In the 1990s, when I was reporting on the Japanese film business for a British trade magazine, big-budget Hollywood movies with splashy special effects dominated the local box office. And the industry consensus was that resistance — in the form of made-in-Japan effects extravaganzas — was futile. Then Hayao Miyazaki's 1997 animation "Mononoke Hime" ("Princess Mononoke") not only dominated that year's summer box office by making an astounding ¥19.3 billion, but set an all-time earnings record for a film released in Japan. The tide had begun to turn against the Hollywood colossus.
But this summer, after years of triumphs by the home team, Miyazaki included, Hollywood again rules at the box office. New installments of blockbuster series that began in the 1990s, "Jurassic World" and "Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation," as well as new Hollywood animation "Minions," occupied the top three ranks as of last weekend.
With nearly ¥6 billion made on more than 4 million admissions, "Jurassic World" is also the top money-maker of the year in Japan.
So it's back to the 1990s, in terms of the box office, unless the Japanese industry finds another Miyazaki, with the man himself having retired in 2013.
Unfortunately, directors like that only come along once a generation — or lifetime.
Why be a pessimist though? Resistance may be futile, but it's also the only option.
