After more than four years, The Random Films is moving to a new home. The rebranded, restructured and refashioned blog will have new features such as First Peeks (trailers of upcoming movies) and TV Series (reviews of favorite television shows). Hope you support the new blog just the same. Please visit: MOVIEcracy

Spirited Away


Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi?, or "The Spiriting Away of Sen and Chihiro") is a Japanese animated fantasy-adventure film in 2001. It is written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, and produced by Studio Ghibli.

Plot. While ten-year-old Chihiro Ogino and her parents get lost when moving to a new town, they discover an abandoned amusement park. The park is beautiful enough that the family is lured into wandering inside.  Chihiro’s parents sample some delicious food, while she roams around and finds a grand bathhouse across a bridge where she meets a boy who warns her to leave the place before nightfall. Chihiro looks for her parents and soon finds out that they have been transformed into pigs. Nightfall comes and a riverboat full of different spirits disembarks on the river. Chihiro hides but is found by the boy whom she meets earlier. He instructs her to see Kamaji, a six-armed creature, and asks him for a job so she can stay and try to rescue her parents. After a struggle, Chihiro obtains a job in the bathhouse and her name is changed to Sen. She meets different spirits – Lin, Yubaba, Boh the giant baby, No Face, the women spirits, the frog servants, several river spirits, Zeniba, and other peculiar creatures. In the end, Chihiro passes several tests and her parents are turned into human again. But it is not only a great adventure for Chihiro for she discovers a sweet, nostalgic truth about her childhood memories…



Review. Spirited Away revolves around Chihiro and her journey from the realms of fantasy to the world of reality, and with it is her transformation from a child to an adult. It is a coming-of-age fantasy animated film. When Chihiro acquires work at the bathhouse, she loses her name, along with her childhood memories, in exchange. She slowly forgets everything. But she must move forward, and as she slowly regains her self and her past, she learns valuable life lessons and gains maturity, wisdom and hope. The movie is truly about a journey and the transformations it brings along.
Spirited Away is a very imaginative film. Much of the materials are very original, though most are based on several Japanese folklores. I particularly love the spirit “No Face” who is turned into a voracious monster after being consumed by too much affection and admiration. He manages to return back into his lovable, good-natured self after Chihiro’s help. The bathhouse is also a place that is vey grandiose, merry, and colorful. Overall, every aspect of the film is very engaging, entertaining, and impressive. Though the film is a traditional two-dimensional animation, it succeeds to bring out so much color, life and “wow” factor. It is impressive despite its simplicity. I guess it would be very expensive to adapt the movie into real-life action or full 3D animation.

 
Unforgettable Scenes. The bathing of the “stink spirit” and the rampage of “No Face” are memorable. But the part I love most is Chihiro’s discovery about Haku, the dragon and river spirit who has rescued her before. It is partly sad and romantic.

Reception. The movie received almost universal critical acclaim. Rotten Tomatoes gave it a rating of 97%, ranking it as the thirteenth-best animated film. It also ranked #9 of the highest-rated movies of all time on Metacritic and the site’s highest rated traditionally animated film.


Spirited Away was a huge blockbuster hit not only in Japan but also worldwide. It became the highest-grossing film in Japanese history, overtaking Titanic. By 2002, a sixth of the Japanese population had seen it. Walt Disney Pictures, under Pixar, supervised the English translation of the film for its international release.

Moreover, the Empire Magazine ranked the film as #10 on its “The 100 Best Films of World Cinema” in 2010. It also won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature at the 75th Academy Awards, and the Golden Bear at the 2002 Berlin International Film Festival.

Rating. I have nothing to say against the movie so five stars for Spirited Away. Bravo!

15 comments:

  1. Aaaahhh... this is another additional to the list of movies from your reviews na kailangan kong mapanood... waaahh.. too bad. mahina ang connection ko... Dito pa naman ako na-excite... mahilig kasi ako sa mga anime... sana pati anime series, mareview nyo rin... hehehe...:)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Whеn someone writes an parаgrаph he/she retains thе thοught of a uѕer in hіs/her brain that how a user can
    unԁerstand іt. Thus that's why this post is outstdanding. Thanks!

    My website - bucket trucks for sale

    ReplyDelete
  3. I got this web page fгοm my buddу ωho іnfoгmeԁ
    mе abοut this site and at thе mοment this tіme I am
    bгowsіng this site and rеading veгy informative
    аrticlеs at this place.

    Fеel frеe to visіt my ωеbѕіtе:
    utility Bucket truck

    ReplyDelete
  4. I got this ωeb page frοm mу buԁdу who іnformed me abοut
    this site and at the moment thiѕ timе
    I am broωsіng this ѕite and readіng
    very іnfoгmatiѵe articles at this place.


    Alѕo vіsіt my web-site ... utility Bucket truck
    my site > used bucket trucks for sale

    ReplyDelete
  5. I like it when people get together and share views.

    Great website, keep it up!

    Look into my blog: food games

    ReplyDelete
  6. What's up every one, here every one is sharing these know-how, therefore it's good to read this website,
    and I used to visit this blog everyday.

    my web page - pizza games

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks for sharing your info. I really appreciate your efforts and I will be waiting for your further write ups thanks
    once again.

    Here is my web site :: hamlets

    ReplyDelete
  8. whoаh thiѕ weblog is magnifісent
    i rеаllу like reading yοur articles.
    Ѕtay up the great woгk! You rеalіze,
    lots of peгsons arе sеarching гοund for thiѕ info, уоu can help them
    greatlу.

    Alѕo visit my blog ρost ... tens unit

    ReplyDelete
  9. After looking over а few οf the blog агtіcles on
    youг web pagе, I tгuly likе your tеchnіque of ωritіng a blog.
    I аԁdеd іt to my bоοkmark website
    list and will bе chеckіng back sοon.

    Take a look at my web sіtе as well and lеt me knoω what you think.



    Μy wеblog: roof repair oklahoma city

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hey there! I know thіs is kіnda off topic but I was wonderіng which blog ρlatform are you using
    for this ѕitе? I'm getting sick and tired of Wordpress because I've had prоblems
    with haсkers and I'm looking at alternatives for another platform. I would be fantastic if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.

    Visit my web site seo company dallas

    ReplyDelete
  11. It is not my firѕt time to paу
    a quick viѕit thіѕ web ѕite, i am vіsіting this wеb
    pаge dailly and gеt fаstidious data from here everу day.


    Here is my homepagе; how to make money buying and selling cars at an auction

    ReplyDelete
  12. I like it whenever people get together and share ideas.
    Great website, continue the good work!

    my web-site :: how to get more instagram followers

    ReplyDelete
  13. Wow, fantastіc blog layout! How long have уou ever bеen running a blog fοг?
    yοu makе running a blog lοok еasy.
    The total glance оf your wеbsite is wonderful,
    as well as the content!

    my sitе - seo companies plano

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thank you, I've recently been looking for information approximately this subject for ages and yours is the greatest I have discovered so far. However, what about the bottom line? Are you sure concerning the source?

    Stop by my web site :: customized twitter backgrounds

    ReplyDelete
  15. Hi there, I enjoy reading all of your article post.
    I wanted to write a little comment to support you.


    Here is my blog viagra

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...