I don't really know how to review movies, so I'll just dive right in with subjective impressions and uninformed critical perspectives. Frankly, I really love this movie. I'll admit that it's a bit weird, and sometimes things just don't make sense. But it's fanciful, absolutely gorgeous to watch, and awakens a sense of wonder within me. I love the colors, I love the creativity of the world, and I love the simple beauty and humanity which comes through so strongly throughout the film. I'd like to give a quick synopsis, but I'm honestly not even sure what happens. Basically a girl and her parents accidentally wander into some world of spirits, her parents get turned into pigs, and she has to go work at the spiritual bath house (run by a witch, of course) in order to save her parents and get back to the real world. The characters are funny, occasionally grotesque, and always interesting. Some of them, particularly No-Face, are even quite moving. Chihiro is a fine heroine, if perhaps a bit too perfect in her unfailing kindness and courage. What really gets me about the movie, though, is the music. While Miyazaki films tend to be full of wild scenery, imaginative animation, and top notch voice acting, nothing says Miyazaki to me quite so much as those beautiful, sparse piano scores that accompany his films. When the music is married to the artistry and heart of the film, the result is nothing short of moving. Not only is this a great
animated film, it's just a great film all-around. Though bizarre and unconventional, especially for American viewers, Spirited Away is a top notch example of the power of anime to convey emotion and deliver important moral lessons.
Spirited Away (2001)
PG, 125 Minutes
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Writer: Hayao Miyazaki
Score: 9/10
Watch this film if: You love beautiful colors, enchanting animation, delightful characters, and don't mind a healthy dose of the bizarre.
Don't watch this film if: You aren't particularly open to anime (if that's the case you should start with
Howl's Moving Castle), or just simply prefer live action. Also if abstract and artistic films aren't up your alley.
I still need to see this. I haven't yet breached the Anime barrier in my film viewership.
ReplyDeleteYou've at least seen The Last Airbender series, so that's a start. If you want to explore proper anime I'd start with Howl's Moving Castle or The Secret World of Arrietty. They're just as beautiful as Spirited Away, but not as abstract and bizarre. Still, Spirited Away is considered by most critics to be the best anime in the last twenty years or so.
ReplyDeleteIt took me a couple of viewings to like this movie. In my untrained opinion, the animation is kind of choppy and primitive, but other qualities redeem the it. I LOVE its flexible development of story line, characters, and setting (A train going through the ocean? How awesome is THAT?). The movie's abstractness really captures childhood imagination, but it never detracts from universal themes. And yeah, the soundtrack is outstanding. A child version of Kubla Khan, I'd say.
ReplyDeleteYes, you've perfectly captured that magic of Spirited Away. It's like a fanciful dream that has been captured and given to the viewers as a gift.
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