Legend Of Zelda Movie Director Is Aiming For Live-Action Miyazaki

Nintendo saw the millions upon millions that "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" brought in and decided to ... do something completely different and bet on big risks and in Avi Arad. The game studio and Sony Pictures Entertainment announced last month that Wes Ball will direct a live-action feature film adaptation of "The Legend of Zelda" video game series. That's right. A live-action film, not an animated one.

Wes Ball is a surprising choice, to be sure, but a welcome one. As our own Jacob Hall wrote, the upcoming adaptation "isn't guaranteed to be a great movie, but it's taken a big and important first step by hiring a young, promising, exciting filmmaker with a giant well of talent and a lot to prove. The quest begins."

Nothing makes it clearer that Wes Ball at least has the right inspirations than a recent interview he did with Entertainment Weekly where he described his take not as some "Lord of the Rings" copy, but as a Studio Ghibli movie. "I've always said, I would love to see a live-action Miyazaki. That wonder and whimsy that he brings to things, I would love to see something like that." 

He continued, "My whole life has led up to this moment. I grew up on 'Zelda' and it is the most important property, I think, that's untapped IP, if you will." And he means what he says, a tweet from 2010 resurfaced following the directorial announcement where he mentioned wanting to direct a "Legend of Zelda" movie. Ball concluded, "So we very much are working hard to do something. We're not just trying to do it because we can. We want to make something really special."

Now, this is the most exciting thing Ball could have said. It is also the worst thing he could have said if he didn't want to set too high expectations for himself.

The idea of a Ghibli-inspired "Legend of Zelda" movie is very cool. That being said, it ignores the fact that we already had a Ghibli "Zelda" movie, and it was called "Princess Mononoke." That movie features a story featuring a giant monster, a princess, and an archer who teams up with her. The movie ended up influencing the game, with "Tears of the Kingdom," the latest "Zelda" gave, even giving Link a messed up magical arm just like the corrupted arm of Ashitaka in "Princess Mononoke."

As for Wes Ball's aspirations to make a live-action movie that feels like a Ghibli movie, that's as exciting as it is impossible to even imagine. The Ghibli aesthetic, and also their tone, is not easy to replicate in live-action — but it is not impossible. We've seen Ghibli movies successfully adapted to the stage with "Spirited Away" and "My Neighbor Totoro" productions. 

The key is not necessarily in the grand vistas or elaborate creature designs. The key lies in the live-action "Legend of Zelda" movie following Hayao Miyazaki's use of "ma" or negative space, to avoid filling the screen with stuff or trying to do something big and exciting every five seconds. "Princess Mononoke" feels epic in scope and action, but it also takes its time and knows when to pull back. If Wes Ball is to make a successful "The Legend of Zelda" movie, it should not be like "Lord of the Rings," but like "Princess Mononoke." That he seems to know this is already a great sign. And hey, "Kong: Skull Island" already managed to get there, so why can't "Zelda?"