movies so special that they are highly regarded both by young children and adults? What makes a Hayao Miyazaki movie a Hayao Miyazaki movie? While it is difficult to narrow it down to one simple answer, there are, however, three common factors that highlight why Hayao Miyazaki’s films remain popular and why they still matter today.

Miyazaki’s Movies Are Whimsical, Fantastical and Grounded in Reality

One of the main reasons why Miyazaki’s work is equally appealing to both children and adults is that his films create settings that manage to be both fantastical and grounded in reality. There are enough whimsical elements in all his movies that allow the audience to feel as if they are entering an entirely new world. Still, the whimsy never goes too far to the point that these worlds become over-the-top, slapstick cartoon settings. Each of Miyazaki’s films are influenced by real-life places, events, and even people, and the incorporation of these familiar elements ground many of the more fantastical elements, but never to the point that they are completely sucked out. Miyazaki always finds the perfect balance between fantasy and realism, and the results are movies that manage to feel like gateways into strange yet exciting worlds with imaginative set pieces while also feeling familiar and realistic enough that they never seem too foreign. It’s a happy middle ground and welcoming to all ages and demographics. 

One notable example of this balance is Laputa: Castle in the Sky, the very first Studio Ghibli movie. At its core, the movie is a pure, entertaining fantasy adventure filled with all sorts of cool attributes like floating castles, magic crystals, guardian robots, and Flaptors, which are flying machines that Dola and the pirates ride that look like something ripped straight out of Dune. However, the film is also heavily influenced by Welsh architecture and people as Laputa itself is influenced by castles in Wales and the miners and their homes in Castle in the Sky are heavily influenced by late 20th-century mining villages and miners in the country (via Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales). This blend of fantasy concepts and real-life influences creates a world that is both exciting and immersive but also serves as a tool that easily allows the audience to get attached to the characters. 

The world of Laputa: Castle in the Sky is incredibly detailed and extensive, and naturally, the audience wants to know more about this magical setting in the film. Therefore, viewers become attached to the characters because they serve as both stand-ins for the audience while also serving as their guide. The audience learns about the world of Laputa through Pazu and Sheeta’s perspective, so naturally, as they become attached to the film’s settings, they also become attached to the characters and their conflicts as well. When Miyazaki blends the mystical and the realistic, it’s in service of not just creating a unique setting but also interesting and sympathetic characters. This technique is not just applicable to Laputa: Castle in the Sky, as every single other entry in Miyazaki’s filmography succeeds at finding that balance. Even if some films lean heavily towards one side (i.e. Spirited Away leans more towards fantasy, and The Wind Rises is more grounded), no film is completely devoid of whimsicality or realism.

Miyazaki’s Movies Discuss Modern, Relevant Topics

Hayao Miyazaki is a lot of things, but being apolitical is not one of them. Miyazaki has never been shy about expressing his political beliefs. While he has given his thoughts about various topics, he is best known for being two things: a staunch environmentalist and an anti-war pacifist. These themes about war/violence and environmentalism are topics that are so important to Miyazaki that, in one way or another, they play a prevalent role in every single one of his films, even the more child-friendly works like My Neighbor Totoro and Ponyo. At the same time, though, it never feels like Miyazaki is a cranky old man who stands on top of a soapbox while shaking his fists against the sky because the themes are never prioritized over character and story. While subjects like environmentalism and pacificism may serve as jumping-off points, in the end, telling a compelling narrative is at the forefront of the film. At the same time, the exploration of these themes is merely a consequence of that compelling narrative. 

Unlike some other pro-environmental or anti-war films like Avatar or Hacksaw Ridge, which are so incredibly explicit and one-dimensional with their commentary that it feels like they’re forcing it down the audience’s throat, Miyazaki takes a more nuanced and complex approach when exploring similar themes. One of the best examples of this approach is in Princess Mononoke, arguably Miyazaki’s most poignant and effective story about environmentalism and warfare. While the film is about the violent struggle between nature and humanity, it never paints the conflict as black and white. Each side of the conflict is neither good nor bad, just beings trying to survive in a cruel, unforgiving world. Naturally, both the wolves and other animals of the forest and Lady Eboshi and the people of Irontown view each other as threats to their existence and their loved ones and will fight to the death if need be. 

What is incredibly brilliant about how Miyazaki explores environmentalism in Princess Mononoke is that he stresses just how important it is to protect the planet from pollution and climate change. If nothing is done to save the environment, it will not only put innocent lives in danger but also make the world a worse place to live. At the same time, though, the film also recognizes that the “polluters” aren’t moustache-twirling, Captain Planet villains. They are real people with real human struggles who do what they do not out of some absurd hatred for the environment but to provide for themselves and their families. The result is this incredibly complicated overview of the struggles of environmentalism: people recognize that saving the environment is important, but it’s an issue that requires real change and saving a few trees from being destroyed isn’t a long-term solution. 

This nuanced approach to both environmentalism and pacifism is not just applicable to Princess Mononoke as many of his other films, like Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, Porco Rosso, and The Wind Rises, have similar themes about one or both topics. In the end, though, as outspoken as Miyazaki is about his political beliefs, he is first and foremost a storyteller. Miyazaki is not a politician. He is an artist who uses his art to comment on current political issues, and in a year in which climate change and warfare are more relevant now than ever, people could surely use this artist’s wisdom.  

Miyazaki’s Movies Are Simply Fun, Comforting Forms of Escapism 

At the end of the day, though, while factors like worldbuilding, tone, and thematic expression are important qualities, the biggest reason why Miyazaki’s films remain popular and relevant to audiences today is that they’re simply good, entertaining movies. Every one of his films evokes a sense of warmth and comfort that is so inviting that whenever an audience watches one of them, it feels like they are being transported into a whole new world full of vibrant colors and beautiful moments. Miyazaki’s movies aren’t just entertaining films; they are beautiful forms of escapism, and that escapism is enhanced by both the beautiful animation and the fantastic music from legendary composer Joe Hisaishi. Hisaishi’s scores are just as many characters as the people and creatures who inhabit Miyazaki’s worlds. They are gorgeous-sounding pieces of music and help set the tone, presentation, and even characters in many of Miyazaki’s films. It is impossible to think about a single Miyazaki movie without their respective soundtracks. 

Another important factor that plays into the appealing nature of Miyazaki’s filmography is that all his films are essentially “vibe movies.” Miyazaki has little interest in writing complicated or multi-layered plots when crafting his stories. His films are incredibly simple and straightforward plot-wise, focusing instead on attributes more important to the man, like story, characters, and themes. This focus on creating a “just vibes” type of movie is what allows many of his films to feel so warm and welcoming in the first place. When audiences watch a Miyazaki film, they’re not viewing some multi-layered, complicated narrative with dozens of subplots like a Wachowski or Nolan film. They are watching a more focused, immersive experience where it feels like they are along for the ride, like a Linklater or Jarmusch film. 

It’s why whenever someone talks about one of Miyazaki’s films, they aren’t talking about what happens in the movie. They are talking about their emotions watching the movie, how much they loved or connected with the characters, and how well they could resonate with the film’s deep and mature themes. For example, Kiki’s Delivery Service is a fun, lighthearted adventure where audiences follow a young witch trying to run a delivery service while also being a mature and sincere commentary on writer’s block and when dreams/passion becomes work. Porco Rosso is an exciting adventure film about an ace fighter pilot turned bounty hunter who just happens to be an anthropomorphic pig suffering from the trauma and PTSD of serving in World War I. Howl’s Moving Castle follows a young hatmaker who turns into an old woman by a witch and lives in a robotic moving castle owned by a powerful wizard, all while exploring deep and personal themes like self-love and how war corrupts all. 

Miyazaki’s movies find that perfect balance between comforting, entertaining, and detailed explorations of important social and political issues; the result is truly special movies. Miyazaki’s films aren’t movies that can be explained away using Wikipedia or Explained videos/articles. They are immersive experiences that cannot be described in words.

At the end of the day, no number of words and sentences in this article can really break down just how magical and wonderful Hayao Miyazaki’s movies are. They need to be seen, preferably multiple times. While The Boy and the Heron has not been released in North America, it is already guaranteed to be another Miyazaki classic that will be almost unlike anything else released this year. On top of that, Studio Ghibli Vice President Junichi Nishioka announced that Miyazaki won’t be retiring and is already working on his next film. If that’s the case, it is exciting to know that the magic of Studio Ghibli won’t be coming to an end anytime soon.