Princess Mononoke and the Sublime

Sorry Im going all the way back to Princess Mononoke but I wrote my piece as a comment and not a post. My bad, anyway.
The film, Princess Mononoke is a beautifully crafted film that takes a look past the usual formula of a heroic tale and into deeper waters at themes of loss, struggle, identity, and humanity. Almost every character is struggling with one or more of these films, from San's struggle with her identities as a wolf and human to Lady Eboshi's struggle to keep her workers safe and clear the forest for her Iron Works to Ashitaka's loss of his former life and journey to finding another. These struggles make the characters more interesting to the audience and more relatable. Even the background characters of ex prostitutes turned Iron workers, powerful yet selfish ape spirits, and silent but silly Kodamas are enthralling to watch interact on a higher level than just to help the main character's story move along.
The film also carries a very effective emotional weight that transforms the film from a simple animated feature to a masterfully crafted, sublime film.
Miyazaki is really good at using sound and visual effects to add depth to his films and push them farther. The music used for each character adds another layer of understanding to each character. Ashitaka's track is very heroic and noble, complementing his character as the main protagonist and his noble, selfless traits. The Deer God's track is silence, adding to the Deer God's persona as a awe inspiring and fearful entity. The track for San and Ashitaka is sweet and harmonious, complementing their relationship as it changes and grows. Each use of sound adds even more to the characters and the story as a whole, giving the viewer an indescribable feeling. The visual elements also add to the sublimeness of the film. The animation is smooth and effortless, easily seen in the movements of the Deer God and the wolves.

The backgrounds are also breathtaking in their intricate detail and color.

While these are all visually stimulating and pretty, they serve a higher purpose. The use of the animation medium adds emotional depth to the story and pushes it over the edge from a good story to a sublime story.  The audience gets pulled into Princess Mononoke and becomes enchanted by the 3 dimensional characters and their struggles, the amazing animation adding to the experience. Princess Mononoke is a sublime film that masterfully uses all parts of film and animation to create a convincing world that the viewer will never want to leave.