Story:
The plot of Spirited Away bears a strong similarity to Alice in Wonderland. Both feature young girls stranding in a bizarre fantasy world, struggling to get back home. There are a lot of strange creatures and magic happening. For somebody from the west, some of these things may appear even weirder, but since we are in a fairy tale, that shouldn't bother you. Instead of going forward, this movie takes a couple of turns that may make it hard to follow for the very young viewers, but in general I can say that this is an entertaining ride.
7/10
Art:
I gotta be honest, Ghibli art is not my thing. That doesn't mean it's bad, not at all. Everything works well in the fantasy world, it gives all those creatures unique features and the weirdness that they are supposed to represent. I didn't really get into the humans though. Chihiros facial expressions were really weird at times, not giving the vibe of "normalness" that should probably be there to contrast the magical world she is thrown into.
7/10
Sound:
Spirited Away does not feature much of a soundtrack, at least not noticeable. The music felt like it was trying to be on Disney level, but it didn't really work that way. The voice actors did a good job and gave their respective characters a little more depth.
6/10
Characters:
Thankfully the number of important characters is not as big as in, say, Akira. Still it felt like some could have gotten a a little more scenes. Rin for example was an interesting character that had less screentime than I would have liked. But I can't say anything bad about the characters themselves, all feel well designed and fulfill their function. Most are likeable, while Yubaba is a classic evil witch type of character.
7/10
Enjoyment:
I seem to have not enjoyed the movie as much as most other people. That doesn't mean I didn't like it, but it will never make it in my favourite movie collection. Maybe it's because I'm not the target audience and can't relate to Chihiros quest much. It is a good movie, a great movie for children. It's just not my cup of tea in the long run. I did not regret seeing it though, but so many people have praised Spirited Away that I felt nitpicking was more appropriate for this review.
6/10
Overall:
6.6/10
I have to go now, I can see some torches and pitchforks outside my window.
