37 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
We desperately need a new English version of this great film, May 8, 2003
This review is from: Warriors of the Wind [VHS] (VHS Tape)
The five star rating is not for the English language version of this film, but for the original though subtitled Japanese version. My hope is that with the Oscar that SPIRITED AWAY won, following the enormous success of PRINCESS MONONOKE, Disney will bring out a new and unbutchered version of this great, great Miyazaki classic.
Hayao Miyazaki may finally be on the verge of being commonly recognized in the United States as the world's greatest animator. For years I have been hawking his genius to friends and acquaintances, few of whom recognized his name. Several knew MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO or KIKI'S DELIVERY SERVICE, but were unaware that they were by the same person. But with the growing realization in America that all these great, great films, far surpassing the entire output of Disney in quality and originality, are all by the same creative genius, Miyazaki is finally getting the recognition that he truly deserves.
NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND, to give WARRIORS OF THE WIND its proper title, is one of Miyazaki's greatest films, and one that shows most clearly his preoccupation with ecological concerns (the butchered American version eliminates much of this). As in all of his films, the quality of the animation is scarcely to be believed. The only non-Miyazaki film that renders trees and forests as well is the opening sequences of BAMBI. And as in most of his films, Miyazaki, unlike the Disney habit of almost always updating some classic tale, creates a completely original and previously untold story. He is not merely a cartoonish: he is an original storyteller.
Even in its heavily edited American form, WARRIORS OF THE WIND retains a degree of the power of NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND. When my daughter was in kindergarten, at a time when she was acutely aware of a paucity of strong female role models, she would watch this film over and over. Two movies seems to provide her with better female role models than any others, this film and THE JOURNEY OF NATTY GANN. Many other movies delighted her, but these two made her feel that the world was a place for girls who with things they wanted to accomplish as well, that women, and not only men and boys, could be heroes as well.
With such Miyazaki films as CASTLE IN THE SKY and KIKI'S DELIVERY SERVICE getting a first rate release on DVD in the US, one can hope that NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND wouldn't be far behind. The big difference between those films and the latter is that they were not especially altered when first produced in English version, while NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND was dramatically altered. For a new dubbed version, Disney will need to first restore all of the cut scenes from the American original, and then produce a new soundtrack. In other words, bringing NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND to the American market anew will require more work than on any of Miyazaki's other films. But the work will definitely need to be justified by the produce, which is one of Miyazaki's finest films. I wonder if before bringing it out on DVD, they might not bring a newly reproduced film to theaters first. Whatever their decision, there does seem to be significant reason for optimism that we might finally get the opportunity to hear and see this film in the way that Miyazaki wanted us to see it.
FEBRUARY 2005 addition: We got it! In the ongoing rerelease of all of Miyazaki's films on DVD, this one has been fully restored and redubbed. I just ordered my copy!
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22 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
US Studio Does Nausicaa Terrible Injustice, February 9, 2001
By A Customer
This review is from: Warriors of the Wind [VHS] (VHS Tape)
I saw 'Warriors of the Wind' and felt it was an amazing film. Then I saw the original, uncut 'Kaze no Tani no Naushika' and thought, my god - what had they done. This is a landmark film that cannot truely be appreciated in its edited version. New World Pictures felt it could only be marketed as a kid's action movie, so they cut out about a quarter of the movie (the parts they felt were "slow moving") and garbled the storyline in the process. [Writer/Director] Miyazaki was horrified when he found out what they had done to his film, and Ghibli [studios] asks everyone to forget that this version ever existed. Fortunately, New World Video's rights to Nausicaä expired in 1995. The distribution rights are now held by Disney, who did a nice job on 'Princes Mononoke'. One can only hope they will do as well with Nausicaä.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good, but not as good as the original, November 24, 2002
This review is from: Warriors of the Wind [VHS] (VHS Tape)
As others have mentioned, Warriors of the Wind is a shortened version of Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind. I have both versions of this movie on VHS, & even though I grew up loving Warriors, once I saw Nausicaa, I knew I had been robbed of seeing a great movie all my life. Nausicaa contains scenes that were cut, for whatever reason from Warriors. I was in shock when I saw the complete version last year, because I never knew that there was so much I had never seen. If you really want to enjoy this film, I strongly urge you to get Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind. I know that Ebay has at least one full page of Hayao Miyazaki auctions, not only for Nausicaa. I own several of his titles, & I have not been disappointed yet.
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