One instance I thought this was that in the film, only san and ashitaka's hair are animated. Everyone else's are not. This makes them stick out against the other characters but also plays at the japanese sensibility of moving hair (seen recently in video games and anime) I wonder whether this aesthetic is something inherent in those with a Japanese background. I myself find moving hair attractive and identify myself with it, but why?
Thursday, April 1, 2010
#8
Watching princess mononoke is an interesting experience for me because it is apparent that it takes place in japan but nevertheless not a specific time or place. Even in this ambiguity however, there is a definite "japanese-ness" to both the story, characters, and nuances. In thinking further about these such nuances, especially those linked to a certain common history or lineage, I wonder which came first. Much like the question of whether the egg or the hen came first, I think this nuance is a matter like that. I am unsure whether a group of people had a common nuance which then became a symbolic representation of the values of that group, or if there was something inherent in this particular grouping of individuals that made them prone to a certain type of aesthetic.
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whoa I never noticed the moving hair thing. That's a great observation. I'll have to go back and see. Maybe it's a clever subconscious technique. They have moving hair and therefore I somehow I identify with them better because they are more lifelike.
ReplyDeleteCool cool.
I don't think many of us noticed their hair moving; i think it's something that you take for granted in real life as well as in films (anime or not). But I guess the obvious reason for animating Ashitaka's and San's hair is that they are the main characters, and do every character's hair would be too much work.
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