Spirited Away (DVD)

Spirited Away is a Japanese anime movie, a 2001 offering directed by the celebrated Mr Miyazaki .Miyazaki is well known amid anime fans for his work such as Princess Mononoke and Castle in the sky. The story starts with a young girl, Chihiro, who is about to move to a new house, new town, and a new school, leaving behind everything she knows. She sets off in the car with her family, and her dad, not knowing where he is going (and perhaps reluctant, like most me, to take directions!) decides to take a scenic route through a forest. When they come to the end of the forest track, far from finding the new home they were seeking, they instead encounter a ...  Read the complete review

Fishing for expressions fit to describe Spirited Away, it's difficult not to bring up somewhat clichéd expositions; one can salute the visionary director or the inventive storyline, or gush about the beautiful animation and haunting scenery. Yet these descriptions are as accurate as they are well-worn. Hayao Miyazaki's 2001 release, winner of the Best Animated Feature Oscar, is one of the more recent, and certainly most celebrated films to emerge from the Studio Ghibli animation powerhouse. Although Spirited Away is full of enchanting imagination and original twists on traditional stories, the tale at the heart of the film is a classic one, explored many times ...  Read the complete review

Synopsis: A girl wonders away from her parents and finds a whole other world of adventure and magic. It seems that with every film that Miyazaki makes he sets the standards for animated features, only to set them higher with his next picture. And yet, he doesn't confuse himself with hopes of a plot with intriguing hints and pokes of social instability but instead maintains a singular vision of childhood brilliance, friendly morals and in the end - utter fun! the amazing thing is that this mans vision is no throwback or homage to films of old, because no one has ever made films like this... and he certainly isn't precursor of things to come because you can't ...  Read the complete review

I was left with a very funny feeling after watching spirited away. It was a mixture of confusion, delight, and then a sheer jealousy of all the people who got to experience the movie as a kid. Chihiro and her parents are moving to a new town, but get lost on the way. Finding themselves at the end of a long tunnel in a mysterious valley some miles from where they should be, the decidie to investigate. Chihiros sees something is wrong, but her parents are easily lured into what appears to be an abandoned amusement park, but things begin to go very wrong when they begin to gorge themsevles on strange but delicious food that has been left for them. Her ...  Read the complete review

--------Introduction-------- The film is from Hayao Miyazaki (Princess Mononoke). This film won the Oscar for 'Best Animated Film' 2003 as well as the Golden Bear at Berlin in 2002. Spirited Away (originally in Japan is called Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi) follows the story of a young, modern 10 year old Chihiro in this fantasy adventure. We will be reviewing the PAL DVD Region 2 edition which comes on 2 discs. --------Storyline-------- The film starts off with Chihiro in a family car with her parents going to their new house in the suburbs. She is upset over this and liked her old place and friends. Her dad gets lost taking a ...  Read the complete review