By Sophie Kilbride
Opinion Editor
From forest spirits based on Japanese Kodama gods to a giant ethereal nightwalker, Studio Ghibli’s “Princess Mononoke” is a dazzling film silhouetted by sparkling leaves falling from the branches of lush jungle trees and wild animal deities.
Released in 1997, “Princess Mononoke” follows the journey of young Prince Ashitaka, who embarks on a quest west to find a cure for a strange curse inflicted upon him by a demon boar god.
Academy Award-winning Hayao Miyazaki, known for his mystical animated landscapes with sprawling countrysides and rolling fields, directed the film.
Now nearly three decades old, “Princess Mononoke” offers Western audiences powerful messages about the relationship between humans and the natural world, capitalism, and consumer greed.
As January looms closer, so does Donald Trump’s second presidential inauguration. Many environmentally-conscious Americans are worried about the former president’s plans regarding U.S. environmental policies upon his foray back into the White House — and they should be.
Trump’s environmental strategy aims to boost U.S. economic growth regardless of the harm those policies will leave behind. This strategy is echoed in “Princess Mononoke” when the harmony between humans, animals, and gods begins to descend into chaos after humans begin desolating the earth.
In the film, Prince Ashitaka stumbles into the Cedar Forest, whose inhabitants — apes, boars, deers, wolves, — are kept alive by The Forest Spirit, the god of life and death.
While Miyazaki represents the natural world with vibrant and playful colors, the human world is marked by dark gray and black tones. When Prince Ashitaka stumbles out of the forest, whose aura is deeply layered with mystery and the hum of ancient magic, he confronts a tragic sight: the human world in turmoil.
The prosperous Irontown, run by the enigmatic Lady Eboshi, lies just beyond the edges of the Cedar Forest. In many ways, Irontown resembles Trump’s plans for the United States regarding the economy and the environment.
While the townfolk loves Lady Eboshi, her ambitious goals disrupt the fabric of the natural world. She destroys miles of magical forest, which causes deadly floods in neighboring villages and the mass death of creatures and animal gods.
Eboshi believes she is doing the right thing for her people; to her, progress is progress regardless of the consequences.
Despite its release in 1997, Miyazaki’s grim images of humanity in “Princess Mononoke” still resonate with today’s audiences. Lady Eboshi’s actions throughout the film cause audiences to realize how little society has really progressed or changed.
According to NPR, in early November, Trump nominated former New York congressman Lee Zeldin to run the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Zeldin lacks a substantial background on environmental and energy issues and has historically voted against environmental legislation.
According to Reuters, over his eight years in Congress, “Zeldin cast ‘yes’ votes on key pieces of environmental legislation just 14% of the time,” which is concerning considering he will be making critical decisions about the water Americans drink, the air they breathe, and hazardous environmental health issues that affect them.
Moreover, Trump and Zeldin have promised to impose severe deregulatory policies on pollution and fossil fuel production from American businesses and industries.
“I am announcing today that when I return to the White House, I will end this anti-American-energy crusade,” Trump said during his campaign in response to Biden’s new rules to cut planet-warming emissions and toxic pollution from power plants.
With Trump’s anti-environmental agenda in mind, Miyazaki’s messages in “Princess Mononoke” remain powerful and urgent.
Lady Eboshi, despite her honorable intentions, shoots the Forest Spirit, causing the lives of everything it touches to wither and decay. As mass destruction and death plague the land, Ashitaka and Princess Mononoke must search for a way to restore peace.
Irontown’s unregulated production operations lead to the suffering of adjacent communities, such as farmers, fishermen, and merchants. Eboshi even drops bombs on the forest’s boar population to prevent them from hunting Irontown’s cattle, hiding this from her townsfolk.
Finally, groups of samurai continuously attack Irontown in vengeance for the pollution and death created by Irontown’s economy, whom Eboshi slaughters with poisonous guns.
Despite its many tragedies, the film’s ending is hopeful.
“Someone bring Ashitaka. I want to thank him. We’ll start over again. We’ll build a good village,” Eboshi says at the end of “Princess Mononoke.”
Throughout his career, Miyazaki has created art in response to environmental issues. Today, his lessons on the balance between humanity and nature remain crucial.
“I am much more attracted to the idea of preserving the forests… not for the sake of humans, but because they themselves are alive,” Miyazaki said in promotional material for a 2006 short film.
As U.S. governmental power shifts hands in 2025, “Princess Mononoke”’s warnings against human desire for power are crucial. Prince Ashitaka’s careful balance between the human and natural world illustrates the beauty of coexistence to audiences.
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
Photo Caption: Hayao Miyazaki’s most recent 2023 film won an Academy Award.