 How does the author feel about Princess Mononoke?
The Japanese director, Hayao Miyazaki, who spent three years on Princess Mononoke and is reported to have done 70 percent of its paintings himself, seems to work from the outside in: to begin with the curve of the earth, then the mossy hills, the watercolor foliage, the nubby stones, the whorls on the wood, the meticulous carvings on a teacup. But then, "soft" is not a word you can apply to Princess Mononoke , however pantheistic its worldview. Watching Princess Mononoke --which has been dubbed to Disney/Miramax specifications by American and English stars but retains its two-hour-plus length, its gory beheadings, and its grim, near-apocalyptic finale--you can understand their worship.
 It is a world that draws you in and takes your breath away. The only distraction is poor voice casting.
 It is wonderfully strange.  It is a world that draws you in and takes your breath away. The only distraction is poor voice casting.  It is a powerful vision of the apocalypse.  It is technically dazzling.