Neil Welch In the years leading up to World War 2, aerial pirates ravage the Adriatic. Their bane is ace fighter pilot Porco Rosso.This is an exciting, amusing action-packed animated adventure. In many ways it is completely traditional apart from the fact that our hero is an anthropomorphic pig. This is part of the story, albeit almost incidental.Hayao Miyazaki contributes another film full of beauty and visual style combined with quirky sensibilities which are unlike anything else in cinema. It is exciting, funny, and completely engaging.Studio Ghibli strikes again.

Parker Lewis If you only ever get to see one Studio Ghibli movie, then see Porco Rosso. The fact there's nearly 50,000 votes in IMDb for this movie, says a lot, and the movie it timeless.The colors are so beautiful and gorgeous, and the storyline is so touching and moving. It's Studio Ghibli at its best, and I wish there was a sequel. The movie draws much emotion, and the soundtrack is relaxing. The pig pilot is a lovable rogue, and I sometimes wonder what happened to him after the movie ended.I saw Spirited Away and unfortunately turned off after 15 minutes. I'm so sorry it lacked the emotional impact of Porco Rosso.

John Richards (monolith94) I had been putting off watching Porco Rosso for quite some time. It wasn't so much that I was anticipating not liking it. Rather, it was more a trepidation that while good, Porco Rosso wouldn't quite measure up to the other Miyazaki films which I've loved.I should have known better.The simplicity of the cover, and the description of the plot that I had in my mind were so much less than what Porco Rosso contains. The marketing, advertising, and so forth, place emphasis on the struggle between Porco and the pirates of the Adriatic. The second point of plot typically mentioned is the "curse" that he has fallen under. In truth, neither of these things form the real backbone of the story: psychology is at the heart of this narrative.A film simply about a bounty hunter versus pirates could be a fine ride, if executed in a way which stirs. However, without the kind of psychological backdrop that we get in Porco's character, it wouldn't be possible to really move the audience. What raises this story from simply engaging to stirring, moving, is our main characters' relationship to their individual and shared pasts. In a really clever way, the film introduces this haunting aspect of the past not through the main character, but through the character of Gina. Of a similar generation, Gina introduces this idea during her first conversation with Porco, where she receives news that her husband has been confirmed dead, she seems unusually unemotional. As she expresses to Porco, she has shed so many tears already, that she finds she has no more left to give. The carnage of world war 1 and the vagaries of life in a world where fate can snatch love from us has left her emotionally drained.Where Gina is melancholy and stoic, Porco broods and isolates. As the sole survivor of a battle where Gina's first husband died, he feels personally responsible. This sort of survivor's guilt is reflected with his constant self-deprecation; constantly we see signs of him expressing a low sense of self-worth. He doesn't deny his skill as a pilot, but what he does deny is that he is in any way a "good guy." When Gina tells him that her husband didn't make it home alive, he responds "the good guys never do," making explicit this contrast between himself and a good guy.His profession as a mercenary is almost ideal for his state. It allows him to pretend that he's only in it for the money, while at the same time he has put himself in a position to do good works: saving children, defending the monied defenseless, etc. He does have a sense of morality, of course. We see this in his careful targeting of his opponents planes: he always aims to cripple and shoot down, never to kill the opposing pilot. It is difficult for him to see the evidence that we see, however. We understand the regret he feels as a sign of his ethical standards; he dismisses it out of hand. One imagines that, for him, that is a bare-minimum, rather than a characteristic that one can be proud of.The devices that film uses to achieve the character development of Porco can, at times, be a bit trite. The character of Fio is perhaps a bit too on-the-nose as the young idealist who, unshackled by a painful past, is able to help shake off some of the emotional armor that Porco has surrounded himself in. However, Miyazaki saves the character by simply writing her as an intelligent, brave, young woman whom the audience can both respect and relate to. Even more intelligently, although Fio develops an admiration for and a crush on Porco, this thread isn't really developed. As a character, Fio wouldn't really work as Porco's love interest. It would add on the additional cliché of older-man younger-woman and that would just take Miyazaki's use of common story devices too far.Gina is the more realistic love interest for Porco, and just as a sense of feminism imbues the character of Fio, so too does a sense of feminism shape Gina. Far from the virgin-whore duality that infects so many female characters, Gina is fully realized as a woman with hopes and desires, losses and memories, that make her an equal of Porco. She has been married, and she has known love, but this doesn't "spoil" her. Rather, it has matured her.Even more impressively, the relationship between Gino and Porco is based on friendship, a friendship which goes back to happier times. How refreshing to see romance kindled in such a realistic way, as compared to the constant barrage of films where characters either fall in love with each other for narrative convenience.As good as this movie is, I suspect that its greatest impact can be felt on those who are struggling with the emotions of Gina and Porco. To struggle with one's past is no uncommon thing, and those who are working to set aside feelings of loss and self-loathing will probably find the greatest amount of catharsis as Porco slowly comes to realize that he doesn't need to define himself as a pig any longer. Certainly, only those who have run out of tears will be able to fully appreciate the emotional desolation the Gina describes.

hayashimegumi Although the multi-language opening text that appears at the beginning of the film could be confusing, it is adorable and creative. Porco Rosso (1992) is not an ordinary animated feature. It has depth even though it could be weird as it has an unusual heroic protagonist named Marco Pagot who is half human half pig, similarly like Pigsy but is a major celebrity in this film. What captivates me the most are the elements of this film especially the people and culture in the World War era. This bizarre film could also easily pass as a feminist film since there are plenty of strong female characters of all ages and different backgrounds but then again, it is actually also quite masculine since the main character is slightly male chauvinistic and there are plenty of other male characters as well. This film is complex, just like the human society is.Even so, Porco Rosso (1990) is enchanting as it champions love and honor. You should watch this film if you haven't because it's quite fun and interesting to watch!PS. There could be Porco Rosso 2 and we can only wait for its news.