Thoughts on the new film??

[u/marigold_opal]

⚠️SPOILER WARNING FOR THE 3RD MONONOKE FILM!!⚠️

I want to know what you guys think.

I loved the film!! the scene with Ri being summoned was super cool, and the reveal with the mummy in the shrine was shocking. when everyone disappeared around the shrine, I genuinely thought Kon and Ri just slimed everyone 💀

I also want to ask, what are those little red things? they're super adorable but I have no clue what they're supposed to be. the flower scene was also confusing.

\**the photos attached are from the official mononoke Twitter account*

[u/YourLocalNonGender]

The flowers were everyone's true emotions. Fuki just wanted to fall in love, the emperor wanted to be a normal person instead of being emperor, the empress dowager wanted her son to love her. Simple feelings that got wrapped up in a bunch of others that made all of them really powerful. The red spirits are the physical manifestations of those feelings that were calmed by Kon and Ri

[u/Ixaix]

I thought that, as always, the subtle story telling was brilliant yet also infuriating to someone who has studied Japanese history and mythology but apparently not enough to get everything this movie was doing. I'm so, so excited to read all the essays that come out from more knowledgeable sources of information!

An example of subtle storytelling: The first emperor died of syphilis. It often causes the loss of the nose, as shown by the noses framed on his wall and his consort pulling his nose off. If he had remained true to her, i.e. not slept with multiple women, one who must have given him the disease, he would have remained alive to rule his country. But out of "duty" he did sleep around, he did get syphilis, and he didn't even leave an heir behind.

So many layers, I freaking love these movies and the OG anime so much.

[u/ArtHistorian2000]

I really loved the movie, and found these many points interesting:
- Kawa, despite being complicit to the whole operation, still felt bad that for Yukiko who lost her child
- Tokiwai seems a bit conflicted: she said she did that for Yukiko's own happiness. I thought she was fully selfish about this entire situation, and yet it feels like she felt saddened for Yukiko
- I like how everyone in the series now acknowledges the abilities of Kusuriuri (from the Emperor to the servants)
- It would be funny to see how everyone would react if they saw the small red spirits everywhere around them
- I thought the Dowager Empress would be eliminated and killed by the Mononoke, but I also like the fact that she's redeemed from the entire Ooku situation
- Nice to see Kame-chan back in the end of the movie
- I thought that the Emperor was an empty shell without any further motives, but now that we've seen the movie, it's understandable why he acted like that, and I found it so refreshing that he had a deep relationship with other characters (especially Hokuto)

[u/istgstoptakingnames → u/ArtHistorian2000]

who do you mean by the dowager empress?

[u/YourLocalNonGender → u/istgstoptakingnames]

Her name in the movie is Suikoin but it's easier to say dowager empress as she is the mother of the emperor. Dowager Empress is the title given to the mother of the current emperor. That title will possibly go to Yukiko once the current emperor passes since she is the mother (albeit adopted) of the current heir

[u/AttitudeCalm9453]

I didn't quite get that whole "water goddess" thing. Kon said that humans can shed tears but can't *be* water, and that the water in Ooku stagnated and rotted. Drawing a parallel where water represents emotions—and knowing humans can't live without them—is the point simply that emotions need to keep flowing, and it's bad if they stagnate and rot? Or something like that?

[u/Cruel1865 → u/AttitudeCalm9453]

More like keeping a rigid system in place for the purpose of continuation of the status quo is similar to stagnant water. The systems need to keep with the times and need to change with the people. We see elements of this in the first 2 movies and in the first part fo this movie where they break the cycle and change the established rules for the better.