[Note: I'm reviewing the 2006 English dub here.]"My Neighbor Totoro" (1988) is fantasy animated film from Japan that is directed by Hayao Miyazaki. It tells the story of a professor and her two young girls who moved to an old house in the countryside to live closer to their mom who's in the hospital. Once they move there though, the two young girls slowly start interacting with mysterious yet friendly wood spirits.
The art and animation looks great, and it amazingly hasn't aged a bit. It is full of beautiful colors and designs. I also admire its creativity as one of the fantasy creatures in here is a cat that serves as a bus. It's really cool. Parts of "My Neighbor Totoro" felt like a wonderfully, visionary dream.
Another thing I truly appreciate about this movie is that it feels like a one-of-a-kind experience that I haven't seen before. It doesn't follow the standard cliches that a lot of kids movies have. Let me give you one example. Normally in kids movies, when children tell their parents about fantasy creatures they believe they saw, the adults just simply try to brush it off and try to convince their children that it isn't real and that they're fibbing or something. Not here though. The father has an accepting attitude towards their daughters in this movie. It was truly a breath of fresh air for me as I'm starting to get a little bit tired and irritated with that cliche in entertainment.
When I first started watching "My Neighbor Totoro", it did feel a little overly-cutesy at moments when the two girls are playing around, but after a little bit, I didn't mind it too much. The English voice acting was also very good here. If you are into animation, definitely check this movie out. I honestly doubt you're going to see much else like it. I'm truly a big fan of Studio Ghibli's work.
I give "My Neighbor Totoro" (1988) directed by Hayao Miyazaki a 9 out of 10.
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