2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Miyazaki's Oscar winning anime is every bit as wonderful as we heard that it was, September 1, 2005
This review is from: Spirited Away [Region 3] [2 Discs] [Made in Hong Kong] (DVD)
To say that "Spirited Away" is a Japanese anime that reminds you of "Alice in Wonderland" is very true but extremely simplistic. The literary reference is intended to emphasize the overwhelming creativity of creator Hayao Miyazaki ("Princess Mononoke," "Kiki's Delivery Service," "Castle in the Sky") and is not to suggest that this film is some sort of Japanese allegory of Lewis Carroll's surreal children's classic (not to say that you cannot find some intriguing parralels between the two). What I am and everybody else who makes this comparison is trying to convey to you is that the world to which 10-year-old Chirho (voiced by Rumi Hiiragi & Daveigh Chase) is as much a wonderland as what confronted Alice down the rabbit hole, even if it is just a bathhouse in this case.
The story begins with a sullen Chirho moping about in the back of the family car as her parents take her to their new home in a new city. Then her father takes a fateful wrong turn and they discover what appears to be an abandoned theme park. But then her parents discover mountains of food, which they start greedily consuming. As Chirho explores the park things start to change and the spirits start to come out. Before she knows what has happened, her parents have been changed into pigs and Chirho finds herself in the land of the spirits. Her quest to rescue her parents and find her way home has begun.
"Spirited Away" is not as rich of a visual feast as some classic examples of anime such as "Akira" and "Metropolis," in part because Miyazaki disdains resorting to computer animation in favor of traditional animated cels. Even if there is not the overwhelming visual display of these other films there is still the attention to detail. But ultimately the reason why this is the biggest money making film in the history of Japan is because of the story, which has almost as much emotional impact on the audience as "Grave of the Fireflies" (that is a mondo compliment from my perspective because "Grave" is the one anime that I decided to own and not just rent, although I did buy a copy of "Spirited Away" for my daughter, so I can borrow it when I want). Consequently, it is not surprising that this film took over the top spot in Japanese history from "Titanic," because they both combine emotional stories with compelling visuals. I waited a long time for this movie to come out on DVD (What? An anime film come to the Zenith City? Are you joking?), and it was every bit as good as I could have ever hoped.
The Japanese title "Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi" literally translates as "The Spiriting Away of Sen and Chihiro," which will make only partial sense to you after you see the film. I was not surprised that this film was nominated for an Oscar as the Best Animated Feature Film of the Year, but I was surprised, and gratified, that it won. I have been wondering what the current state of animated art would be in the world today if they had started giving this particular Oscar out a decade earlier and anime like "Akira," "Metropolis," and "Grave of the Fireflies" were receiving wider attention if not flat out winning the award. "Spirited Away" is just the latest opportunity to open the door to the wonders of anime for an even wider audience.
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