Hayao Miyazaki's Magnum Opus? Possibly Yes!

Rating: Null/10 (23 May 2014)

A marvel of originality, a standard of cinematic vision & a stunning work of art, Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away presents the master storyteller revelling at the prime of his filmmaking career by blending together all the ingredients of his previous works into one mystically magical adventure that'll have its viewers intrigued, transfixed & transported to a whole new different world from start to finish.
Spirited Away is a coming-of-age drama, adventure, comedy, romance & fantasy, all merged into one, and concerns Chihiro; a 10-year old girl who, while moving to a new neighbourhood with her parents, gets stuck in the world of gods, witches & monsters. After her parents are turned into pigs by the witch Yubaba, Chihiro takes up a job at the witch's bathhouse in order to free herself & her parents from the magic spell and return to the human world.
After setting an animation benchmark with his remarkable epic i.e. Princess Mononoke, writer-director Hayao Miyazaki comes out of his self-imposed retirement to set another standard & delivers the most artistic work of his glorious career. The film is abundant with his trademarks, recurrent themes, allegories & fascinating characters yet it retains the innocence & childlike sense of wonder to eventually deliver a truly spellbinding experience.
There isn't a single scene in the film that doesn't display the wonderful craftsmanship of the people working at Studio Ghibli, the themes of environmental pollution, greed & the passage to adulthood is carefully portrayed plus the 2D animation is simply astonishing. The plot is nicely structured & finely paced while the characters make the drama more compelling & are cleverly fleshed-out in the script. And Joe Hisaishi's score adds even more richness to an already amazing story.
On an overall scale, Spirited Away is a masterpiece of bold, creative & fearless imagination that takes its genre to a whole new level and despite its complexity, it can be enjoyed by viewers of all ages. Many hail this anime as Miyazaki's magnum opus & even though I don't share the same view, I can see why it's called so. One of Miyazaki's most ambitious features, one of Studio Ghibli's greatest accomplishments & one of world cinema's highly treasured gems, Spirited Away will take your breath away. Highly recommended.