Spirited Away

What is it about Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away that makes it one of his best, if not the best, films? Perhaps it's because it best expresses his most distinguishing themes and concepts—a young woman's bravery and endurance, the ecstatic grandeur of flight, the spiritual conflict of personal and cultural forgetfulness with Japanese society, and the restorative power of love. Perhaps it has something to do with the film's central conceit being so archetypally recognized, not so much a modern reworking as a spiritual evocation of Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, a childhood voyage in a realm that feels both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time.

Chihiro Ogino, ten, and her parents are on their way to their new house when her father decides to take a shortcut. The family's automobile comes to a stop in front of what looks to be an abandoned amusement park, which Chihiro's father insists on investigating despite his daughter's protests. They come upon an apparently vacant restaurant that is still packed with food, which Chihiro's parents promptly start eating. Chihiro continues her exploration and comes into an immense bathhouse, where she encounters a kid named Haku, who warns her to return across the riverbank before dark. Chihiro, on the other hand, finds too late that her parents have transformed into pigs, and she is unable to cross the now-flooded river.

Detailed Information:
Year: 2001
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Stars: Rumi Hiiragi, Miyu Irino, Mari Natsuki, Yumi Tamai
Rating: PG
Runtime: 125 minutes