My Neighbor Totoro

Though maybe the story here is a bit on the thin side, this is still glorious mix of family and fantasy from the hand-drawn animation of the gifted Hayao Miyazaki. It's all about two sisters - "Mei" and "Satsuki" who travel with their father to a new, rather rustic, home. It's all a grand adventure for the girls though and they are barely through the door before realising that the house has some extra special occupants. Things is - are they benign or not! Luckily, an old lady from the house nearby sets their mind at rest and soon "Granny" is looking after them from time to time in between school and visits to their ailing mother in a nearby hospital. As they explore the grounds, they discover that the place is alive with creatures both natural and supernatural - and it's the eponymous beast - a sort of hybrid between a cat and a panda - that soon becomes an integral part of their adventures as they eagerly anticipate their mother coming home. It's its simplicity that really worked well for me, here. A close-knit family with some bubbling trauma provides for a setting for their situation, but it doesn't dominate the children at play. They know sadness, sure, but they also know joy and love; there's a magical eight-legged moggy-bus (or maybe that's ten legs?) and they have their shy neighbour who's terrified of the very thought of the girls! It's a delightful combination of fantasy, community and family that you're bound to enjoy. Take a brolly, though!

(SPOILER ALERT) I was delighted to see this subtle/multi-layered tale unfold, which seemed to play well to both a childhood audience, keen on likable characters/compelling imagination, and adults with a deeper appreciation for the symbolic backstory. Like most of Miyazaki's films, there was an enormous focus on the power of the natural world. Whenever man perverts the natural world, the natural world seems to pushback. It appears as though the seldom seen Mother in the story is sick due to some mental/physical disconnect that she has likely had with the natural world. Through the unique power of children to tap into their imagination, especially children living outside the city and amongst nature, Miyazaki demonstrates the unique gift that children have to re-establish the lost bond between unhealthy adults and the healing power of the natural world. I was thoroughly impressed with how delicately Miyazaki established this bond between the two children, their imagination, and the natural world. Totoro, the lovable silent giant, is a great and unexpected metaphor for the healing power of the natural world and childhood imagination :)

**"Childhood" in a movie.** This is just perfection - a perfect way to while away time and reconnect with your youth. Everything is outstanding in this film, but especially the way it can emote your sense of wonder and imagination. I wish I could have watched this as a child, I would have wanted to find Totoro and the Catbus, roar like Totoro, or sleep on his belly. Oh well...I will just have to imagine it. Its interesting to note this was released with Grave of the Fireflies, another Ghibli masterpiece, which I have summed up as being about innocence lost. **This movie is innocence maintained.**