My Neighbor Totoro (1988)

Original title

となりのトトロ

Directed by

Hayao Miyazaki

Genre

fantasy film, children's film, drama anime and manga, fantasy anime and manga, supernatural anime

Country

Japan

Runtime

1h 26m

Rated

G

Rating

8.1 of 10 from 8,905 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

Two young sisters move to the countryside with their father and discover friendly forest spirits living near their new home. The film shows their everyday adventures and the subtle magic of nature around them.

gentlewhimsicalcalmwarmsoothingchildlike wonderpeacefulnostalgicslow-paced

What happens

My Neighbor Totoro is a 1988 Japanese animated fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki and animated by Studio Ghibli for Tokuma Shoten. It stars the voices of Noriko Hidaka, Chika Sakamoto and Hitoshi Takagi, and focuses on two young sisters who, after moving with their father to the countryside, experience interactions with friendly wood spirits in postwar Japan. The film explores themes such as animism, Shinto symbology, environmentalism and the joys of rural living. My Neighbor Totoro received worldwide critical acclaim, and grossed over $41 million worldwide at the box office; the film also grossed significantly more from home video sales and merchandise. My Neighbor Totoro received numerous awards, including the Animage Anime Grand Prix prize, the Mainichi Film Award, and Kinema Junpo Award for Best Film in 1988. It also received the Special Award at the Blue Ribbon Awards in the same year. The film is widely regarded as one of the greatest animated films of all time, ranking 41st in Empire magazine's "The 100 Best Films of World Cinema" in 2010 and the number-one animated film on the 2012 Sight & Sound critics' poll of all-time greatest films. The film and its titular character have become cultural icons, and made multiple cameo appearances in other films. Totoro also serves as the mascot for Studio Ghibli and is recognized as one of the most popular characters in Japanese animation. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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• Spirited Away (2001)
• Only Yesterday (1991)
• Akira (1988)
• Princess Mononoke (1997)
• Natsume's Book of Friends (2008)
• Mokke (2007)
• Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis (1988)