Good directors are like fine wine: they get better with age and cost quite a lot.
Ironic really, considering famous winemaker/filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola’s last sizable box office hit was 1996 comedy Jack (yes, that was him), but nonetheless true for the majority of auteurs who’ve consistently stayed at the peak of their powers across time.
One such individual is Hayao Miyazaki - the Japanese master of behind anime classics Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away and more - whose final film before self-imposed retirement might just top the lot.
Already award-laden, The Wind Rises charts the life of Jiro Horikoshi (voiced by Joseph Gordon-Levitt), the real-life design engineer behind the WW2 Japanese bombers that would so violently rain down on Pearl Harbour, throwing the film some obvious dark matter alongside those fantasy elements and wondrous visuals which have so long been a trademark for Miyazaki’s Studio Ghibli.
Want an eyeful? Cast your glance over our world exclusive clip below:
The Wind Rises is out at selected cinemas nationwide from 9 May
