Arguably, some of the best and most stunning animation ever made has been created through Studio Ghibli... other than the stunning brilliance of the animation, I would like to note key points in a few of his movies that make them something to be honored on this blog. Generally speaking, the movies Miyazaki creates have strong, independent, compassionate, and understanding male and female characters. There are no differences in gender hierarchy. Both genders help fuel the story in positive ways and impact each other's lives harmoniously for the better.
"My Neighbor Totoro" (1988): A positive father-friendly image of a family. From my understanding, it is generally the mother that has to struggle with raising children in most movies and plot lines. Here, the father takes care of his two daughters while awaiting his wife (who is suffering from a disease) to return from the hospital. He is the epitome of a great father, a very patient and understanding man who loves his children.
"Princess Mononoke" (1997): The story centers on two people equally: a very kind-hearted, logical boy: Ashitaka, who provides balance to a chaotic world by seeing 'through eyes unclouded by hate', and San: a girl raised by wolves and defends the forest. Both of them are strong independent people, who need each other to help unify the two feuding places of the forest and Iron Town. In the end, forest/wolf-raised San and village/human raised Ashitaka recognize their differences and their love for each other. Instead of one leaving the world in which they are comfortable in (forest/village), they choose to exist separately, San in the forest, and Ashitaka in Iron Town. They declare to meet each other when they have spare time. If only Disney's "The Little Mermaid" could have turned out that way... without all the unnecessary sacrifices... ;)
There are others that are equally as wonderful (Spirited Away, Laputa: Castle in the Sky, Howl's Moving Castle, Kiki's Delivery Service, etc.) but the two above are the most mentionable. However, in all of Hayao Miyazaki's movies, both the female and male character help each other grow and change positively. They are definitely worth checking out!
