Adventures with Miyazaki Part 3: My Neighbor Totoro

My Neighbor Totoro’s greatness is partially due to its ridiculously simplistic nature. There’s barely a plot, little to no conflict and not much excitement to be found. Despite this, it is one of Miyazaki’s most essential works and contains limitless amounts of charm and wonder. It’s one of the most endearing films I've ever seen.

My Neighbor Totoro follows the exploits of two sisters, Satsuke and her younger sister Mei. They’ve just moved into a new house with their dad which brings them closer to the hospital in which their mother is currently recovering from a long-term illness. Satsuke and Mei spend much of their time exploring and end up stumbling upon a magical forest in which dwells a giant teddy bear like creature known as Totoro.

The plot doesn’t get much more complex than that, but in the wake of the slightly more convoluted plots of Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind and Castle in the Sky, that's not a bad thing. My Neighbor Totoro is more concerned with evoking a specific nostalgia for a long-lost time and place that perhaps never existed and celebrates the joy of childhood and imagination. Sure, it doesn’t make for the most thrilling movie-watching experience, but it doesn’t need to thrill in order to be enthralling. The animation is gorgeous as always; Totoro and the Cat Bus are such unique characters, proving once again that Miyazaki’s imagination has no equal and the two main characters’ mannerisms are absolutely adorable and incredibly life-like.

The general carefree nature of the story and its wonderful characters make it the best film in Miyazaki’s career up to this point.

FINAL RATING: 4.5/5