And I quite didn't like it. I mean, it's not a bad film, but it just didn't meet my expectations. I never made an emotional character with Chihiro, and it was just too weird at part. It's rather long as well. It kind of put me off in checking out Miyazaki's other films.
shareIf you found spirited away a bit too weird, try something like kiki's delivery service or the wind rises. Miyazakis films are pretty varied.
shareThat's a shame.
It's rather long as well.
Hello, Heisenbird. I really hope you respond to my message as I was in a very similar position with you when I was first introduced to Miyazaki with Spirited Away many years ago. This is a response I made regarding a message board on Miyazaki's IMDb page regarding the first Miyazaki film you saw:
The first Studio Ghibli film I saw was "Spirited Away" online back in 2008. I think that's the one that most people see with their first exposure to Ghibli. I saw it on the IMDb Top 250 list and I thought it was worth checking out due to its high rating. Unfortunately, I wasn't a fan. I found it a bit too weird for my liking and some of the slower paced scenes bored me a little bit and because of that, I was put off from watching any more films from Studio Ghibli or Hayao Miyazaki for many years as I just assumed it wasn't my thing.
However, I wanted to give their films another shot so back in April 2014, I watched "My Neighbour Totoro" and I enjoyed that. I ended up loving it on repeat viewings. I watched "Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind" and I enjoyed that. I ended up loving it on repeat viewings just like "Totoro." I watched "Ponyo" and I enjoyed that a lot. I watched "Laputa: Castle in the Sky" and I absolutely fell in love with it (that's still my favourite Ghibli/Miyazaki film to this day). It was at that point that I truly understood what the hype of Miyazaki and Ghibli was all about. I re-watched "Spirited Away" back in July of 2014 and I loved it. I definitely enjoyed it a lot more on the 2nd viewing.
Now I have seen all the Miyazaki and Ghibli films (except for "When Marnie Was There"). I've seen almost all of them multiple times too. Several of the Miyazaki films are in my top 20 favourite films of all time and I've also seen his two TV shows "Future Boy Conan" and "Sherlock Hound."
All I can say is that I'm so glad I gave their films another shot because I absolutely love them to bits.
If there was ever a time where second chances should be taken, it was my experience with Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki.
Thank you for this. It's great to find someone who was in a similar boat. I'll definitely check out Castle in the Sky then!
shareNo problem. Let me know what you think of it. If you don't like it, you can still be honest because we all have different tastes when it comes to films. I have a good feeling you will like this one though.
shareDid you check out Castle in the Sky after? I'm curious. There's no rush though if you haven't!
shareThis movie is amazing. My Neighbor Totoro was my first Miyazaki film. That film is amazing as well. Miyazaki captures the essence of childhood innocence so perfectly that it actually places you in the child's world and allows you to feel their emotions, and the magic. It draws you in in a way that I can't really describe, but I have a vivid imagination and I'm quite empathetic. I feel like a kid again watching these films.
Spirited Away horrified me when I first saw it. No Face really grossed me out and I thought his infatuation with the little girl was truly disturbing, and I was pretty young when I first watched it. However, now I love it more than My Neighbor Totoro. It's just so different from other films out there, and so magical
As an above user has stated you may have to watch these types of films more than once to like it haha
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