Kiki’s Delivery Services
Many years before Rowling started crafting her famous Harry Potter franchises, a Japanese author called Eiko Kadono decided to publish her books, Kiki's Delivery Services, about an apprentice little witch; she counts on her great flying abilities to find some jobs to do in the huge city. Just like Totoro, she has then become one of the most recognizable characters in Japanese animation history after Ghibli's movie adaptation - along with Jiji, the cute black kitten that has accompanied Kiki to Koriko town.
Here, Kiki successfully captures the attention of Tombo, a teen boy obsessed with aeronautics. As the two met, the movie unfolds a lovely tale of friendship between them. It's speculated that Hayao Miyazaki probably sees his younger shelf in Tombo - given his lifelong passion for aviation. This is a theme featuring prominently throughout most of Hayao's movies, with flying contraptions and floating cities.
On another note, Kiki's Delivery Services introduces its little heroine with quite a challenge: uncertain of her capabilities and living far away from home, Kiki slowly finds out that her flying talents seem to fade- a wonderful metaphor for growing up. Straightforwardness serves the movie very well, as it invites the audience to empathize with the girl who has to leave her fantasy and childlike dream behind to start getting familiarized with reality.
Year of Release: 1989
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 98%
