Amazing breakdown! Thank you so much! So many Japanese people think Japan is a single-race county and abandoning the existence of other races. Not just Emishi, Ainu, and Ryūkyūans but more, all the Korean Japanese people and people with different ethnicity who are born and raised in Japan. And some people still see them as "foreigners" especially if they don't look like a typical east Asian. it's probably not as bad as 10-20 years ago but still, some people don't realize how diverse Japan is. Thank you so much. the video made me realize again how good Studio Ghibli movies are and how good Lady Eboshi's character is.
Actually, since the word comes from an italian airplane that was named after an italian (and I think also arabic?) word, its true pronunciation is with the hard G. Miyazaki has admited that he mispronounced the word by pronouncing it "Jiburi" instead of doing it with the hard G, but the Japanese pronunciation stayed like that because it was already popular. Anyway, this video was really enjoyable.
God I’m absolutely obsessed with your channel rn!! Idk love to see you talk about the clothing in the 2008 speed racer movie! I think it’s weirdly unique!
Mina!!! thank you making a good interpretation of 2 of my favourite Ghibli movies!!! you totally make me appreciate this work of art more!!! Love you!!💧💜
Love it! I’ve been watching videos that dive deep into the meaning of these movies and I loved them but they didn’t analyze the clothing. Thank you for making this video 💕
what do you think is the meaning of ashitaka’s necklace ? its originally given to him by his sister but then he gifts it to san… she even wears it in battle. do you know what kind of “rock” it is/ if it comes from a specific part of japanese culture ?
When you mentioned the Sukan being traditionally white tops and red bottoms my immediate thought was that sounds a lot like what Kikyo from InuYasha wears, but later you mentioned the Miko being a garment for shrine maidens and realized her outfit was likely based on that. Would you ever consider doing a clothing analysis of the major InuYasha characters, or even a shorter video on InuYasha’s Robe of the Fire Rat? I’ve heard that that specific garment has mythical significance in Japanese history but don’t know the details. Loved the video though!
There's nothing wrong with the English dub >:( Also I love Miyazaki so much, I love your analysis of the costuming and the historical research you did. thank you!!!
This was so fun! Ive noticed going between subs and dubs that in dubs for ghibli films the soundtracks are slightly changed, they sound watered down and westernized. I noticed it with totoro, castle in the sky and mononoke where they basically took out some parts of songs that are clearly japanese or just non western. I noticed it when watching them on disney+ F you disney! why must you whitewash everything.
That's fascinating, I had no idea about the inspiration for the characters in Princess Mononoke. That's so interesting. :3 (Also, glad to hear I'm pronouncing Studio Ghibli correctly ;P ) (Also also, WHY am I not subscribed to you already? I rectified that while watching, but still... shame on me.)
I love this! Also are you familiar with films by Pedro Almodóvar? they have very interesting and unique style and it would be an interesting subject as well, I think.
Hi! First of all, absolutely love the breakdowns you gave in this video-- as someone that digs around character designs to figure out where the various elements of a design come from and what sort of meaning that gives to the design as a whole, this video is absolutely rad I had a quick question for you-- I'm not sure if you'll even see this buried in the thousands of comments already on this video, or if you'll even have an answer almost half a year after posting this video, but I wanted to poke further about the 'morokode' mentioned in this video. Do you happen to remember where you learned about it? I've tried poking around google and, not going to lie, most research results end up giving me answers such as 1. people mentioning the name of it, but either not sourcing where they heard the information or linking back to this video (which, rad!) 2. information about various other versions of kote, though all of those were garments worn over kimono as opposed to the sort that ashitaka wears under. this has been a weird chase for me ngl, as I've seen examples from other character designs having this under-kimono kote but nobody ever giving it a name (other than 長手甲, which isn't really an official term as it is a descriptive one) Thanks for reading if you have! And if you don't have an answer, totally no worries. Have a good one 🤘
Yubaba and Zeniba’s design was heavily influenced by the illustrations John Tenniel provided Lewis Carroll for Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, particularly those of the character of the Duchess, who has this absurdly overgrown head and tiny bodily proportions. It’s interesting to compare the parallels between Alice and Chihiro - both spirited away and held accountable to women in positions of power .. I guess the inspiration from Tenniel is another western nod from Miyazaki for Yubaba’s character!
I know it might dislike u the sexualisation on Lady Dimitrescut but can u talk about Resident evil 8 it self, i think is pretty interesting the scenarios and clothing of all caracters
As an american, learning some of the historical context in miyazaki’s films seriously enriches my understanding of their themes. Elements like this are almost always overlooked in video essays but they add so much to the story. Thank you Mina, every time I see you’ve uploaded I know I’m in for a treat ♡
I always viewed Chihiro’s characterization a little differently- not as whiny or lazy, but extremely anxious and resistant to change. I think her clothes sort of subtly reflect this by being oversized, emphasizing how small and overwhelmed she feels at the beginning. In the end, I think the hair tie can also represent her newfound bravery. Although she leaves in the same clothes that she started in, her hair tie serves as symbol for the audience that the character growth she experienced won’t be forgotten.
Yes!!! I agree. I never saw the dub and it’s been well over a decade since I saw it, but I remember Chihiro and her parents were moving. I think she was bummed about changing schools because her mom was mentioning making new friends.
I agree with this we may not see much of a physical change in Chihiro's character but it is the change within that is envoked by the end of the film when she wears that hairtie. To me it carries not only the symbol of her experiences in the Spirit World but also holds close to her all the close relationships/friendships and bonds she made with the different people, animals haha and creatures/beings (No Face) she met in the Spirit World
Studio ghibli has such a soft and beautiful aesthetic, i think the better word to describe ut is… peaceful. The music, the colors, the art style and the narrative are so gorgeous and I love everything about it.
I use the soundtracks from Studio Ghibli films to study to-they’re so chill and unobtrusive and really don’t distract, but create a kind of quiet focus for me.
That claim is truth for films like Spirited Away, Kiki's Delivery Service and Howl's Moving Castle. But Princess Mononoke on the other hand was such a tough watch, it hurt me so much seeing the humans destroy the fotest with no regards for the creatures living there 😭😭😭
Yes, I believe this was done intentionally to place emphasis on the little things in life- almost as a way of romanticizing everyday life. Such as the excitement you get from looking at a delicious meal- ghibli does a fantastic job at bringing these features to the forefront of their movies.
@@luismarioguerrerosanchez4747 i agree, but although the message and some images are kind of harsh, the movie still manages to have beautiful moments with amazing music and views, especially wen they’re in the forest
I like the fact that most ghibli movies don’t have a “villain”, like maybe an antagonist but not so much a villain, no one is inherently evil without explanation like in other children movies
yeah, they show both characters in a sympathetic light, WHILST still condemming them for evil actions. It teaches kids that you can have compassion and understand WHY someone did something bad/evil, without excusing their actions and letting them be free of consequence. I love it
I think this is a western thing. I'm taking Script classes and while analyzing movies, our teacher told us and I quote, that a lot of our antagonists should be "unstoppable nature strengths "
I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on Howl’s Moving Castle, and it’s semi- Edwardian/ Steampunk aesthetic. I love Kiki’s Delivery Service and My Neighbor Totoro, but I guess they aren’t as good for fashion critique.
@@romipiratería Same! When she listed the films I kind of expected her to do a Ghibli trilogy of Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, and Howl’s- the three films that I think are well suited/ rich for costume analysis.
ahhh Kiki’s delivery service and my neighbor totoro are my childhood favorites🥲 I have such fond memories of watching them, the amount of comfort and nostalgia I feel from just thinking about it is immense honestly. And Howl’s moving castle I’ve watched for the first time quite recently and I’m in love it’s so good💔
Both pronunciations are technically correct! The original word that was used for the name of the studio (which is Italian) is pronounced with a hard G, but the japanese pronunciation is with a soft G, so both are correct
@@nina5drioli The studios not italian bit the creator loves planes and so named it after an Italian plane nicknamed ghibli (the inspiration for the plane name was the libiyan arabic word ghibli but thats as far as ill go)
The opposite happened to me agdjs. I was SO jealous of them eating all that tasty food like I was ready to risk it all. Turning to a pig is 100% worth it.
i genuinely don’t think enough people talk about and appreciate the music in these movies. the soundtracks give the movies (and me) life. like damn props to who wrote the pieces, i love them so much.
I think almost every Ghibli movie directed by Hayao had the music composed by Joe Hisaishi. His work is phenomenal! There's a Studio Ghibli's 25th birthday concert on RU-vid.
Everyone mentions the music when talking about Ghibli’s films, it’s a huge part of what makes them special. Hell, even the channel Sideways made a video about it quite a while ago.
joe hisaishi is so talented, i was happy to know that even the ni no kuni games that ghibli worked on included music by him! being able to just run around the world and listen to ghibli music is just aaaaa lovely.
I don't agree, a lot of people love the music, there are so many covers on the internet and lots of playlist just of ghibli music. The composer for (at least most of) these films, Joe Hisahishi is extremely famous and beloved.
Ghibli movies do such a great job at world building. I remember the first time I watched Howl's Moving Castle I immediately thought "this movie is set in Germany" just based on the architecture alone. A few minutes further into the movie there are posters in German confirming this. Even though the worlds of Ghibli movies are almost always fantastical, there are always enough real world details that make them feel like they could actually exist.
it’s interesting you thought so because the book it’s based on is from an English writer Diana W. Jones. and to me (in the books that is) it seems like the fictional world is more like 19th century England than Germany. but in the movie it really is very similar to Germany and the during the First World War. also, fun fact. the war is not a very prominent plot line in the book. it’s more focused on the magic and its characters while with Miyazaki it’s more like an anti-war commentary than anything else.
You should become a professor of some sort or an instructor. Like I would absolutely love to take any fashion course from you because you are so eloquent, engaging, and your videos are structured like a well-written essay. I feel like I end up absorbing and learning a lot from your videos. You would have no problem teaching a class.
You talked about an article where the author criticized that Ashitaka stayed with the people in Iron Town instead of returning to his village. This is actually addressed in the movie why he does not go home though, it’s because he can’t return! When Ashitaka is cursed by the boar spirit the elder of the town tells him he has to cut off his top knot and that he is forbidden from returning. Because of the curse he is cast out from his village. No one in the village is even allowed to see him off or say goodbye to him (but his sister does anyway). But that is why Ashitaka stays with the people of Iron Town! Hope that clears some things up!
I would also like to add that the inability or refusal to “return” is something that comes back in Miyazaki movies to some extent; see for example Chihiro’s instructions not to look back at the end of Spirited Away. I think it has to do with change; how the only viable way is forward, by remembering one’s experiences and building on them to make something better, not by trying to return to one’s past or stay frozen in time.
@@Schneeeulenwetter the fact that the crystal dagger holds some sort of significance for engaged couples definitely frames Ashitaka’s relationship with San in a specific way
And it's the same with Kaya! She gives him the necklace and then Ashitaka give it to San, proof that "he moved on". In Emishi tradition girls gave a dagger to their future husband on the day of their wedding, but since he was leaving, in the scene it was used as a symbol of love. I read an article where they state some translations took the liberty to depict Kaya as his sister because it wouldn't be "morally correct" in a way to leave his soon-to-be-wife and never come back. In my native language (fr) she is his sister as well. Although it could simply be a translation error since she calls him "onii-sama" Also, according to Miyazaki, Kaya was already pregnant with Ashitaka's child, so his legend was passed on by their descendants. So clearly they were lovers.
Dear Mina, could you please do Sophie's Outfits from Howls moving castle? Its one of my favorite ghibli movies so I would be happy if you talked about them
Now that u mention it. It reminds me of Youbaba’s dress (i don’t know how to spell her name, never saw it written) actually a lot of the heroines wear a blue dress Sheeta, sophie, youbaba. San (in a way)
The film acc takes inspirations from DWJs books but Yall would be disappointed to learn the book is v different to the movie but both a good in there own right just events happen differently and characters are different as well as there motives as well as the books don’t put much empathises on their clothing
@@elliezzz7812 I read the book and the book does have a lot of characters that aren't in the film but I just wished that Mina would talk about Sophie's or Howls clothing that's all
Genuinely, I knew Miyazaki was progressive, but his takes on period dramas.... *damn.* As an American, I really had no clue how politically charged some of the choices in Mononoke were!
He's talked about having been way more politically active in his youth and used to identify as a Marxist, but he's def retained his left-wing values. He decried the Abe administration revising the constitution and not giving proper recognition of the nation's past war crimes, which resulted in a bunch of right-wing dweebs getting assmad and even swearing off his films. He refused to step foot in the US from 2003-2009 because of the Iraq War, and even weighed in on the 2016 election and called both Trump and Clinton terrible candidates, lol.
I almost screamed when I saw this notification! Studio Ghibli deserves so much more love from Western audiences. I consider it much more empowering and supportive to young girls than Disney, because it doesn’t reinforce childlike/“innocent” beauty standards and pit women against each other (via the “jealous old hag” archetype). It’s just so relaxing and lovely and wholesome, Studio Ghibli makes you feel calm and happy while also framing young girls as limitless with their creativity :)
I think the reason he stayed in iron town, is because before leaving, when he cuts his hair (strong symbol in Asia), I read somewhere that he essentially dies in the eyes of his people, hence why they are so sad. He is in a way exiled/banished/dead so that he can leave them and go on his quest. So I think he stays in iron town because he can't go back to his village. Idk I'm no expert :3
Seriously, the Princess Mononoke dub is top tier, Gillian Anderson, Minnie Driver, Jada Pinkett Smith, they were doing the most! and I personally love the 'held back frustration' Billy Crudrup brings to Ashitaka. How is it even slightly embarrassing to watch the dubs... especially since many of us watched these movies as children, who aren't exactly known for their ability to read quickly.
Yeah it's so weird esp because it's not like you can only watch a movie one way once and that's it. Personally, if I have the option to choose either I'll watch the dub first and then the sub. Once I've seen it and heard the audio I can pay more attention to the other details including the tones of voice in the sub. But there's no right or wrong way to do it.
I hate reading subtitles. I can't focus on the visuals and I always keep rewinding especially if the conversation is fast paced. There's nothing weird with liking Dub. Some of us just don't care. Thanks for bringing this up.
I generally prefer watching anime in Japanese with subtitles, but with Miyazaki films I'll usually watch it both ways because they do such a great job with their dubs.
I would love to hear your take on the clothing in "When Marnie Was There" - another Studio Ghibli film. Mostly because it has some early 20th century inspired western clothing, modern garments, and some traditional Japanese clothing as well. The main character, if I'm remembering correctly, is mixed white and Japanese. I think it would be interesting to discuss.
I have to refute the brothel theory. Miyazaki himself said that Spirited Away was a movie he made for a friend's 10 or 12 year old daughter. And he looked at her and wanted to make a movie for her. Any brothel analogy is simply something invented by people analyzing the film later and NOT something Miyazaki intended nor supports himself.
That makes sense but also id have to add maybe he did do it intentionally for the adults to teach them about child prostitution. Example, kind of how many movies or shows add inappropriate jokes for the adults but are subtle that it goes over kids heads.
Yes! Thank you! I hate this theory. It turns a sweet coming of age story into something horrible and dark! Especially when Miyazaki has always said he wants his movies to encourage children to live and look forward to the future.
@@philia95 Giving a subconscious safety warning is good for kids IMO. That's why tons of fairy tales cover super dark topics like being kidnapped, killed, eaten, ect. Nothing in life is fully innocent and happy, and keeping children from leaning even subconscious and metaphorical dangers makes them very vulnerable to manipulation and abuse as adults. Ghibli in his many films shows kids and minors in dark situations, but also shows how their optimism, courage, and resilience can change the world. It is often the adults who are stuck in their ways and are too afraid to make the changes necessary to fix a situation.
I think you have to take into consideration that My Neighbor Totoro loosely referenced a Japanese murder case which was also explicitly confirmed by ghibli studio
@@liliaweber7257 Not so creepy, more realistic/opportunistic. Wearing the pelt would have made her smell more like her family, thus an easier time being adopted into it, and she would need the fur to protect against the cold. The lost pup would no longer have need of it.
The way this video is absolutely free is shocking. I’d imagine this is the kind of information that would be embedded in some sort of historical or pop culture fashion course in university. My brain has been so thoroughly enriched 😌
i love that you went into the differences between the sub and dub versions of spirited away, Haku's more formal language is definitely something that just doesn't translate into the english dub! and also the note on what Zeniba said to Chihiro at the ending too. I grew up with the japanese version and never understood why so many people shipped Haku and Chihiro so much!! I never saw them in much of a romantic context and for me their relationship was much more focused on the friendship and solidarity aspect and it finally makes sense why. I have been watching so many of your videos since I first watched your keira knightley video (i'm a big fan of our queen of period dramas) and I am in love with the amazing content you produce I love your work Mina and hope you continue to enjoy sharing the beauty and complexities of fashion with people for as long as your heart desires
"Ghibli" the word is actually pronounced as Gib-ly. But Studio Ghibli is pronounced studio Jibly, the katakana in their emblem spells studio "jiburi". This is because Hayao Miyazaki mispronounced Ghibli as Jibly.. so no matter what, you are both mispronouncing and correctly pronouncing the name at the same time
studio ghibli can bring world peace, cure diseases and calm any panic attacks at 3 in the morning. okay may be i'm overreacting, but lets be honest who are we talking about? 🧙♀️🌸
@@work-in-progress But can you 'at least' use the Edit-Option of youtube for the start of the sentences? So they can be big, as they deserve to be? As they WISH to be?
the wolf whistle when you mention Lady Eboshi is really REALLY loud compared to the rest of the audio for some reason (also I could barely hear you actually saying "Lady Eboshi" because of it) just thought I should mention it, great video otherwise 👍 just watch the audio levels
I had to pause the video and cry at the beginning of the Princess Mononoke segment. It really broke my heart to learn that a character’s inspiration and background came from a culture that’s no longer around.
Actually what zeniba says at the end in Japanese can be interpreted either the way the subs translated it or the dub. The word あった (atta) can be translated to either meet or for something to be there or in this case to have happened, depending on context and what Chinese character you write the word in. So none of the translations are wrong :)
But didn't she say atta koto, not atta hito? So you wouldn't refer to a person you met as an occurrence or a thing, a こと, bc that's rude, like referring to a person as "it". So it would be あったこと、not 会った人。Even considering Haku as the river, you could still say kawa to deatta but for sure in this story Haku is a proper jinbutsu so.. yeah I think Mina's right on this one and the sub is more accurate.
@@luca.desu.2590 I don’t know what your Japanese level is but atta koto here doesn’t refer to meeting an object, it just refers to “to have met”. Like 食べたこと doesn’t refer to the thing that was eaten bc that would be 食べたもの, it means “to have eaten”.
@@luca.desu.2590 I would agree that within the context and broader themes of the movie “something that has happened is never forgotten” is the choice that makes more sense, but neither of the translations is wrong in a linguistic sense They did change it up a little in the dub for the sentence to make more sense in English, I’m not saying it’s a word for word translation. If you assume that it’s 会う and not ある, a direct translation would be something like “to once have met is never forgotten”, which doesn’t make sense in English grammar.
@@heathersaxton8118 but I take your point that it could technically mean the occurrence of having met, but that's so splitting hairs without any antecedents and nothing to indicate that specific occurrence over all others, so the point that the sub overemphasizes the romance over the original meaning stands
Watching the Ghibli films for the first time I was fascinated by Miyazaki's meticulous world building (including the clothes), in many cases being an exaggerated portray of the time period where the original material was written. But I'm really all in to hear an expert analyze it and not a noob like me.
Super random but the train scene in spirited away always touched me, even when I was just a kid. There’s a sense of tranquility and sadness to it, its hard to describe but by far my favorite (even if it makes me cry sometimes!!)
OMG MY FAV RU-vidR TALKING ABOUT STUDIO GHIBLI??? LITERALLY STAB ME, also I always pronounce it wrong I think, I’m not even sure😂😭 btw your hair is so cute today!! I hope u do more anime clothes analysis videos😚😚
I'm so happy you chose Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke for this video. They're amazing movies, and it makes sense for this topic. I own the "Art of" books for each of these movies because they're my favorite Studio Ghibli movies. Great video! I love learning about Japanese history, cause I really don't know a thing and have a lot to learn!
Mina would you ever consider doing a video on Josephine Baker or Marlene Dietrich? I'd love your thoughts on their styles and influence in pop culture.
If you want a really interesting anime movie with historical references reflected in clothing, may I recommend Satoshi Kon's Millennium Actress! the story goes through an actress's life as she recounts her own life story and blends it with the many films she's starred in, many being historical dramas. it might be an interesting one to look at
Yes, Satoshi Kon deserves so much appreciation for his films and impact on the anime and film industry. Still lowkey mad that Aronofosky basically stole his story and gave him zero credit, in spite of _buying the rights to his film_ to adapt for Hollywood, using several of his themes, motifs, and story elements, and collaborating with him prior to his death. It’s so disrespectful, cowardly, and disingenuous to deny any of Kon’s influence on his film only after he died, just because he wanted to take all the credit for the ideas in Black Swan. It made me lose any respect for him or his films, especially since the Inception directors had no problem crediting Satoshi Kon because it’s just the right thing to do. He could’ve just said he was inspired by Kon’s film (PB) and Aronfosky could’ve given the criminally underrated director some traction-it’s not like his movie would be any less popular, because Americans don’t trust anime or believe it’s a valid medium. But his decision to lie just looks like he copied Kon and wanted to cover his tracks. Ugh 😑
@@apocalypseready6256 Exactly but sadly it's in the copyright system as well :""0 after a person dies basically they have the rights to buy it and do whatever :""D We see this with Disney as well and the Grimm brothers But yeah I agree for the most part :""D
Hi Mina! As a Japanese, I'm so glad that you picked Ghibli and talked about the detail of the outfits. It is kinda rare to see this much detailed analysis about Japanese traditional clothes from non-Japanese person, so I'm shocked lol. I just want to say that "THE BROTHEL THEORY" 18:06 about Spirited Away is almost the well-known FACT among the Japanese fans. It is confirmed by the actual producers and animators, including Hayao Miyazaki himself. The women shown in that bathhouse are "Yuna(湯女)", which are the unlicensed prostitutes who specifically worked in bathhouses in Edo period. It is said that they were so popular that Edo government had to close over 200 bathhouses in Edo to keep the public morals. It is also true that No Face represents a pedophile, he literally said ”I want you" "I offer you money". So there actually is a pretty dark metaphor.
I'd love to see a video on Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. It has such a unique style of clothing, in my opinion, and I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.
I think studio Ghibli is so successful because they somehow communicate in a universal human language. Even in movies like Spirited Away that are filled with Japanese culture that I don't understand, I can feel the emotions through the visuals, expressions, and body language.
