Compared to cartoons made in the Western world, anime comes with its own set of cultural perspective, drawing styles, story patterns, sound effects and color palette. It is quite interesting to see how different nations set apart by long distances can come up with different kinds of animation styles. There are things that can appeal to Western viewers when they watch anime for the first time. One thing that is apparent, anime seems to show strong female characters. In many animes, we can see how female characters seem strong and ins some cases, are held in respect and high esteem. The Princess Mononoke is an anime that can be compared to the contemporary Disney princess animation film. It’s a classic story in anime how a woman can represent a strong female character. In fact, the tagline of the anime says to us that the fate of the world fully rest on the courage of a single warrior.
Mononoke has a male companion, Ashitaka and Lady Eboshi, another female character. Each individual has different strength and quality, that match with each component of the story line. In general, we see deeper interactions between male and female characters, in many cases; deeper than what we see in Disney animation films. Another thing that can bring a lot of interest for anime is the deeper and rich story line. Watching an anime may feel like embarking on a new journey and adventure. There are no repetitions and it feels like a flowing story line that continue to develop. It’s far from being a superficial story of good versus evil. There are many shades of gray and conflict outcomes that we don’t expect. There are different point of views and opinions that we can see. This will allow people to have deeper understanding about the film. Characters in the film also often have their personal struggles. Characters may also need to see within their soul to find a solution to specific dilemma.
One thing that is very apparent when we watch anime is that the color choices and animation styles are both strong and unique. Some anime can look comedic, childish, romantic, realistic or artful. Some anime full feature film could impress us with their graphic splendor. Newer anime also includes elements of 3D technology to push the envelope. Things can become very believable in terms of special effects. Whether it is a children story, a sci-fi battle or a horror vampire story; we could see how the producers want to get to the next level. The graphics themselves are often able to tell us many things. In many cases, anime is about showing the story, instead of telling the story. Anime characters also often have more meaningful expression. Anime animators know that eyes can tell so much and we see how eyes in anime characters can change drastically depending on the situation. Anime is also expressive in facial gestures and body language to show us about what the character is feeling and thinking.