Director Hayao Miyazaki personally corrected or redrew more than 80,000 of the film's 144,000 animation cels.
Disney/Miramax, which released the film in North America, was contractually obligated not to edit any footage out for its North American release. They asked to, but were refused. Although they kept their end of the bargain in not editing the film, they did release it into far fewer theaters than promised and expressed surprise that it had made little money at the box office.
Contrary to what some may think, the English dialogue in the American version is not a direct translation from Japanese to English. One only has to turn on "Straight Japanese to English translation subtitles" on the DVD to see that dialogue was paraphrased into comfortable American English.
-When it was announced that the Miramax DVD would only contain the English dialogue track, there was enough fan protest to convince Miramax to delay the release in order to put the Japanese language dialogue on as well.
Mononoke Hime replaced E.T. as the biggest grossing film of all time in Japan until Titanic (1997).
Director Trademark: [Hayao Miyazaki] [pigs] The tribe of boars, one of which is the demon Ashitaka fights in the beginning.
Hayao Miyazaki had intended to this be be his final film before retiring. Its great success led him to do another, Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001).
Mononoke means angry or vengeful spirit. Hime is the Japanese honorific/word meaning Princess which is placed after a persons name rather than before it, as in the western system. When the films title was translated into English, it was decided that Mononoke would be left as a name rather than translated literally.
Leonardo DiCaprio was originally considered for the part of Ashitaka.
While Princess Mononoke was acquired after it was released in Japan, its American release was delayed for almost two years, allegedly because of a negative reception at a St. Paul test screening.
Around 550 colors were used in this film
Lady Eboshi:
Now watch closely, everyone. I'm going to show you how to kill a god. A god of life and death. The trick is not to fear him.
Lady Eboshi:
What exactly are you here for?
Prince Ashitaka:
To see with eyes unclouded by hate.
Moro:
Ah, you're awake. I was hoping you'd cry out in your sleep, and I could bite your face off to silence you.
Gonza:
We killed her!
Lady Eboshi:
You forget she's a god. It will take more than that.
Toki:
I wish the wolves had eaten you! Then maybe I could've found a real husband.
Toki:
Thanks, stranger. My husband's an idiot, but I'm glad he's safe and sound.
Ashitaka:
That's a relief. I was starting to think I'd done something wrong by bringing him back home.
Kôhroku:
Huh, I didn't know the Forest Spirit made the flowers grow.
Toki:
Even if you were a woman, you'd still be an idiot!
[San's bite reveals the curse in Ashitaka's arm]
Prince Ashitaka:
Look, everyone! This is what hatred looks like! This is what it does when it catches hold of you! It's eating me alive, and very soon now it will kill me! Fear and anger only make it grow faster!
Jigo:
This soup tastes like donkey piss!
Kôhroku:
My arm, it doesn't hurt anymore. IT'S HEALED!
[bones crack]
Kôhroku:
Ow! No, it's still broken.
Lady Eboshi:
What do you think you're doing, boy?
Prince Ashitaka:
Stay your hand, the girl's life is now mine.
[San bites Ashitaka's arm]
Lady Eboshi:
I'm sure she'll make a lovely wife for you...
Lady Eboshi:
Cut off a wolf's head and it still has the power to bite.
Jigo:
When your going to kill a god, let someone else do your dirty work.
Jigo:
Are you selling soup or donkey piss?
Jigo:
I give up. Can't win against fools.
San, The Princess Mononoke:
It's over, the Forest Spirit is dead now.
Prince Ashitaka:
Never. He is life itself. He is here with us now, telling us, it's time for both of us to live.
[Ashitaka wants to see where the women of Iron Town work]
Female fire worker:
We'll have to work in make-up tonight!
Jigo:
You see everyone wants everything, that's the way the world is. But I just might actually get it.
Jigo:
Oh well, no use fighting against fools...
San, The Princess Mononoke:
Why are they cutting down trees?
Moro:
To make them angry, which makes them stupid.
San's Wolf Brother:
What about the elk? May we eat him?
San, The Princess Mononoke:
No, you may not. Go home.
San, The Princess Mononoke:
You two go on ahead. I'll stay here and deal with the human.
San's Wolf Brother:
What about the elk?
San's Wolf Brother:
Yes... can we eat him?
San, The Princess Mononoke:
No, you may not. Go home!
Jigo:
Give the head back now? Come on, boy. Don't be silly. Now, when the sun's about to come up? Look! He's a brainless, life-sucking god of death. At sunrise he'll vanish like a bad dream.
Lady Eboshi:
Stay here. Help me kill the Forest Spirit, Ashitaka
Prince Ashitaka:
You would do that? Kill the very heart of the forest?
Lady Eboshi:
Without that ancient god the animals here would be nothing but dumb beasts once again.
Ape Tribe:
This is our forest. The human... give him to us. Give us the human and go.
San's Wolf Brother:
You go before my fangs find you.
Ape Tribe:
We will not go. We will eat the human. Yes... we will eat the man creature.
San, The Princess Mononoke:
Ugh! I smell like a human.
Boar in Okkoto's Tribe:
The Forest Spirit saved him? Saved the life of this loathsome runt? Why didn't he save Nago? Is he not the guardian of the forest? Why?
Moro:
The Forest Spirit gives life and takes life away. Life and death are his alone. Or have you boars forgotten than?
Boar in Okkoto's Tribe:
You lie! You must have begged the Forest Spirit to spare his life! But you did not beg for Nago! Did you?
Moro:
Nago was afraid to die. Now, I too, carry within my breast a poisoned human bullet. Nago fled and the darkness took him. I remain and contemplate my death.
Boar in Okkoto's Tribe:
You are not fooling us. Nago was beautiful and strong. He would not have run from anything. You wolves must have eaten him!
San, The Princess Mononoke:
Quiet! Watch what you say, you filthy pig!
Okkoto:
Look at my tribe, Moro. We grow small and stupid. We will soon be nothing but squealing game that the humans hunt for their meat.
messenger from Lord Asano:
You ladies need to be taught some respect!
Female fire worker:
Respect? What's that?
Female fire worker:
We haven't had any respect since the day we were born!
[the women collectively give the messenger the "raspberry"]
Kaya:
Ashitaka, wait!
Prince Ashitaka:
Kaya, what are you doing here? You know it's forbidden!
Kaya:
Do you think I care about that? I came to give you this so you won't forget your little sister.
Prince Ashitaka:
Your crystal dagger, Kaya, I can't take this.
Kaya:
I want you to have it, so you won't forget.
Prince Ashitaka:
Kaya, you know I could never forget you.
Gonza:
You!
[draws sword]
Gonza:
You're with the wolves, aren't you?
Prince Ashitaka:
[grabs sword and bends it] Step aside.
Toki:
Why don't you take off your mask? I bet you're really handsome...
[Ashitaka pulls it off]
Toki:
Hey, you're not handsome, you're gorgeous!
San, The Princess Mononoke:
Why did you stop me from killing her? Tell me while you're still alive!
Prince Ashitaka:
I didn't want them to kill you. That's why.
San, The Princess Mononoke:
I'm not afraid to die. I'd do anything to get you humans out of my forest!
Prince Ashitaka:
I knew that from the first moment I saw you.
San, The Princess Mononoke:
And I'm not afraid of you! I should kill you for saving her!
[San turns Ashitaka around, takes out his sword, and aims it inches over his neck]
San, The Princess Mononoke:
That woman is evil, and there's no one who can stop me from killing her.
Prince Ashitaka:
No... Live...
San, The Princess Mononoke:
That's enough! I'm not listening to you anymore!
[prepares to strike]
Prince Ashitaka:
...You're beautiful...
[San gasps and backs away]
San's Wolf Brother:
What is it, San? Want me to crunch his face off?
[all stare at Ashitaka for a moment]
[first lines]
Narrator:
In ancient times, the land lay covered in forests, where, from ages long past, dwelt the spirits of the gods. Back then, man and beast lived in harmony, but as time went by, most of the great forests were destroyed. Those that remained were guarded by gigantic beasts who owed their allegiances to the Great Forest Spirit, for those were the days of gods and of demons.
Hii-sama:
You cannot change fate. However, you can rise to meet it, if you so choose.
Jigo:
So you say you're under a curse, so what, so is the whole damn world.
Moro:
You know, that boy wanted to share his life with you.
San, The Princess Mononoke:
I hate him! I hate all humans!
Moro:
That curse will spread throughout your whole body, bone and flesh alike and finally kill you. Now leave this place at sunrise. Return and *I* shall kill you.
San, The Princess Mononoke:
No! I don't want to become a demon!
[her dying words]
Moro:
Ashitaka... can you save the girl you love?
Continuity: When Ashitaka swims to Iron Town during the battle, there is a shot of the water. In the next shot there is a floating corpse not visible in the previous shot.
References
Kaze no tani no Naushika (1984)
Tenkû no shiro Rapyuta (1986)
- The robots in "Laputa" and the forest animals in "Princess Mononoke" share the exact same design, a clear reference.
Tonari no Totoro (1988)
Glory (1989)
Referenced in
Rurôni Kenshin: Meiji kenkaku roman tan: Tsuioku hen (1999) (V)
Ausverkauft! (1999)
Fantasia/2000 (1999)
Metoroporisu (2001)
Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001)
Planet of the Apes (2001)
Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001)
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
The 100 Greatest Cartoons (2005) (TV)
- Talked about
The Making of 'MirrorMask' (2006) (V)
- Referenced by name
50 Films to See Before You Die (2006) (TV)
- Makes the countdown, is talked about.
Featured in
The 100 Greatest Cartoons (2005) (TV)
- Clips are shown
50 Films to See Before You Die (2006) (TV)
- A clip is shown.