“A new home and a new school? It is a bit scary.”

“I think I can handle it.”

The first time I watched Spirited Away, my expectations were, as one might expect, through the roof. At the time, I was going through Studio Ghibli’s filmography by release order (which I still haven’t finished by the way), and I was already really impressed by the studio’s work by that point. Grave of the Fireflies was definitely the standout, but for purely just Miyazaki, I absolutely loved My Neighbor Totoro and Castle in the Sky, and really enjoyed Kiki’s Delivery Service and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (even though that’s technically not a Studio Ghibli film). By the time I had finished Spirited Away, I definitely would say I liked it and gave it a positive rating, but I definitely wasn’t blown away by it as I was hoping, and I have to admit, that left me feeling pretty disappointed.

I had just that little feeling, though, that I would not only appreciate it more on rewatch, but also enjoy and like it more, and that was thankfully absolutely the case. I’m still not quite on the level of calling this a masterpiece yet, but I can say without a doubt that I love this movie now. I just got a lot more out of it this time around, and I think I understand it quite a bit better on a thematic level, too.

Now that that is out of the way, the first positive I have to say about Spirited Away is definitely the main protagonist, Chihiro. We are first introduced to her being sad about leaving her home and friends behind to move to a new place, which subtly implies that she hasn’t really moved, or, let’s just say, been on a “real adventure” before. Miyazaki’s protagonists seem to be younger, the vast majority of the time, which I think fits his stories so perfectly. They really help the viewer get immersed and feel the same sense of wonder that they do, and Spirited Away with Chihiro is certainly not an exception in any way.

This leads to my next topic: worldbuilding. This is probably the best and most imaginative world that Miyazaki has ever created, if you ask me, with the only competition really being either Princess Mononoke or Howl’s Moving Castle (though I would argue this one tops those for sure). It’s not only fascinating and intriguing from the start, but it has this sense of otherworldliness and, I’ll just say it, uncanny that makes it stand out so much. Funny story, the first time I watched this film, I started it with my mom, and she was so weirded out by everything that she ended up quitting on it around twenty minutes in. Just like most anime, to be honest, it’s definitely not a movie for everyone, but for those who are willing to see something completely different than anything else, it’s so worth a watch.

It also has a great story, which is funny because the premise is really silly on its own. Chihiro and her parents are on their way to their new home when they discover a mysterious place in the middle of nowhere. Throughout their traversal, Chihiro’s parents discover some food and eat it, which turns them into pigs, and the rest of the story is then about Chihiro and her quest to change them back and return to the real world. The concept of her parents turning into pigs, and especially how it is done in the movie, is weird, but it sets the tone for the rest of the film incredibly well.

Chihiro’s little adventure to save her parents is both fun and emotional. Once it gets going and all the crazy stuff stops, it slows down quite a bit, but this is where the movie is at its best, if you ask me (at least for the most part). It can be so incredibly poignant at times, but the surprising part is that it doesn’t rely solely on sad or somber scenes to get an emotional reaction out of you. Instead, the sense of wonder and whimsy that drives this story is really what gets to you, and I think that’s what makes Spirited Away so special.

Spirited Away also has a great supporting cast of characters. From Haku, the person who guides Chahiro throughout the film, and what that eventually entails when it comes to both his potential fate and what is revealed towards the end, to No-Face, a creepy yet endearing character (at least at the end) that you sympathize with. There are also just a bunch of fun characters who don’t necessarily add a whole lot, but are nice additions to the movie anyway. Characters like Yubaba and even the old, four-armed man, Kamaji.

Joe Hisaishi is starting to become one of my favorite film composers (he’s at least in the top three for me by now), and this is easily one of his best works. I’ve listened to the music on my playlist, I don’t even know how many times, and it hits just as hard when you aren’t watching the film as it does when you are. I wouldn’t say it’s his best work because that would probably be Kiki’s Delivery Service for me, but it’s definitely up there for sure.

It’s probably cliché to talk about the animation, but I’m going to do so anyway. It was one of the first Studio Ghibli movies to blend 3D computer-generated imagery (subtly, but still very much prominent) into its 2D drawing art style, which is extremely impressive and works quite well. The art style, by the way, is so well done that sometimes it’s even hard to tell that it wasn’t primarily done digitally. The way that images shine and reflect, particularly water, gold, and even wooden surfaces, looks absolutely stunning. Miyazaki and his team at Studio Ghibli are simply unbelievable when it comes to bringing their unique worlds to life.

I had to think about whether or not I had any big criticisms of Spirited Away, and I think I landed on really just one that I would say impacts the movie in a negative way. There is a section that is quite lengthy involving, let’s just say, a “muddy character,” that drags the pacing down a lot, and hasn’t really made much of an impact on me, if at all, both times that I’ve watched this movie. I fully understand the purpose of it and all, and the section does end on a high note, but it’s still the one part I could probably do without.

I’m so glad that my opinion on this movie improved for this rewatch, as I was really hoping it would. Spirited Away is absolutely a must-watch for movie fans, even those who aren’t really into animation or even anime