MovieChat Forums > Gake no ue no Ponyo (2009) Discussion > Was the whole thing just a dream?

Was the whole thing just a dream?

posted 8 years ago by vesil_vesalier
2 replies | jump to latest

I agree with other posters on this site, when they speak of a lack of tension. There certainly was that, a lack of real tension beyond the first act of the movie. But what amazes me (and at the same time confuses me) about this film is the overall feel of calm and wonder.

The tsunami suggests real danger, and despite everyone's best intentions, it's illogical to assume not everyone would survive it. But in this movie, as much as the first part reacts to the terror of it, the rest of the movie is relaxed with it, accepting it as just another weather event, with no worries or concerns to consider.

There is one scene in this movie that sticks with me, and it's the one where Soske and Ponyo are in their little boat, and they see all of the beautiful sea creatures swimming beneath the boat. Soske calls them out by their scientific names, not by their common ones. And in fact, looking up some of the names, a lot of them (if not all of them) are actually extinct.

The whole movie seems like a dream, somehow, that exists outside of normal time, or something. It would explain everyone's easy reactions to everything, and it would also explain the extinct creatures.

Although... You could also argue that everyone was dead. And that the end of the movie has them all in the afterlife. That would also explain why everyone was so calm, and why a bunch of extinct fish were swimming about.

Tell me what you think.

My thoughts: https://xanderpayne.blogspot.com
My book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01G6OI7HG

[–] toddtw 8 years ago

I think of this movie as Miyazaki's idyllic vision of the world. He stayed in a similar seaside town for inspiration. Yes, there are some dangerous things that happen, but everyone takes it in stride and works together to overcome it.

The extinct fish are from the Cambrian era which is what Fujimoto was trying to bring back to get rid of humans. Sosuke's love and acceptance of Ponyo in whatever form she takes is what restored balance to the world. It shows humanity's need to love and respect the ocean, which is the primordial soup we all came from.

It is Miyazaki's way of waking people up to the natural wonder around them. He shows all the trash and pollution caused from humans but doesn't condemn any of the human characters for it. They are capable of change and understanding.

And it is exactly that lack of tension and fear that makes it so amazing. Ponyo is one of the purest expressions of joy and wonder that I've ever seen in film.

[–] vesil_vesalier 8 years ago

Jesus that's amazing. I need to see this again. What you're saying truly does make sense in the film.

Thank you very much, sir. Your help is greatly appreciated.

My thoughts: https://xanderpayne.blogspot.com
My book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01G6OI7HG

You didn't come here to make the choice, you're here to understand why you made it.