The journey of a little girl

Rating: 8/10 (31 December 2014)

This is supposed to be my 2015 challenge but I'm starting it a little bit earlier. I have decided to watch the top 100 Must-see films of the 21st century along with some other movies I just keep postponing And so, as a writing exercise, also for the fun of thinking not just passively watching and of course for the sake of committing to the challenge , I will be posting a short review on each movie on the list.
The first movie on the list is
#100 Spirited away
So as I was waiting for the movie to buffer, thanks to my very slow internet connection that gives me plenty of time to finish my online reading list, I searched spirited away and studio Ghibli. To be frank, I didn't know much about Studio Ghibli, but apparently it's the most famous Japanese animation studio in the world, up there with Pixar and Disney. It's like you can never be disappointed with a Studio Ghibli movie, they all about quality and they never allow their movies to be cut, so it's a sure thing you will get the original story from any translated version.
Also, I didn't know much about spirited away, I was surprised to know that it's the only anime film to win an Oscar! Where was I when that happened?
The movie itself is quite magical and you get absorbed from the very first start, you get the same feeling you get when watching anime not an animated movie. I usually get bored with animated movies but never with anime and this one was quite pleasant to watch. Each one interpret spirited away in his own way, some say it's the journey from childhood to adulthood, some say it's a symbol for the fight between ego, body and mind (most interesting interpretation I have read) but the most interesting thing is to discover that there is a hidden metaphor for prostitution, children prostitution in particular intended in it. That's why I love this movie, there is more to it than meets the eye.
During the entire film I put myself in Sen's shoe and wondered what would be my reaction, I guess when you are an adult your decisions and reactions become more and more practical and less and less kind. Chihiro was always herself and took and asked only for what she needed and didn't over think any decision she took. I found that the greatness of this movie lies in the ability of the writer to look and feel the world from the eyes of a child, which is pretty hard to master. I think it's essential we look at the world from the eyes of a child every now and then, there lies creativity and kindness and a world that's still full of places to discover.
Favorite quote; "Zeniba: Once you do something, you never forget. Even if you can't remember.
It's definitely worth watching and re-watching.