Cultural References Are Not All A Film Is About

Rating: 10/10 (31 May 2007)

Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (Spirited Away) by Hayao Miyazaki is one of the better Anime out there. It's a tale of a girl named Chihiro and her parent's misguided ways and what happens to her as a result of it. Looking at this film at just its face value will make the message all but disappear. The first time I watched it, I didn't have much of the cultural background to understand all the references to Asian Culture nor did I think it had a real underlying message other than what was present in the actual story. After looking at the film from the viewpoint of conflicting modern and traditional values, with knowledge of the culture, everything that the film represents can begin to be deciphered.
This message may be lost on some, its something needed to receive the full message and meaning of Miyazaki's films. For example in Miyazaki's Mononoke-Hime (Princess Mononoke) there is a more obvious conflict between tradition and modernity, because of the industrialization of the land. There are some obvious points in all of his films but without knowing what Miyazaki's point is the full message can be lost. His films can be seen as just interesting and entertaining Anime but there is a deeper meaning to them other than just purely entertainment.
I'd recommend Spirited Away to anyone who has an open mind and is able to enjoy Anime or Cartoon films in general. There are a lot of messages that will be lost on most people but this shouldn't throw anyone off. The film has an underlying message to it but that's not the only thing the film deals with. Without knowing anything about the culture, or very little about it, people can still find what the message is. This is what is great about Miyazaki's films even without much knowledge of the cultural reference the meaning of the movie can still be seen. Modernity corrupts everything and that no matter what people do the younger generation is the only generation who can actually change the world for the better.