When was my neighbor totoro made

However, Studio Ghibli insisted on keeping the movie as is, with no edits. The scene of Mei running after a small, white Totoro and ultimately falling down a hole inside the camphor tree brings to mind the famous chase and rabbit hole imagery in Alice in Wonderland.

And that was that. According to different variations of the same fan theory, Mei is actually dead in the movie and Totoro is the God of Death.

Others have said the movie is based on The Sayama Incident, an urban legend involving the deaths of two sisters from Sayama Hills. However, Studio Ghibli released a statement to put these theories to rest. Subtle allusions to Shinto, an ancient animistic belief in which nature is revered in all its forms, are sprinkled throughout the film. According to this philosophy, everything has a spirit. In one scene , Mei and Satsuki's father tells them that trees and humans used to be friends long ago.

He tells the girls to give the big tree in their backyard a "nice greeting," then bows to it and thanks it for protecting Mei. A film with no villains. No fight scenes. No evil adults. No fighting between the two kids. No scary monsters. No darkness before the dawn. A world that is benign. A world where if you meet a strange towering creature in the forest, you curl up on its tummy and have a nap. It's a perennial best seller on video.

On the Internet Movie Database, it's voted the fifth best family film of all time, right behind ''Toy Story 2'' and ahead of ''Shrek. Whenever I watch it, I smile, and smile, and smile. This is one of the lovingly hand-crafted works of Hayao Miyazaki , often called the greatest of the Japanese animators, although his colleague at the Ghibli Studios, Isao Takahata, may be his equal.

Remarkable that ''Totoro'' and Takahata's ''Grave of the Fireflies,'' now both in my Great Movies selection, were released on the same double bill in Miyazaki has not until very recently used computers to help animate his films; they are drawn a frame at a time, the classic way, with the master himself contributing tens of thousands of the frames. Animation is big business in Japan, commanding up to a quarter of the box office some years.

Miyazaki is the ''Japanese Disney,'' it's said, although that is a little unfair, since Walt Disney was more producer and visionary than animator, and Miyazaki rolls up his sleeves and draws his films himself.

His ''Princess Mononoke'' outgrossed ''Titanic'' in Japan, and his newest film, ''Spirited Away'' , outgrossed ''Mononoke'' when it was released in July Of his nine other major films, those best known in the U.

Miyazaki's films are above all visually enchanting, using a watercolor look for the backgrounds and working within the distinctive Japanese anime tradition of characters with big round eyes and mouths that can be as small as a dot or as big as a cavern. In fact, she does not even make an appearance in the film. Above is the famous scene from the film, which shows Satsuki and Mei next to Totoro. An interview with producer Toshio Suzuki, later transcribed by journalist Kenji Ando, helps explain what happened.

My Neighbor Totoro was originally a picture book for kids, which was then made into a movie. And the cover reveals that it featured just one young girl. This would become the basis for the film.

Their new house has tiny little "soot sprites" that crawl around and creep out the girls at first. At first sight, Totoro might initially intimidate younger viewers, but he's quickly revealed to be a gentle, good friend.

Parents need to know that My Neighbor Totoro is a fine pick for the entire family. Although there are slightly creepy "dust sprites" that appear in the house at first, they eventually disappear.

Totoro himself might look and sound a bit odd, but he's quite sweet and gentle. The protagonist girls have an ill mother with an unnamed disease, but the moments in the hospital aren't sad or depressing.

Some parents may not feel comfortable with the amount of freedom the girls as is the case with children in all of Hayao Miyazaki 's films have to wander off alone, either around their neighborhood, the surrounding forest, or on a long walk to visit their mother.

Overall, this is a family film in the truest sense -- it appeals to moviegoers young and old alike. Add your rating See all parent reviews. Add your rating See all kid reviews. As they get settled into their new home, the girls discover there are magical creatures, like dust sprites, that inhabit their house and neighborhood.

One day, Mei sees two little rabbit-like creatures and follows them through their forest, where she meets a much larger version of the creature, whom she calls "Totoro. Totoro, who is "keeper of the forest," aids Satsuki and her father when Mei decides to walk to the hospital alone to present her mother with a fresh ear of corn. For fans of Miyazaki's later work who haven't had the chance to check out his classics, this is a perfect movie to start.

My Neighbor Totoro is considered Miyazaki 's breakthrough film. Re-released and dubbed in English for a wider audience by Disney, the movie introduced Americans unfamiliar with anime to Miyazaki's signature themes: strong, independent girls as protagonists; whimsical creatures; an imaginative story; and a focus on how families interact with each other and their surrounding environment.

This isn't a spellbinding all-out adventure like Spirited Away or even the gentler journey that is Ponyo , but its leisurely paced story and lushly detailed visuals are part of the charm. Unlike the majority of animated movies, this isn't full of pop-culture or consumerist references that, while funny when handled correctly, can also bog down animated films or zap them of their childlike fantasy.

Satsuki and Mei need Totoro to help them through a difficult time in their lives -- new home, sick mother -- and it's quite lovely to see the sweet little moments that cement their friendship.

It's a shame more family movies aren't as simple and beautiful as My Neighbor Totoro. Why do you think they're able to befriend him so easily? How does he help them and their family? How do the characters in My Neighbor Totoro demonstrate courage , curiosity , and compassion? Why are these important character strengths? How do the girls deal with their mother's sickness? Does her hospitalization affect the sisters differently? What is the movie's animation style like?

How are the humans depicted? Are the Totoros and the Catbus scary -looking? What makes it obvious they're gentle? Why do you think this movie is considered an anime classic?