I'm just gonna jump right in here. So even though this film seems like it's supposed to present Gina as the main interest for Marco, I think she is the main thing that maintains Marco's pig face. He is going through survivor's guilt due to his experiences in the war with losing his friends and seeing all the planes ascending to heaven with him in the middle ground. He is scarred. He likes Gina and was the best man at her wedding! But two days later her husband dies and there is nothing that Marco can do but go back down there to face reality. At this point Gina really likes Marco but he feels so undeserving of any love or openness and that manifests itself in his pig face. He feels dirty, yet his morality is so strong that he can't even shoot at Curtiss's plane if it's not the engine. He walks a jagged line. Yet Fio is the one who can really unpack his emotional baggage!
She asks him about his past and makes it come out. She gives him the affection that he can not ask for. As she opens up Marco's emotions she gets a glimpse into his real face and eventually unmasks him completely!
This seems like a strange film for Miyazaki to have done in a way. Mostly just because it's really uncharacteristic. It doesn't deal with the nature/technology tension, nor does it focus on independent children, specifically girls. Fio is more of a sidekick/secondary character to Marco. This time we see an emotionally crippled man in the spotlight. Also, Humphrey Bogart references..? And specifically in 1929 Italy. And directly dialoguing with fascism. Again.. why? I don't know. But to focus on a pilot makes sense because Miyazaki probably wanted an outlet for his more than interest in planes and aviation to flourish. All of his films have been pretty much leading up to directly dealing with planes.
I agree – Porco is a very complex character, but also a highly moral one – which is ironic, as well as a source of humor throughout the film, as he is often presented as being “cleaner” and “of higher moral caliber” than the humans he deals with – namely, pirates and fascists. I likewise concur that Fio is actually more like his ideal counterpart. She is fresh and vivacious, untainted by the scars of his past, unlike Gina. Gina clearly brings out a side of Porco that Porco desperately tries to suppress at all costs. He repeatedly insists that he has no romantic interest in Fio, almost as if he’s trying to convince himself, as he is clearly attracted to her – as demonstrated by a few instances of his blushing on account of her, and various other small quirks of conduct (looking away when she goes swimming, for instance). Nevertheless, as you said, though relationally and emotionally he may be scarred, his sense of honor is very much intact, and this manifests itself in many ways throughout the film (beyond just not shooting Curtiss), such as not killing the pirates in the beginning, but even splitting some of the money with them, telling Fio to pay the full price for the gasoline purchased from his friends, and settling his debts with the Piccolo, Co. and saving Fio by undergoing the challenge against Curtiss.
ReplyDeleteThematically, you and I are on the same wavelength – this film does seem to deviate from Miyazaki’s typical emphasis on humans vs. nature, although flight certainly comes to the fore. As for the apparent lack of a central female figure, I think that both Fio and Gina are major figures, although you are right – the film is most definitely not about their own personal development or growth as individuals – Porco is most definitely the prime protagonist. Since Miyazaki tends to portray himself as a pig when illustrating, I have often wondered whether this is perhaps the film closest to him biographically speaking, what with his family having manufactured parts for planes and the main character being a pig. Porco himself could very well be a representation of Miyazaki himself, and the guilt weighing down upon Porco may mirror a sense of guilt Miyazaki may feel for his family having contributed to the war – as for the relationship issues, I wouldn’t know… But of course, any statements I have on Miyazaki’s sentiments is sheer speculation.
Chris (Sorry…nothing on my site for you to comment on…yet. =/)