The Tale of the Princess Kaguya/Analysis

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The Arcadia lifestyle

It's clear that the film has quite an affinity for living In Harmony with Nature and the Arcadia lifestyle. This is demonstrated via the many shots which the film spends looking at greenery, distant hills, trees, or flowers. These shots empathize realistic movement and physics, aiming to immerse audiences within the film's world by bringing elements in from the real world. The film's minimalist art style strips out any unnecessary distractions, leaving behind only the most important details from reality. Audiences are immersed into the film because they can clearly see elements from their world, making the film feel believable, real, and lived in. In addition, the stripping out of all but the most necessary information means that audiences have less to be distracted with, and that they can focus on what the filmmaker wants them to focus on. The result of this immersion, combined with the frequency and detail of the shots, is the romanticism of forests and the wildlife. It makes wildlife seem appealing, allowing audiences to understand Princess Kaguya's motives, and why she wishes to return to the forests.

A conflict is introduced when Princess Kaguya is forced to move into the capital by her parents. This results in an internal conflict where Princess Kaguya wants to enjoy Ghibli Hills and playing in the forest, but her status and expectation as a member of royalty prohibits her from doing so. Thus begins her process of being a Rebellious Princess, where the Princess does not do what she is told, choosing to play around and have fun instead of attending to the customs of the nobility. While she is initially amused by her new home, being forced to observe the customs of princesses gets to her. This is evident by how she refuses to paint her teeth black, or to pull her eyelashes out, and in how she struggles to focus on the lessons delivered to her. Unlike the depiction of nature, royal life is depicted as artificial and contrived, where people are forced to adhere to traditions, with little free will. The interesting shots of nature are now gone, removing a source of peace and serenity in the film. All of these factors establish the inferiority of life as a princess compared to life as a humble bamboo cutter's daughter.

Given that nature is established as a romantic and positive force, contrasting with the contrived nature of royalty, the film communicates Princess Kaguya's motivation for running away, and wishing to return to nature. Thus, the film allows audiences to understand her motivation when she runs away with Sutemaru. The joys of returning to nature is portrayed as pure euphoria, as the two characters are shown to be flying through the landscape, reflective of their action of running away, as well as their happiness.

The aforementioned scene, however, is tragic due to the knowledge that Princess Kaguya will have to return to the Moon eventually, adding a layer of sadness to the scene as audiences know that this is only temporary. Whereas in the capital, there is at least the opportunity to enjoy cherry blossoms or run into the surrounding forests, on the Moon there is nothing. The only constant is the white colour of the surface, and not a hint of green is present. Arcadia is established to be a pleasant lifestyle, and the film shows that this is what Princess Kaguya wants. Thus, the eventual return to the Moon is made more tragic once audiences realize what Princess Kaguya is leaving behind.

Leitmotifs and Music

The film makes heavy use of a Leitmotif. The theme associated with Princess Kaguya is the first thing audiences hear, where a slow version of it plays over the opening credits in the form of the song "Overture". It could be best heard in the song "Koto Melody", used later on. The theme is then embedded into the audiences' mind. Due to the quiet volume and slow tempo used in this first hearing, however, it is unlikely that audience members will remember this motif, but the purpose here is to make audiences subconsciously familiar with the motif. Princess Kaguya herself is familiar with this motif in the film's universe, and frequently sings or plays it over the course of the film.

One scene where this is done is when the children, including Princess Kaguya and Sutemaru, are singing and walking around the countryside. During this, the wonders of the natural world is established as the lyrics talk about nature. Most importantly, it provides Princess Kaguya with ties back to nature, and this song represents her desires and belief to be with nature, keeping in line with the Arcadia analysis above. The simplicity of the song here, as only a small group of children are singing, with no accompanying backing tracks, combined with a stronger emphasis on melody means that the melody is memorable to audiences. The opening makes audiences familiar with it; the children singing makes audiences know it.

Thus, a thread throughout the film is established. Audiences know that the song represents Princess Kaguya's desire to return to nature. Every time the motif is played, it is haunting due to the memorability and simplicity of the motif, as well as what it represents.

The film has a book end with the soundtrack, starting and ending with the same motif, although the version used in the ending is in the minor key instead of major, and is thus considerably sadder. This melancholic version is reflective of what is going on: Princess Kaguya is being taken away to the Moon, away from the joys of life on Earth. The book end makes the theme more haunting and familiar as it mirrors its usage in the opening sequence, but its minor key and small changes to the melody adds a new depth of emotion to the song, evoking a sharper emotional response.

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