Written by: Kevin Berge
Lesson 1 of Spirited Away: if the statues outside a building are creepy, don't go inside. (Image Courtesy of: mentalfloss.com)
Quick Take: Spirited Away is a mature, gripping, and emotional animated ride with beautiful animation and a story that is enticing for all ages though may be a frightening experience for younger audiences.
***This movie was released in 2001, making it nearly 15 years old. If you have not seen it yet, you can take my quick take and labeling it as a classic as a solid recommendation to go watch the film first then come back to the review. This will be a spoiler heavy review, looking at the aspects of film that make Spirited Away a classic.***
Ten year old Chihiro has lived her whole life in one place where she created a world and a life all her own. Unfortunately, that world is taken away from her when her parents decide to move to a new town and home, forcing her say goodbye to all that she has known including all the friends she has made.
As the typical story goes, she arrives in her new town, angry and upset, only for her parents to get lost in the woods, decide to explore a hidden magical temple, and enter a spirit realm where they are turned into pigs and Chihiro must forfeit her name and become a manual laborer in a spirit bath house in order to survive. You know, Spirited Away is just the typical coming-of-age story.
Animation is an art form very few have mastered over the years, but Hayao Miyazaki has managed to make animation an art form all its own with every film he makes. His laundry list of great works includes My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Princess Mononoke.
However, his preeminent work is Spirited Away, a beautiful masterpiece of an animated film about a young girl who must fend for herself and save her family after being trapped in a spirit world. It is the type of story that feels familiar, drawing from a variety of childhood tales (very noticeably, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland), until you truly dive into its world and find the magic underneath.
Among its accolades, Spirited Away is the highest grossing film in Japanese history, only hand drawn as well as only Japanese animated film to win the Academy Award for Best Animated Film, and is widely considered one of the greatest animated films ever created.
However, it is easy to take accolades for granted. Often even the best stories are only for certain audiences, and animated films generally are considered more suited for children due to their lighter touch and bending of realism. Spirited Away though is great for reasons that far outweigh its accolades or its animated film label.
Ten year old Chihiro has lived her whole life in one place where she created a world and a life all her own. Unfortunately, that world is taken away from her when her parents decide to move to a new town and home, forcing her say goodbye to all that she has known including all the friends she has made.
As the typical story goes, she arrives in her new town, angry and upset, only for her parents to get lost in the woods, decide to explore a hidden magical temple, and enter a spirit realm where they are turned into pigs and Chihiro must forfeit her name and become a manual laborer in a spirit bath house in order to survive. You know, Spirited Away is just the typical coming-of-age story.
Animation is an art form very few have mastered over the years, but Hayao Miyazaki has managed to make animation an art form all its own with every film he makes. His laundry list of great works includes My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Princess Mononoke.
However, his preeminent work is Spirited Away, a beautiful masterpiece of an animated film about a young girl who must fend for herself and save her family after being trapped in a spirit world. It is the type of story that feels familiar, drawing from a variety of childhood tales (very noticeably, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland), until you truly dive into its world and find the magic underneath.
Among its accolades, Spirited Away is the highest grossing film in Japanese history, only hand drawn as well as only Japanese animated film to win the Academy Award for Best Animated Film, and is widely considered one of the greatest animated films ever created.
However, it is easy to take accolades for granted. Often even the best stories are only for certain audiences, and animated films generally are considered more suited for children due to their lighter touch and bending of realism. Spirited Away though is great for reasons that far outweigh its accolades or its animated film label.
Just your regular ghost-haunted train ride. (Image Courtesy of: tradyouth.org)
Spirited Away begins with whimsy even a sense of the conventional, but its brassy score by Joe Hisaishi (who composed the score for nearly every Miyazaki film) gives the hints of what is come with an adventurous and foreboding tension in the background.
Just as Chihiro watches the world turn on her, the score places that tension into the forefront and begins the fantastical ride of this two hour adventure that flies by faster than most of the typical 90 minute animated films. Chihiro looks on in wonder and fear as her world turns to a whole new breadth of colors, and she meets a whole host of fascinatingly designed spirits.
Where Spirited Away immediately hits home is in its art style. The hand drawn characters all stand out in their frightening and bizarre ways while the environment almost look like they've been pulled right out of a painting. The dominant shades are red and blue, but there is quite a bit of variety to the art in terms of style and shading.
When I first saw the film, I was ten and was terrified out of my mind. From a spider legged man to a vicious hungry blob that hits all it can get a hold of, there is nightmare fuel in this film that is most certainly not for children including the sight of the dragon Haku bleeding to death from an attack by flying paper men.
Still, I watched the movie again the next day all the time. There was something about the story and the world that stuck with me. There were certain frightening and scary moments, but there was also no good or evil to the story, only characters who acted of their own self interest and hidden compassion.
Similarly, Chihiro is not just a simple heroine but a scared, frail girl who finds her strength through her indomitable trait: her perseverance. She is clumsy and lost and barely holding together, and her friendliness almost destroys the spirit world she is trying to escape. However, she gains the respect and admiration of those around her by always moving forward rather than dwelling on her misfortune.
Just as Chihiro watches the world turn on her, the score places that tension into the forefront and begins the fantastical ride of this two hour adventure that flies by faster than most of the typical 90 minute animated films. Chihiro looks on in wonder and fear as her world turns to a whole new breadth of colors, and she meets a whole host of fascinatingly designed spirits.
Where Spirited Away immediately hits home is in its art style. The hand drawn characters all stand out in their frightening and bizarre ways while the environment almost look like they've been pulled right out of a painting. The dominant shades are red and blue, but there is quite a bit of variety to the art in terms of style and shading.
When I first saw the film, I was ten and was terrified out of my mind. From a spider legged man to a vicious hungry blob that hits all it can get a hold of, there is nightmare fuel in this film that is most certainly not for children including the sight of the dragon Haku bleeding to death from an attack by flying paper men.
Still, I watched the movie again the next day all the time. There was something about the story and the world that stuck with me. There were certain frightening and scary moments, but there was also no good or evil to the story, only characters who acted of their own self interest and hidden compassion.
Similarly, Chihiro is not just a simple heroine but a scared, frail girl who finds her strength through her indomitable trait: her perseverance. She is clumsy and lost and barely holding together, and her friendliness almost destroys the spirit world she is trying to escape. However, she gains the respect and admiration of those around her by always moving forward rather than dwelling on her misfortune.
Add another dragon to add to my dragon-obsessed youth. (Image Courtesy of: unionfilms.org)
There is nothing extraneous about Spirited Away. Every piece fits and feel necessary for the whole. It is a piece of art that does not go beyond its boundaries as most films have a tendency to do, rather using every inch of the canvas to convey details.
It is difficult to critique even small aspects of the movie's overarching story and characters because they are all a part of such a meticulously crafted piece of art. Its dark edges lead into a satisfyingly sentimental conclusion where this young girl doesn't just realize how ready she is to find a place in a new home but transforms the spirit world she has encountered through her perseverance.
With most Japanese films and television, there is always a question of how well the writing will translate from Japanese to English. There is an elegance to watching and listening to the film in its original Japanese, but the English translation is impeccable as well, standing on its own.
Originally written by Miyazaki, the translation was directed by Pixar's John Lasseter (Toy Story) who brings the same magic to the film in English with a strong cast of voice actors including Daveigh Chase who voiced Chihiro (Lilo & Stitch), Jason Marsden who voiced Haku (A Goofy Movie), Susan Egan who voiced Lin (Hercules), and David Ogden Stiers who voiced Kamajii (Beauty and the Beast).
To define Miyazaki's work by a single movie would be unfair to him particularly given his impeccable track record though most any filmmaker would be proud to be defined by a film as beautiful and powerful as Spirited Away. It is not just one of the greatest animated films ever created but one of the greatest films, regardless of its medium.
Of all the movies I have ever seen, Spirited Away is the one I struggle most to criticize and critique because it is so perfectly constructed. Spirited Away is the benchmark of coming-of-age stories, engagingly affecting and mature with a sentimental core that can speak to those of all ages.
It is difficult to critique even small aspects of the movie's overarching story and characters because they are all a part of such a meticulously crafted piece of art. Its dark edges lead into a satisfyingly sentimental conclusion where this young girl doesn't just realize how ready she is to find a place in a new home but transforms the spirit world she has encountered through her perseverance.
With most Japanese films and television, there is always a question of how well the writing will translate from Japanese to English. There is an elegance to watching and listening to the film in its original Japanese, but the English translation is impeccable as well, standing on its own.
Originally written by Miyazaki, the translation was directed by Pixar's John Lasseter (Toy Story) who brings the same magic to the film in English with a strong cast of voice actors including Daveigh Chase who voiced Chihiro (Lilo & Stitch), Jason Marsden who voiced Haku (A Goofy Movie), Susan Egan who voiced Lin (Hercules), and David Ogden Stiers who voiced Kamajii (Beauty and the Beast).
To define Miyazaki's work by a single movie would be unfair to him particularly given his impeccable track record though most any filmmaker would be proud to be defined by a film as beautiful and powerful as Spirited Away. It is not just one of the greatest animated films ever created but one of the greatest films, regardless of its medium.
Of all the movies I have ever seen, Spirited Away is the one I struggle most to criticize and critique because it is so perfectly constructed. Spirited Away is the benchmark of coming-of-age stories, engagingly affecting and mature with a sentimental core that can speak to those of all ages.
Final verdict:
Three Defining Success
Three Defining Success
- Beautiful art style that is painstakingly detailed and vibrant.
- A story both intensely familiar and engagingly original with characters that are memorable and complex.
- Strong score that continuously moves and shapes film's tone.
- Created with too dark a world and tone for younger children to sit through to get to the lighthearted conclusion.