Film 65 in the “1001 Films to See Before You Die” challenge is 2001’s “Spirited Away”. Or to give it other title, “Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi”. This is the first time where I watch a film and I can’t describe what I saw. Not because I can’t remember it, but because I saw so much and taking in every piece of scenery and every character’s expressions left me in amazement. It’s one of those cases where I don’t want to say anything about it and just let everyone go and watch it. I absolutely fell in love with some of the backgrounds and just the way Hayao Miyazaki put everything together. Speaking of Miyazaki, in 2002, he was quoted in saying this about the film “It’s not me who makes the film. The film makes itself, and I have no choice but to follow.” When I found out that this made the list, I smiled and got excited and I wasn’t sure why. I remembered seeing bits of this film in either primary or high school and just loved everything and many years later, after finally getting to see the film in it’s entirety, I still loved it today. I highly recommend everyone go and watch this. Even though this film was released in 2001, it didn’t in UK cinemas until September 2003. Almost two years after it’s release in Japan. This film would also go on to become the first anime to be both nominated and win an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and is ranked #36 in the IMDb Top 250. Hayao Miyazaki was not present at the awards ceremony so Presenter Cameron Diaz accepted the award on his behalf. This is also my second anime film after watching “Akira” not that long ago. If you have seen this film then let me know what you thought of it in the comments. Here is what I had to say while watching 2001’s “Spirited Away”
Film – Spirited Away
Year – 2001
Director – Hayao Miyazaki
Staring – Deveigh Chase, Suzanne Pleshette, Miyu Irino
IMDb Rating – 8.6/10
My Rating – 9/10
Length – 125 min (2h 5min)
Genre – Animation, Adventure, Family
Chihiro looks bored
The troubles of moving home is the feeling that everything’s not gonna work out
Nothing like 4WD Audi to get you through a forest
Who leaves a statue in the middle of the road?
Bad parenting 101 – Leave your child behind while you wander off
Is this building a church?
The other side of the tunnel leads to a run down theme park
This dad can smell what The Rock is cooking
Who leaves fresh meat out for strangers to eat?
These parents are eating like pigs
For a run down theme park, it doesn’t look in that bad of a condition
There’s smoke coming from that bath house
“Leave before it gets dark”
The parents have turned into pigs!!!
This place is filled with spirits
There wasn’t water here earlier!!!
Floating masks with no bodies… until they reach land then they have bodies
Hey, I’m a stranger… eat these pills to remain human
That eagle has a old woman for a head
This is some Final Fastasy levels of WTF
Hold your breath as we cross the bridge
That failed… better escape!
Find Kamaji and get a job
Yubaba’s a bitch
That is one long staircase
Nothing like sliding down stairs on your ass
And straight into a brick wall!
How she isn’t injured is amazing
Chihiro find Kamaji in the boiler room like Haku said
Kamaji is a six armed human making sure the bath house has heat
Get back to work!!!
How the hell does Kamaji know what he wants without even looking at it
One piece of coal can’t be that heavy can it
Rebel against Kamaji
Take Chihiro to Yubaba to get a job
Everyone here works with no shoes on
And everything is made of wood so expect splinters in your feet
That is one creepy fat bastard
Lin smells of human… probably because she is a human
A talking door knocker!!!
Yubaba has some jedi powers!
Why does she have three of Shrek’s heads for pets
Yubaba clearly has smoked one cigarette too many
Can someone pop that zit on Yubaba’s head
Chihiro is now known as Sen
Better make Haku her mentor
So Lin isn’t human?!!
It is scary knowing Yubaba can turn into an eagle like that
It’s morning and everyone’s asleep
Everyone except Chihiro who’s wide awake crying
Here’s your shoes… now take us with you
Better go see my parents as pigs at the slaughterhouse
Does Chihiro think pigs understand what she’s saying
I don’t know my name but I know yours
Eat this strength filled Rice Crispie Treat
Have more while you cry about everything
Haku’s a dragon!?!?!?!?!
Bloody hell! It’s raining and Yubaba’s back!
The big tub?
This spirit is spying on Chihiro
Better leave the door open to strangers
People who work here are assholes
Someone’s coming… better hide my gems
Dried worm salts are good for you!
This spirit just stole all the tokens
Don’t let the smelly spirit in
Take the shit covered money and go wash him
Well that’s a waste of breakfast
She is literaly in the shits
The smelly monster is helping her
There’s a thorn stuck in it!
That’s a bicycle!!!
That’s an entire junkyard in one spirit!
What just happened?
That was the river god who is loaded with gold
I hope they had a shower before they ate
Nice to know that the train still operates after all that flooding
That toad’s beef suspicious
That spirit’s dripping gold and just ate the frog
The spirit want a bath
I’ll eat everything!!!
Chihiro wants Haku more than she wants gold
Haku’s back as a dragon
And he’s being attacked by paper birds
Haku flies up to Yubabu’s office
Chihiro heads up there and gets a paper bird stuck to her back
This spirit got both fatter and grew hair
You made the spirit upset
That’s two more members of staff eaten by the spirit
Well that’s the plumbing shot to shit
Yubaba’s back and Chihiro’s hiding in a window archway
She ends up in the baby’s room
The spirit is known as a No Face
That is one big baby
A giant baby that knows perfect English
She forced Chihiro to play
The baby then freaks out after seeing her bloody hands
That paper bird turns into a ghostly version of Yubaba
She turns the baby into a hampster
It’s Yubaba’s twin sister
Haku destroys the paper bird and he and Chihiro fall down a very long tunnel
They break into Kamaji’s room
Just shove your hand down a dragon’s throat – That seems safe
Haku returns to his human self
That hamster just mocked the curse
Chihiro says she’ll return the stolen seal to Yubaba’s sister
How can Chihiro use a 40 year old train ticket?
Chihiro has been thrown into a room with No Face
She gives No Face the magic ball food thing she’s been carrying and it makes him puke
HADOUKEN!!!!
That failed!!!
How is that fly carrying that hampster at this speed?
That’s two employees puked back up
Just one more frog left
Chihiro finds Lin outside in the ocean and she takes her to the train tracks
That there’s the last employee puked
That’s the station??? It’s a plunk of wood in the middle of the sea
Better bring No Face with me to Swamp Bottom
ALL ABOARD!
Meanwhile… Haku wakes up and wants to know what happened
He goes to see Yubaba and tells her that her baby is the real baby
The baby is the hamster!!!
And the gold melts into dirt
Haku says Sen, No Face and the baby are with her sister, Zeniba!
Haku says he’ll return them if Yubaba agrees to let Chihiro free from her contract
If Haku doesn’t do so, Chihiro stays employed under her and her parents become bacon
Meanwhile, Sen, No Face and the hampster arrive at Swamp Bottom
IT’S THE LAMP FROM PIXAR AS AN ADULT!!!
The lamp guides them to a cottage
It’s Zeniba’s cottage!!!
How is No Face drinking tea?
No Face is also good at knitting
Zeniba makes Chihiro remember everything she can remember such as her real name
Another guest?!?
IT’S DRAGON HAKU!!!
No Face agrees to stay with Zeniba
Chihiro remembers her real name and leaves with the hampster and Haku
Just got flashbacks to the Avatar cartoon – “Never Ending Story”
Chihiro tells Haku his real name – It’s Kohaku
He explains her flashbacks that she has of her pink shoe and him saving her
Also… Haku is a river spirit
They return to Yubaba
The baby reasons with Yubaba to let Chihiro and her parents go
Chihiro agrees to the rules and agrees to the one last test
Better find my pig parents
Turns out none of the pigs are here parents and she’s free
Haku says he has to stay and says he will quit
He tells Chihiro to run through the tunnel she entered at the beginning and never look back
How do you explain everything that just happened to you parents if your Chihiro
They all make it back and the road is now covered in grass and the car is covered in dust
And everyone lived happily ever after
THE END