Everyone seems to love Spirited Away, and now I see why.

Story

During her family’s move to the suburbs, Chihiro and her parents enter the spirit world where they (her parents) are subsequently turned into pigs by the witch Yubaba. To save her parents and return to the human world, Chihiro gets in a job in Yubaba’s bathhouse.

Voice Acting

Rumi Hiiragi’s back must hurt from carrying this film because she exudes talent. This is one of those roles where you forget that a real person voiced the character. Her voice is so disembodied that you fully believe that you are listening to Chihiro when she speaks.

The other performance that stood out to me was Mari Natsuki. She actually plays two characters in this movie that look exactly the same, however they sound completely different. She manages to change the cadence in her voice to suit whatever character she is playing, making them feel like two distinct people.

The other voice actors made this movie feel real. They were all able to deliver performances that complete the movie and make each character both realistic and relatable.

Writing/Direction

Much like Howl’s Moving Castle, there is more to this movie than meets the eye. I didn’t immediately pick up on all the themes but after some…