Great animation; good movie

Rating: 8/10 (25 December 2002)

This Japanese film, which I saw under the title "Spirited Away," has glorious animation. However, I found it somewhat long and often repetitive.
It probably makes better cultural sense in Japan, without dubbing, but the basic concepts of loyalty, truth, bravery, and sacrifice transcend cultural differences.
The main character, Sen, is totally believable as a young girl in a bizarre setting, who learns to adapt to new people, new customs, and new emergencies. When Sen sets her jaw and follows through on a plan, I felt like saying, "Yes! Go for it, Sen."
Warning: I would hesitate to take young children to this film. It has many frightening scenes, and could be the source of nightmares or worse, even in today's kids who have "seen it all."