Spirited Away

Many of the spirits and stories from the Shinto religion are depicted in Miyazaki's animè feature Spirited Away. The film won the 2003 Oscar for Best Animated film and... more >

Many of the spirits and stories from the Shinto religion are depicted in Miyazaki's animè feature Spirited Away. The film won the 2003 Oscar for Best Animated film and has been deservedly praised for its imaginative story, brilliant colors, and superior technical achievements. As an unhappy ten-year old girl, Chihiro, travels with her parents to her new home in the countryside, they take a wrong turn and end up in what they think as an abandoned theme park. Separated from her parents, who partake in a gluttonous meal, the little girl is drawn to a bathhouse for spirits and enters an alternate reality. Her parents have been transformed into pigs and she is trapped in a world she can barely understand.

Chihiro does not change or grow up suddenly but calls upon her inner strength that she barely knew existed to help her out in dangerous situations. Along the way, Chihiro encounters physical and psychological dangers. Unlike the Disneyfied view of the world with sharp lines separating good and evil, Miyazaki's film is ambiguous and shifting and Chihiro must adapt, figure out the world she is in, and learn whom to trust.

When Chihiro begins to control her own destiny, she creates supportive friends to help her complete her tasks and, in the process, discovers abundant courage and a sense of responsibility. As she and her friend Haku move toward freedom, they both realize that they cannot escape their enslavement until they remember who they really are, a metaphor for all of us groping toward our spiritual connection. The power they find does not consist of magic spells or objects to render opponents senseless but the energy that flows from love, forgiveness, and non-violence.
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• One disc. Optional English or Japanese Soundtracks.

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