Porco Rosso
The facts:
Title: Porco Rosso
Producers: Studio Ghibli
Director and writer: Hayao Miyazaki
First released: in Japan by Toho on the 18th of July 1992
Series: Porco Rosso (1 film)
Plot summary:
Porco Rosso is based on the three-part watercolour Manga “The Age of The Flying Boat”. Porco Rosso is about a veteran World War I fighter pilot who now occupies himself as a bounty hunter. At a time when pirates in biplanes attack cruise ships as they travel through the Adriatic sea, Porco Rosso frees captured cruise ships. One day he runs into trouble with a Sky Pirate Crew. Porco Rosso must battle their ace pilot and reaches out to a friend, Gina and a trusty mechanic, Fio.
What I like most:
What I like most is the fact that the protagonist is a personified pig. I think that this is a cool and unique idea. However, I would really like to know how he was turned into a pig. I think that there is potential for some cool metaphors like “how you envision yourself is eventually what you become” or “the way you act is how people see you”. I think that this could add some more detail to the story but that being said, it is also a very nice touch to not over-explain these things and leave the audience to infer those conclusions.
What I like least:
What I like least is the lack of a happy ending and the unsettling cliffhanger conclusion. Even though we know Porco Rosso defeats the Sky Pirate Crew, the film ends with the mechanic Fio recalling her successful life since that victory and it is unclear whether the curse that turned Porco into a pig will ever pass allowing Porco to confess his love for Gina. The film end son an empty garden, where Gina waited for Porco every day. Has he come and taken her away for a happily ever after? Or has she given up on him? Or has he become a bacon sandwich and she a vegan? All these and more, are the questions Miyazaki leaves for the audience. While this has ensured it is contemplated and discussed, it left me feeling unsatisfied.
Interesting fact:
Michael Keaton aka Batman voiced Porco Rosso in the English release. Another Ghibli Batman crossover!
Recommended age:
I would recommend this to kids aged 10+. Studio Ghibli produces animated features that turn the idea of a story on its head and paint pictures in the minds of adults and children that are equally familiar and unreal. It is like Porco Rosso has enough familiar ideas to launch us into a completely unfamiliar tale, producing a magical and comforting feeling.
How to explain to your parents:
This is the story of how Porco Rosso, a World War 1 pilot was turned into a pig that fights sky pirates.
Film/Tv crossover:
Unfortunately, there is no Porco Rosso game however there is a book with original illustrations done by Hayao Miyazaki about Porco Rosso.
In Bibliography:
Miyazaki, H. 2022, ‘Porco Rosso’, Crunchyroll [image] Available https://www.studioghibli.com.au/myneighbortotoro/, Accessed 9 October 2022.
AM-ZONE 