For the third installment of Miyazaki Madness, it's time to turn to what is quite possibly Miyazaki's most iconic movie, My Neighbor Totoro. When someone says Miyazaki, or even anime movies in general for some people, one of the first things that comes to mind is probably this movie. Totoro himself has also become an incredibly iconic character, featured in the logo of Studio Ghibli and being referenced to or cameoing in multitudes of things (my favorite is the Totoro plush in Toy Story 3). So, does this iconic movie live up to the hype or is it all growl, no bite?
Our story begins with a father and his two daughters moving out to a slightly run-down old house far out in the country. When they get there, the two girls, Satsuki and Mei, immediately take to exploring the house and marveling at... well, just about anything, including a rotting support beam. The strangest things are small, harmless creatures called soot sprites, said to inhabit old empty houses. They make a mess, but they're shy and they mostly leave the family alone.
We soon find out the girl's mother is in the hospital, though for what is never quite made clear. The story then continues along with everyday life until, while exploring the nearby forest one day, Mei stumbles upon some small mysterious creatures and eventually a huge version - a gray, furry, sleepy, friendly bear-like spirit that she names Totoro after the sound of its growls. From here, it mostly just continues with everyday life, sprinkled with some magical moments with Totoro and ending with a bit of drama.
So, for the story. There really is no story, no plot. This movie is really just a movie about life and experiences, specifically the magical and wonderful experiences life has to offer through the eyes of a child. The whole movie revolves around these experiences, both the regular, more routine experiences of everyday life (seen through the excited eyes of a child), and the supernatural and wonderful experiences the girls share with Totoro, and outside of the last 15 minutes or so, there's no actual issues or drama present in the movie.
Do not take this as a negative, however, as Totoro delivers these experiences in such a wonderful and appealing way that feels so magical and amazing that it makes you feel just like a child again. On one hand you'll be marveling at Totoro and the mystical things he can do, and on the other you'll be connecting with the incredibly realistic events portrayed during the everyday lives of the family. For Totoro, it's not about the destination but the journey and loving every minute of it. This may not suit everyone's tastes, but for me it was very enjoyable and fascinating.
For the characters, the main cast consists of the two girls and Totoro. Both of the main girls are completely charming and adorable while also being very relatable, though for different reasons. Satsuki really feels like a still-young older sister without a mother around. She's very responsible and is always looking out for Mei, but still gets excited about little things and can't always handle the things going on in her life. On the other hand Mei feels like a real toddler/preschooler, constantly amazed by everything going on around her, clinging to her older sister, and not always understanding the seriousness of events or her actions. They're both great characters that you really come to like and care about.
Totoro is just completely loveable and charming. He really embodies that sort of whimsy and magic of a child's imagination and feels like a real version of an imaginary friend that you could have all kinds of adventures with as a kid. The mystique that he and the other creatures bring to the film are really what make it so great and not just a window of everyday life. The supporting cast, like the girls, also feel incredibly realistic and help to make the film that much more connectable.
The animation is top notch, beautiful hand drawn traditional animation that's in all these movies. There's a great attention to detail, from the little extra things added to a scene, to the way things move; nothing is overlooked and it lends itself to an amazing visual experience. Like I said the animation moves as good as anything I've seen and all the little touches are there so that the movie just never looks bad. It seems to me to be a bit of a jumping point, as Totoro definitely had a better look to it more similar to the later movies than either Nausicaa or Castle did.
When it comes to the music, there's really not much to say as there's not a whole lot of music present in the movie. This fits the movie very well though IMO, as it's a movie about everyday life and experiences and I just think a frequently present soundtrack would detract from this. I will note, however, that the English opening song was just bad. It just sounded a bit too silly and kiddy, even for a lighthearted movie like this. The dub, as tends to be the case with Disney's dubs, was pretty exceptional. All the characters brought the right level of emotion to the table and made almost every scene feel just right. Dakota Fanning and her real life sister Elle Fanning both do great jobs as Satsuki and Mei Kusakabe; their voices seem to have the perfect level of charm and energy while still sounding believable.
So in the end, My Neighbot Totoro stands out as a memorable, magical experience filled with charming characters, beautiful art, and an amazing feeling of imagination. It's probably rests pretty firmly as one of my favorite of all of Miyazaki's movies and I really feel that any anime fan should see it at some point, even if just to say they've seen this iconic movie. I also fully recommend it as a kids movie for anyone not into anime as well. The movie really lived up to the hype and deserves all it's acclaim.
That's all for today, tune in next time for Miyazaki's next film, Kiki's Delivery Service! So long!
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