Beautiful film for film-lovers or children

Rating: 10/10 (6 December 2002)

This is a great film either for adults or adults looking for a great film for their kids to watch. Unlike other Miyazake films, Totoro is set in contemporary rural Japan, and aims at a younger audience. Like his other films, it is beautifully animated and scored, with an engaging and moving story line. It also centres on a strong girl heroine and a fantasy world. It also has the tightest plot structure of Miyazake's movies, which is to say, it lacks the complexity of his more adult-orientated works. Aside from the wonderful characters and sensitive story-line, it is a great glimpse into Japanese rural life, from roadside shrines to family bathing. It also beats Disney movies hands down for depth of characterization, mood and general quirkiness. And unlike Disney movies, it has a story, rather than a formula. The premise concerns a father and his two daughters who move into an old house while the mother convalesces in a nearby hospital. The story explores the emotions aroused by this move, adjustment to rural life and the mother's illness in an understated way. However, the real fun is the magical parallel world that the girls discover in their backyard.