Composite Score: 81.77

Starring: Hideaki Anno, Hidetoshi Nishijima, Miori Takimoto, Masahiko Nishimura, Stephen Alpert, Mirai Shida, and Jun Kunimura

Director: Hayao Miyazaki

Writer: Hayao Miyazaki

Genres: Animation, Drama, Romance, Biography, War

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some disturbing images and smoking

Box Office: $136.53 million worldwide

Why should you Watch This Film?

                Miyazaki takes a dip into the world of biopics with The Wind Rises, documenting the early life of Japanese plane designer, Jirô Horikoshi. Alongside the film’s historical and biographical information, Miyazaki also includes a homage to Japanese author Tatsuo Hori by weaving elements of Hori’s novel The Wind Has Risen into the story of Jirô’s life, creating a truly unique and wonderful biopic. By blending elements of history with fictional romance, Miyazaki presents a film that is worth watching again and again, full of emotion and fact, blending reality with fantasy into one fascinating story.

Why shouldn’t you Watch This Film?

                As an early-1900s Japanese plane maker, Jirô worked for the military that would eventually join the Axis powers as part of World War II and also with the Nazis in Germany. These aspects of the protagonist’s life are primarily hinted at, creating a mildly problematic middle portion in the film. By not engaging with the more authoritarian connections that Jirô made, the film does little to condemn those groups, which some viewers could take issue with. Obviously, Miyazaki stays true to form, condemning war in all its iterations, regardless of who carries it out. It seems more that there was a desire to stay away from the World War II connections not because of a desire to “both sides” the Holocaust or anything, more so that the film wants to be a character study and romance rather than just another World War II movie.

So wait, why should you Watch This Film?

                As both a biopic and romance, The Wind Rises succeeds magnificently. Biographically, the film presents the story of a relatively unknown character for most audiences in a way that makes him someone that you want to learn more about. The parts of the film that are truly biographical are predominantly true and crafted in such a way that Miyazaki’s passion for the subject shines through. At the same time, part of what makes The Wind Rises so great is its romance storyline, based on Hori’s novel. The love between Jirô and Naoko is genuine, and the tragedy that they experience together helps develop the story of the biography in a more interesting way than merely watching a guy design planes. The emotionality is needed to balance the film’s more pedantic moments. The Wind Rises is a delightful fantasy biography, artfully blending truth and fiction into one of the best animated films of the last ten years. Certainly, Miyazaki’s most recent feature film is deserving of its place among the Greatest Films of All Time. Go check it out on HBO Max when you get the chance.