Spirited Away

• Princess Mononoke
• Howl's Moving Castle
• My Neighbor Totoro
• Castle in the Sky
• Kiki's Delivery Service
• Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
• Porco Rosso
• Whisper of the Heart
• The Cat Returns
• Grave of the Fireflies

Joe Hisaishi's music just makes this movie jump to an astronomical level. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. Hayao Miyazaki, obviously, is an amazing director. I usually get sick of movies very quickly, but no matter how many times I watch this movie.it just takes my breath away.

It was my mistake. I am not saying that ALL children would be. She ended up being very scared and upset in a very real way. She even had nightmares. I watched this with my five year old daughter (the first hour) and she got very quiet and left the room. But the scene where snow white gets lost in the forest is not quite the same as the feeling and imagery of the this film which does not let up as does Snow White when she says "I was being silly to be scared" then starts singing. And yes-classic disney was a bit more scary.

Just watch it first and see what you think before showing small children. But I would definitly say it is for more sophisticated children/older. But those that say it is for young children probably do not have children. This movie is beautiful and I agree with many of the reviews. I should have watched it first to see.

I have nothing but love for this film. It is a "work of art" as many have said. If I had children, I would want them to see this one (after the age of 5 or 6, I'd say), but it *is* long, and the young ones could fall asleep if you're watching it at night with them. Other characters were not so kind, but you later learn why they are unkind and are able to see why compassion reigns supreme. This film is one of my favorites. I love the message of friendship, and how kindhearted the characters could be.

Well anyway, I can't recommend this movie enough. The animation is beautiful, the setting is strange and entertaining, the story is full of twists, and the characters posess alot of depth. Compared to his other films, this is one of Miyazaki's more energetic and action-packed films. Even Chihiro starts off as an unlikeably whiny girl at the beginning, but by the end, has developed courage and self-reliance. On another note, the setting of Spirited Away is strange and colorful. Also, anyone who's seen Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro might recognize the return of the soot gremlins.

Please watch it at least once. I just love the departure from black-and-white moral categories to a more morally ambigous characters, because the real world is morally ambigous. Every character posesses good and bad qualities to varying degrees. What I love most about this movie is the depth of the characters- no one is one dimensionally "evil" or "good". So, if you've seen some of his other films and couldn't stand the slow pacing of the story, then Spirited Away may be just the thing for you.

In many ways, this film is excellent. I had actually seen Spirited Away first, then My Neighbor Totoro a year later, so imagine my surprise when I recently rewatched Spirited Away and saw them. Soot gremlins. There, she must work in a bath house for the spirits until she can think of a way to escape. Spirited Away is an imaginative tale about a little girl named Chihiro who becomes trapped in the spirit world after her parents are turned into pigs for eating the spirit's food.

I was very entertained by the bizarre array of bath-house guests, the strange twisting layout of the bath-house itself, and the haunting and beatiful scenery viewed from the train.