Alternative TitlesSynonyms: Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi, Chihiros Reise ins Zauberland Japanese: 千と千尋の神隠し
Information
Type: Movie
Episodes: 1
Status: Finished Airing
Aired: Jul 20, 2001
Duration:
2 hr. 5 min. Rating:
PG - Children
L represents licensing company
StatisticsScore: 8.781 (scored by 45202 users)
Ranked: #182
Popularity: #14
Members: 56,890
Favorites: 1,371 1 indicates a weighted score
My Info
Popular Tags
adventure drama fantasy ghibli supernatural |
SynopsisOn the way to their new home, 10-year old Chihiro Ogino’s family stumbles upon a deserted theme park. Intrigued, the family investigates the park, though unbeknown to them, it is secretly inhabited by spirits who sleep by day and appear at night. When Chihiro’s mother and father eat food from a restaurant in the street, angry spirits turns them into pigs. Furthermore, a wide sea has appeared between the spirit world and the human one, trapping Chihiro, the sole human, in a land of spirits. Luckily for her though, a mysterious boy named Haku appears, claiming to know her from the past. Under his instructions, Chihiro secures a job in the bathhouse where Haku works. With only her courage and some new found friends to aid her, Chihiro embarks on a journey to turn her parents back to their original forms and return home.
[Written by MAL Rewrite] |
Related AnimeAdaptation: Spirited Away
Characters & Voice Actors
Staff
Reviews
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Aeterna
53 of 72 people found this review helpful
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1 of 1 episodes seen
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| Overall |
10 |
| Story |
10 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Character |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
When I first saw the movie, I didn't see what the big deal was. All right, so a girl gets whisked away to a fantasy world? We've heard that story before. And, unlike many other movies, there's no dramatic love story or epic battles and action scenes to keep you at the edge of your seat. Consequently, I didn't think of it as being very exciting.
Still, I watched it again and, for some reason, I got it the second time around. Spirited Away isn't meant to be anything grand, with all the bells and whistles. It has a quiet, subdued way of telling a simple story about a simple girl in a very strange world. Instead of expecting something huge, just sit back, watch, and appreciate the world and story Miyazaki has finely crafted for us all to enjoy.
To get to the technical aspects...
The art is, of course, amazing. The colours are rich and the animation is fluid. When Chihiro and her family first walk into the spirit world, you can practically feel the breeze as you watch it whisk through the grass. The lights of the spirit world at night are breathtaking. And watching the train ride closer to the end of the movie, coupled with the amazing music score (the track is called "The Sixth Station"), remains one of my most favourite animation sequences out of anything I've seen. Which brings me to another point: the music.
I will get this out of the way first - Joe Hisaishi is one of my favourite composers. His music style is very simple, but he makes every note count. Most of his music is quite subdued in nature and takes a careful ear to notice when your eyes are being captivated by what's going on in the screen, but do take notice if you have the chance. Or search on YouTube for videos of his live performances. His music is a joy to listen to. Like with Spirited Away, Hisaishi's music lacks all the "bells and whistles" per se, but it's beauty lies in its simplicity. Hisaishi has not failed here in Spirited Away.
I dearly loved the characters. One of the best parts of this movie, for me, was that it lacked any clear good or evil characters. Everyone has a bit of both, though perhaps some allow the evil sides of them to come out a bit more obviously than others. In this way, it's very realistic. Granted, the characters were all quite predictable and Chihiro grated on my nerves at times, but overall, I enjoyed each and every one of the characters Miyazaki has create here.
Overall, Spirited Away is one of my favourite movies and will always be a treasured item in my small DVD collection. It requires some patience to get through since it's not packed with action or drama, but it's a nice fairy tale to watch and enjoy. read more
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kiriska
33 of 62 people found this review helpful
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1 of 1 episodes seen
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| Overall |
8 |
| Story |
8 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Character |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
As an Oscar-nominated animated feature by a world renowned director and studio, everyone had high expectations for this movie.
STORY - I rather liked the basic premise for this movie; it's very simple and reminiscent of a lot of traditional Asian children's stories, not to mention My Neighbor Totoro, with the whole moving away thing. In addition to Chihiro's task of saving her parents, the story very quickly expands to include an assortment of other strange characters, all with their issues and goals, and there are times when we are completely wrapped up in these secondary characters' problems. This makes it almost seem like Spirited Away should have been a short anime series rather than a full-length film. The randomness of some of the side stories really disconnected from the main plot, and I felt like it was a bit too unfocused at times.
Still, all of the subplots were entertaining, and if you look at the movie as a story of friendship and growth as well, then I suppose they could all be considered relevant. It also adds an element of realism to the film, since it's sometimes difficult to concentrate solely on one matter when there's so much else going on. The scatteredness of everything is also rather typical of Miyazaki's style, so most fans are probably used to it anyway. In the end, it's really just a matter of personal preference in the way of storytelling.
CHARACTER - I'm not sure how much I actually sympathized with Chihiro. By now, if you've been reading any of my other reviews, you would know that I'm not a big fan of characters with spotless morals, and Chihiro is one of them. She always knows what the right thing to do is, is never greedy, and never does errs on the side of "darkness," even for a little bit. This is especially evident in the No-Face incident. Being primarily a children's movie, I can understand the need for a role model, but I also think it would be easier to relate to Chihiro if she made some mistakes.
The rest of the cast is a bit better with having varied principles. The ambiguity of Haku's alliance was an interesting element that I enjoyed, though once again, it did irk me that Chihiro seemed unwaivering in her good judgment. Zeniiba and Yu-Baaba were rather generic as characters, but as a huge Alice in Wonderland fan, I did appreciate the references to the Duchess and her gigantic baby. The collection of creatures that came to follow Chihiro around were a little gimmicky, but they weren't very important and were fun to watch, so I guess there really isn't a point in critiquing that too much.
ARTSTYLE & ARTWORK - I don't think I've ever been a big fan of how people are drawn in Miyazaki's style, but it's bothered me the most in Spirited Away. Chihiro looks like a monkey to me. I can't un-see it! That's just me though, I know. The rest of the art is, as usual, gorgeous. All of the bath house guests, the creatures that appeared now and again, all of the details in the wrinkles and warts of the old women -- they were all great. And not to mention the detail in the environment! Every door and wall and floor and machine looked amazing, and if you paused the movie on a background, you could spend ten minutes just looking for and staring at all the little details that were included. It aways blows me away the kind of time and effort they spend on things that the audience only sees for about five seconds at a time. Just beautiful.
MUSIC - I wouldn't consider Spirited Away one of Joe Hisaishi's best scores, especially not compared to something like Princess Mononoke. Still, the tracks were always very fitting and appropriate, fun when need be, suspenseful when need be, as should be expected of any soundtrack.
VOICE ACTING - I've seen both the sub and dub. Stick with the former. Chihiro's English voice just irritated the hell out of me, and while admittedly, her Japanese original isn't all that much better, it's somehow easier to bear. Haku's English voice also could have been much better, and I really wasn't impressed with how most of his lines were delivered. Zeniiba and Yu-Baaba had pretty nice English voices, but I think it's a lot easier to cast for older characters since there isn't as much variation to their voices. The Japanese performance isn't outrageously amazing by any means, but it's at least better than the dub.
OVERALL - I liked Spirited Away. Though the pacing wasn't that great and some parts dragged on for much longer than they should have, as long as you're watching it with friends, it remains an entertaining film with lots of visual grandeur. And maybe if you emptied your head a bit and tried to think like a kid, you'd enjoy it just a little more, rather than being a grouchy, old critic like me. D;
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Recommendations
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Similar Animation and Storyline (Disney-like)
Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle are visually stunning experiences with a strong surreal underpinning behind coming of age narratives. In both movies a magical world unfolds before bewildered young heroines who must claim a new position within apparent chaos. Spirited Away is more hectic and upbeat while Howl's focus on darker themes such as war and violence. Yet both invoke the same spirit of beautiful natural scenes rendered sublime by Miyazaki's unique style.
A mystical and enchanted storyline of romance permeates both of these wonderful creations by the same director
Weird mystical magical realms
This two great movies have the same creator and they both contain great stories about curse, love, and drama at the same time. If you'll notice upon watching them, the way they were drawn was also the same. In characters Haku(Spirited away) and Howl(HMC) are look alike. Both movies have great lessons and that after you watch them they will left a good memory.
It's by the same producer. The art work looks the same and the movies have the same feel to them.
It's the same producer. IMO spirited away is way better than this movie
As you all likely know already, both Howl's Moving Castle and Spirited Away are the brainchild of Hayao Miyazaki; however, the two films share numerous similarities in addition to Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki's style.
Perhaps the greatest overbearing theme in both movies is the use of surreality bordering upon absurdism. Miyazaki is a master of this style. His movies are filled with surreal and inventive worlds and magical, unique characters. More so than any of his other films, Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle invoke the same feeling of wonder to their majestic settings.
As far as the narrative goes, both movies are centered two young and bewildered coming of age heroins and their sojourns through the new and fantastic worlds they are discovering. Along the way, love, compassion, curiosity and development are evident in each of the protagonists. Miyazaki's protagonists are quite akin to Alice from Lewis Carrol's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, featuring young female leads as they journey through newly discovered mystical worlds.
Although Howl's Moving Castle contains a slightly darker theme with a violent war ravaging the world and Spirited Away has a lighter and more upbeat feel, both are excellent films laden heavy with Miyazaki's beautiful and sublime visions coupled with a mystical, romantic adventure.
Besides that both are made from Hayao Miyazaki, they both represent pure love and friendship. Spirited Away is about a girl, Chihiro, who depends on her friends to save her family from the magical world which they do not belong in and Howl's Moving Castle's, Sophie, relies on her friends, one of them supplies major eye candy, to release her from a curse. They both have happy endings and are films that are in my top ten favorite movies (Spirited Away is one of Roger Ebert's favorite movies) and they will definitely be yours too.
Same director, similar artwork and both are great films! Go Hayao!
They have the same atmosphere and are directed by Hayao Miyazaki
Like magic? Like inventive transportation? The creators of Spirited Away and the talented voices of Billy Crystal, Lauren Bacall, Christian Bale, Jean Simmons, and Emily Mortimer bring Howl's Moving Castle to life. See a world where wizards and witches fight in a war and curses are cast on the innocent so nothing and no one is quite what it seems.
The plots are different but both have a girl as the protagonist as they accidently get involved in another world full of magical elements and fantasy.
Both have gorgeous art and they both dwell in fantasy and the supernatural. They also have the same producers so they have similar art styles. What's more, they both have fascinating plots and lovable characters.
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Both are about Youkai. Well, Spirited Away is a wonderfull movie, completely must to see for everyone. The ones who enjoyed Natsume's story will love Chihiro.
similiar style of heart-warming supernatural story with similiar facinating ghosts characters. Touching scenes & stories..
If you liked this anime you will definitely like Spirited Away, the main character in both animes can see spirits and they have to deal with them through it.
Natsume Yuujinchou...
Natsume Yuujinchou revolves around a phycic teenage boy named Takashi Natsume, who is hounded by spirits on a regular basis.
Recently, Takashi's grandmother Reiko passed away, leaving him the mysterious 'Natsume book of friends'.
Reiko, in her youth, was quite a myschevious girl, who would challange spirits in the codition that if she won, she would seal their name in her notebook, rendering them a servant to her.
Upon inheriting this book, Natsume is faced with more spirits, those wanting thier names returned, and those out to steal the book in order to gain servants.
Spirited Away...
Spirited away revolves around a young girl named Chihiro, who, with her parent, walk into what they belive is an abandoned themepark. This is a trap.
After her parents are turned into pigs, the residents of this loccation finally appear, only to be revealed a series of bizzare spirits.
Chihiro is rescued by a mysterious young boy who knows nothing about his past, he advise's to keep her head down in order not to gain attention.
We soon discover that a which is dictating this spirit wold and stealing the name and identity of others, who have no choice but to serve her.
Natsume YuuJinchou has quite the oppsosite storyline to Spirited away, yet inspite of this, their are great similarities...
Spirited Away - A sweet little girl gets stranded in the spirit world, being the only human
Natsume Yuujinchou - A pleasant teenage orphaned boy, see spirits in his everyday life
Spirited Away - Thoses in the spirit world have their names taken from them, i.e. losing their identity and freedom
Natsume Yuujinchou - Many spirits have had their names stolen from them and sealed in the book of friends, i.e. losing their freedom
Both stories feature sweet, lovable main characters, who have a shapeshifting spirt acting as bodygaurd.
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Opening Theme"Day of the River/Ano hi no kawa" by Joe Hisaishi
Ending Theme"Itsumo Nando demo (Always with Me)" by Yumi Kimura
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