The latest from the legendary Studio Ghibli to see a United States release is The Tale of Princess Kaguya. This story is based on a 10th Century folk tale known as “The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter,” or simply “Princess Kaguya,” which is considered the oldest example of Japanese literature.

The film differs from the classic folk tale in some ways, though much of the core plot is the same. In the classic tale, an old, childless man called Taketori no Okina, or “The Old Man who Harvests Bamboo,” discovers a shining bamboo stalk in the forest. After cutting it open he finds an infant no bigger than the palm of his hand, and he and his wife raise the child, naming her Kaguya. After that, whenever Okina would cut down a bamboo stalk, he would find gold nuggets inside.

As Kaguya grows older, word of her incredible beauty spreads, and she soon gathers many suitors. To weed them out, she gives each of them an impossible task, that include bringing her a colored jewel from a dragon’s neck or the Buddha’s stone begging bowl. Instead, she seems to fall for the Emperor of Japan, but still rebuffs even his advances.

Whenever Kaguya looks at the moon, she begins to cry, though she is unable to tell anyone what upsets her. As it turns out, Kaguya is from the Capital of the Moon, and the gold that Okina had found was payment from the Moon’s people to help with Kaguya’s upbringing. Some versions of the tale say that Kaguya was sent to Earth as punishment for a crime, while others claim she was being shielded from a “celestial war.”

Before Kaguya left, she gave a letter to the Emperor; the Emperor ordered his men to take the letter to the highest summit and burn it. It is said that the kanji for Mount Fuji, which when read literally means “Mountain abounding with warriors,” comes from the soldiers climbing the slopes to follow the Emperor’s orders.

The Studio Ghibli take on this ancient tale appears to be a little more light-hearted than most traditional looks at it – fitting, giving the rest of the Ghibli catalog. The film, directed by Isao Takahata, released in Japan on November 23, 2013, but sees a limited release in the United States starting on October 17, 2014. Takahata’s past film credits include producing Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind and Castle in the Sky, and directing Grave of the Fireflies, Pom Poko, and My Neighbors the Yamadas.