Don't be fooled by the outward appearances of Princess Mononoke. Don't be fooled by the Studio Ghibli tag, or the Disney distribution, or its princess-fantasy genre, or the animated format. This is far from a kid-friendly film. It's intentionally paced (aka "slow), jarringly violent (decapitation, ripped-off limbs, intense physical transformations), and almost oppressively heavy in tone. It's also one of the most lush, colorful, and beautiful creations of Miyazaki's astounding career, combining his undeniable animation skill and boundless imagination with overwhelming success. Oddly enough, Mononoke isn't our protagonist here. Instead we follow Ashitaka, a recently cursed Prince who, in his search for a cure, finds himself mixed up in a battle for the future of the forest and its inhabitants, both animal and spiritual. Its effortless mixture of compelling story, well-placed humor, naturalism and fantasy is like great literature, only told with unspeakably perfect hand-drawn animation. Each cartoon cel and 2D creation is given its own character, style and care. Possessed-like apes with blurry skin. Cute but unsettling forest nymphs with Picasso-inspired faces. Snake-like demons drowning giant boars, personified wolves and blood-covered humans with chaotic precision. Not that its all style and no substance. Miyazaki and writer Neil Gaiman are running the gamut on thematic presence here, much of which will be familiar specifically in the bible belt. Fate versus chance, the relentless power of hatred, the danger of false prophets, the difficult power of choosing good, life springing up from death, the frustration inherent in being an ephemeral creature. It's all presented with a wonderous mystery, only suffering from moments of over-explanation. Princess Mononoke represents an entirely imaginative spirit rarely surpassed in storytelling.

Princess Mononoke was on may radar for some time before I first saw it. Hearing that it was a 'Miyazaki master piece' but not really knowing what to expect. However as I started to watch the opening of the film I could tell from the amazing musical score and the breathtaking animation that I was watching a truly captivating film. As the story progresses you get a more three dimensional look at the characters in the film looking from all points of view seeing whats everyone wants. In particular you get a good look at the main character Ashitaka(voiced by Billy Crudup) as he tries to stop a conflict between San(voiced by Claire Danes) ,a girl raised by wolves, who is helping lead the wolves and other Forrest creatures up against Lady Eboshi(voiced by Minnie Driver) the Head of a village who are gradually destroying the Forrest for the resources the land has.Compared to other films Princess Mononoke should rank among the best animated films as it have a level of grandness that could only be matched by films like The Lord of the rings. Over the years this film has also been compared with other anime films however this film has a completely different tone to most of them as you don't get a shonin vibe or a high school romance. Overall I think that This one of Miyazaki's best films and probably one of the greatest animated films ever. That's why I'm giving it a 9/10

Aside from it being the most beautiful film i've ever seen, it also has an enourmously powerful script.

This is for me the greatest anime movie ever. I love everything about it.