More Sophisticated And Less Spirited Than Early Miyazaki

Rating: 5/10 (27 August 2004)

(A Little Spoilers Included)
As Hayao Miyazaki's fame grows internationally, his Japanimation productions become more sophisticated, more aware of the Western audience (In Spirited Away, the viewers can see the Western influence on some characters' facial features, most namely, Yubaba's), and, at the same time, less spirited than his earlier works. While Spirited Away may be one of the most well-designed productions of his, the story is relatively simple and focuses on a single argument, greed, which occasionally gets too ugly. Some settings are weak or absurd without reasonable explanations (e.g., why does Yubaba have to offer a job to anyone who's willing to work? What's the point that Haku, the lover of Sen/Chihiro, used to be a river in "our" world?). Composer Jo Hisaishi appropriately enhances the neutral nature of the film with a John-Adams-ish indistinguishable post-minimalism score.