-Story- [10]
The movie begins with Chihiro, a sullen 10-year-old girl, moving into a new town with her family. On the way to their new house, they take a little detour into an abandoned amusement park that becomes alive at night with spirits as the visitors. While her parents are pigging out (quite literally) on one of the food stands, she decides to do a little exploring and runs into a mysterious young boy that warns her and tells her to run away. Confused by the whole situation our main protagonist goes back to her parents to find that they have turned into hungry, free loading pigs.
She is trapped in this uncanny place with nowhere to go and no one to trust except the mysterious boy that she has just met. He tells her that she has to work in order to stay as a human and leaves her with instructions on how to acquire a job. However that is easier said than done as she is lead to the owner of the bath house; an unforgiving witch who refuses to let Chihiro work. Constant begging accompanied with crying of a very large baby, she is able to convince the evil witch into giving her a job. Thus begins the magical journey of love, compassion, bravery, deception, hardship, and the will to never give up.
There really is nothing to hate about the story of Spirited Away. From start to finish, you follow Chihiro as she learns to be independent and grow into a capable young lady in this terrifying adult world. The story is simple for younger audiences to follow along while portraying a deeper meaning for an older audience to ponder about. Every time I watch this movie I find something new, nothing big, just an extra little detail that I may have not noticed or even cared about before. It's incredible how in depth the story actually is with countless morals and themes that are involved. I don't think I have ever seen such a pure and innocent love story. Definitely a better love story than Twilight, 10 out 10.
-Art/Sound- [10]-[10]
The art style and the animations are phenomenal. There is something happening on almost every single scene. The characters move and act so lifelike it's hard to believe that it has been over a decade since the film has been released. There are a plentyl of impressive set pieces you encounter that seems too "real" because of how natural everything is. Atsushi Okui, who was in charge of the cinematography, has really outdone himself in animating what Miyazaki has envisioned in his mind. It couldn't have been done any better - a solid 10 out of 10.
My favorite thing about this whole film is the musical score. The music works so incredibly well with the entire atmosphere and the setting; it might as well be a part of the dialogue itself. It is not too overwhelming, at the same time powerful enough, that no amount of dialogue is befitting to create the mood/emotion a scene can offer. Once again a perfect 10 out of 10 no arguments here.
-Character- [10]
The characters in Spirited Away are unique to say the least. Most of the characters in the film are spirits, you can easily identify them by their appearance. The spirits may look different from humans, however; they act and think in the same mannerisms as humans do. Only major difference beyond the looks would be that night is day for them since they are of course spirits. One of the more intersting spirit in the film is No-Face, a loner spirit who gains admission to enter the bath house by Chihiro.
The major characters are very well thought out and likable. Rin being one of them, is a loud mouth outgoing worker in the bath house that becomes Chihiro's aqcuintance and a mentor. She teaches Chihiro eveything from ground up and become a support for chihiro, making the whole situation a little less of a burden for our little heroine. The more important character would be Haku, the one I mentioned as "a mysterious young boy". He is the errand boy for the owner of the bath house, Yubaba, who helps Chihiro greatly in her ordeal. 10 out 10.
-Enjoyment- [10]
Why would I watch a single movie so many times if it wasn't enjoyable? Although I do have a tendency to rewatch a lot of movies (check out Shawshank Redemption, City of God, and How to Kill a Mockingbird if you haven't already). This movie will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. From astonishing visuals and audio to exceptional plot management, everything is done right. It's simply a bliss to watch that cannot be described in words. 10 out of 10.
-Overall- [10]
Now, I haven't criticized a single thing about this movie because it really has none. The only thing bad about it is that it ends. Even the dubs are done fantastically. I have watched it in Japanese, Korean, and English versions of the movie and it was perfect. All the voice actors fit their part and nothing was out of the ordinary. I've seen a great deal of excellent films but never a movie that makes you feel that no matter how old you are, there is a kid in all of us. A cinematic masterpiece such as this comes out every so often, Miyazaki has left us with another memory that will forever be engraved in our hearts.
