Porco Rosso

Release Year: 1992

Director: Hayao Miyazaki

Review:  One of the Miyazaki films which action is the primary focus.  Porco Rosso is Italian for 'Red Pig', and is a former Italian air force hero who has been cursed to look like a pig.  He has deserted the air force after a tragic battle in which he lost his best friend, and the guilt haunts him.  He now is a bounty hunter, battling seaplane pirates and trying to be left alone.

Of course since this is a Miyazaki film, there is much more than just the action, but it definitely has a more straight forward plot line with plenty of spectacular aerial battles. Porco is a man scared from the pain from his past.  The disfigurement is a physical representation of his grief.  The battle affected his entire life, and physical transformation is an outward expression of the toll it has taken on him.  Despite the fact that he has this ailment doesn't mean he has completely turned into a pig.  The man he once was is still there, he just needs a cause.  This is a fun film with some brilliantly executed flight sequences.  Full of action and adventure it is fast paced, but still has that Miyazaki magic which adds so much more.
Rating: 3.5/5