Product Description

For the first time ever, the magic of Blu-ray high definition reveals the exquisite details in Hayao Miyazaki's epic masterpiece, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind.

Experience the film that launched the Academy Award winning career (2002 for best animated feature, Spirited Away) of one of the most celebrated filmmakers in the history of animation.

After a global war, the seaside kingdom known as the Valley of the Wind remains one of the last strongholds on Earth, untouched by a poisonous jungle and the powerful insects that guard it. Led by the courageous Princess Nausicaa, the people of the Valley engage in an epic struggle to restore the bond between humanity and Earth.

Like Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away and Ponyo, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind will dazzle your senses with its intracately imagined storytelling and stunning aniimation now more spectacular than ever on Blu-ray.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #586 in DVD
• Released on: 2011-03-08
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Format: Multiple Formats
• Original language: Japanese, English, French
• Subtitled in: English, French
• Dubbed in: French, Japanese
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .40 pounds
• Running time: 118 minutes

Amazon.com
Hayao Miyazaki gained widespread attention in Japan for his complex ecological manga series, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1982), which he adapted for the screen two years later. One thousand years after a war devastated much of the Earth, humanity clings to existence at the fringes of a vast, polluted forest inhabited by monstrous insects. Only Nausicaä, the princess of the tiny realm of the Valley of the Wind, grasps the environmental significance of the forest. She sees beyond petty wars and national rivalries to the only viable future for the planet. In Nausicaä, Miyazaki began to explore elements he would develop more fully in his later films: daring, compassionate heroines; exciting flying sequences; colorful side characters; strong interpersonal relationships; and a call for an ecologically sustainable way of life. Nausicaä prefigures Sheeta in Castle in the Sky and Chihiro in Spirited Away, just as the rough and ready Asbel anticipates Pazu in Castle in the Sky and Ashitaka in Princess Mononoke. For years, Nausicaä was available in the United States only as the badly re-edited Warriors of the Wind. The new English dub from Disney presents the film in its entirety, with strong vocal performances by Uma Thurman, Patrick Stewart, Alison Lohman, and Edward James Olmos. (Rated PG: violence, frightening imagery) --Charles Solomon

Also on the Disc
The clarity of the Blu-ray format heightens the power and beauty of Hayao Miyazaki's striking ecological fable. A notable extra is "Behind the Studio," a short documentary that features composer Joe Hisaishi, studio executive Toshio Suzuki, and director Miyazaki (as well as this writer) discussing the making and significance of Nausicaä. "Enter the Lands" offers trailers of some of the Ghibli films and short descriptions of the main characters, but the map is rather tricky to navigate. Miyazaki's storyboards, timed to the soundtrack, were included in the previous release. Fans of Miyazaki's extraordinary films will want this Blu-ray for their libraries. (Rated PG: some scary imagery) --Charles Solomon