The Wind Rises

Hello, hello!
Welcome to another Studio Ghibli review. Today I’ll talk about a movie I had never heard about before I binged all the Ghibli-films on Netflix. So let’s find out whether The Wind Rises turned out to be a pleasant surprise!

The Plot (according to Rotten Tomatoes):

In “The Wind Rises,” Jiro dreams of flying and designing beautiful airplanes, inspired by the famous Italian aeronautical designer Caproni. Nearsighted from a young age and unable to be a pilot, Jiro joins a major Japanese engineering company in 1927 and becomes one of the world’s most innovative and accomplished airplane designers. 

The Rating:

Okay, here’s the deal: it’s another visually stunning film, but honestly I wouldn’t expect anything else from a Studio Ghibli production.

It’s fascinating that they decided to tackle some real people and events here as I was not at all familiar with pretty much any of the stuff they mention. I should, however, mention that although the main character is based on a real person, a large chunk of the events depicted is fictitious.

There’s only one problem. As intriguing as the story may be at first, there is only so long a movie about airplanes can keep your interest up. With a length of over two hours, this film lost about two thirds in. As much as I liked it at first, I just couldn’t be bothered to care anymore after 1 1/2 hours. As heartbreaking as the end was, instead of actually feeling that, I was just glad that it was over.

I’m really sad that the film ended up making me feel that way. It’s a beautiful picture with so many great elements, and I really wanted to love it. If you happen to be interested in airplanes, their construction, and history, this will be your all-time favorite Studio Ghibli film. It’s definitely an enjoyable movie, it’s just that if the topic isn’t 100% your cup of tea, you’ll zone out after a while.

Did you watch the film? Let me know in the comments!

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