Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi

[hlkari]

Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi[千と千尋の神隠し]

Foreword:Might contain some minor spoilers.

Reviews by
hlkari

Director
Hayao Miyazaki  
  
Writing credits
Hayao Miyazaki(story and screenplay)
Cindy Davis Hewitt(adaptation: English version)
Donald H. Hewitt(adaptation: English version)
Linda Hoaglund(adaptation: English version)
Jim Hubbert(adaptation: English version)

Produced by
Donald W. Ernst as producer(English language version)  
Lori Korngiebel as associate producer(English language version)  
John Lasseter as executive producer: US  
Toshio Suzuki as producer  
Yasuyoshi Tokuma as executive producer  
  
Original Music
Joe Hisaishi    
Youmi Kimura (end-title song "Itsumo nando-demo")  
  
Cinematography
Atsushi Okui   
  
Film Editing
Takeshi Seyama  
  
Production Design
Norobu Yoshida   
  
Art Direction
Yôji Takeshige    
  
Production Management
Jeff Deckman as assistant production manager: english language version  
Paul Springer as post-production supervisor: Lucasfilm  

Second Unit Director/Assistant Director
Masayuki Miyagi(assitant director)
Atsushi Takahashi(assistant director)
  
Art Department
Kohei Endo(color managment system)  
Yukie Nomura(color design assistant)  
Kazuko Yamada(color design assistant)  
Michiyo Yasuda(color design)  
  
Sound Department
[in attachment]
  
Visual Effects
Thomas Baker(CAPS scene planning (english version) )

Production Companies
Studio Ghibli
NTV
DENTSU Music And Entertainment Inc.
Tokuma Shoten
Buena Vista International (as Buena Vista Japan)
Tohokushinsha Film Corp.
Mitsubishi Commercial Affairs

Distributors
[in attachment]

Other Companies
[in attachment]

Credited cast
Rumi Hîragi as Chihiro/Sen (voice)
Miyu Irino as Haku (voice)
Mari Natsuki as Yubaba/Zeniba (voice)
Takashi Naitô as Chihiro's Father (voice)
Yasuko Sawaguchi as Chihiro's Mother (voice)
Tatsuya Gashuin as Aogaeru, Assistant Manager (voice)
Ryunosuke Kamiki as Bôh (voice)
Yumi Tamai as Lin (voice)
Yo Oizumi as Bandai-gaeru (voice)
Koba Hayashi as Kawa no Kami (voice)
Tsunehiko Kamijô as Chichiyaku (voice)
Takehiko Ono as Aniyaku (voice)
Bunta Sugawara as Kamaji (voice)
Shiro Saito as Additional Voices (voice)

rest of cast listed alphabetically:
[in attachment]

Ending Theme
"Itsumo Nando demo (いつも何度でも; Always with Me)" by Yumi Kimura

Genre
Animation / Adventure / Adventure / Comedy / Drama / Fantasy / Romance / Supernatural

Awards
Won Oscar.Another 34 wins & 17 nominations

Year Release
2001

Official Site
http://www.spiritedaway.com.au/(AU)

Synopsis

Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi is a fantasy adventure with a ten year-old girl,which starts in everyday Japan but goes somewhere very different.Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi starts off simply as Chihiro travels with her parents to a new home.Things get complicated and matters worsen when they decide to take a detour through a mysterious tunnel.Once on the other side her parents suddenly acquire an insatiable urge to explore what they think is a deserted amusement park.

Surprisingly,the smell of food wafts through the breeze leading the adults by their nose until they discover a delectable smorgasbord and begin feasting like pigs.Leaving them to get their fill,the ten-year-old explores her strange surroundings,stumbling across a building full of bizarre creatures and a boy named Haku.Told that she will be unsafe if she tarries after dark,the girl rushes frantically back to warn her family,only to discover they have been transformed into swine.

Now Chihiro is forced to place her trust and faith in the slightly older boy,who explains she must get a job if she is to remain in the realm of spirits.Haku introduces her to his boss Yubaba,an evil witch who operates a huge spa-resort for poltergeists looking for purification and Gods wanting to relax their weary bones.Hoping her employment will buy enough time to find her parents and de-pig them,Chihiro helps bathe all manner of strange looking beings.Initially sulky and listless,Chihiro(or Sen as she's now addressed)finds inner strengths and establishes an identity in this strange world but can she win back her name and return home?

  

Review

An extraordinary film blessed with a wealth of critical possibilities,Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi places high among the most beautiful animated films ever made.It is a culmination of Miyazaki's auteur motifs(displaced children,surrogate parents,magical modes of transportation,the freedom of flight,etc.),which are at ease now with the filmmaker's political inclinations - comfortably buried in the subtext,all.

Another marriage of tradition with the modern sensibility,another meditation on the encroaching of civilization on the natural and on its most basic level, another brilliant fable about dealing with the pitfalls of growing up, though a strong case could be made for Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi as a discussion of the evils of bathhouses and their link to prostitution (young girls at the beck of beasts),the film at its heart is a thing of bracing genius.

The narrative involved with a young girl Sen as she's separated from her gluttonous parents (more pigs and their appetites à la Porco Rosso) and forced to work in a bathhouse frequented nightly by Japan's pantheon of house and nature spirits,the latest from Miyazaki is an adventure,a thriller,a comedy and a romance at once and at once political and personal but at its heart and most importantly,Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi concerns a little girl learning to honor her friends and her family by valuing herself.

Conclusion,if you have always love watching adventurous yet full of thoughtful thoughts and concern for each other,specifically emotional,passionate and compassionate anime like Naruto,then this is one good Oscar-winning anime that you'll want to watch and appreciate.Highly recommended for all at any age.Enjoy !

-hlkari

"For the people who used to be 10 years old,
and the people who are going to be 10 years old."
- Hayao Miyazaki

  

Also Known As:
Miyazaki's Spirited Away (International: English title) (USA) (poster title)
Sen (Japan) (informal short title)
Sen and the Mysterious Disappearance of Chihiro
Spirited Away (USA)
The Spiriting Away of Sen and Chihiro (informal literal English title)
MPAA: Rated PG for some scary moments.
Runtime: 125 min
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese
Color: Color
Sound Mix: DTS-ES / Dolby Digital EX
Certification: Argentina:Atp / Australia: PG / Brazil:Livre / Canada:G (Quebec) / Canada: PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) / Chile:TE / Denmark:7 / Finland:K-7 / France:U / Germany:o.Al. / Hong Kong:I / Netherlands:AL / New Zealand: PG / Norway:7 / Portugal:M/6 / Singapore: PG / South Korea:All / Spain:T / Sweden:7 / Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) / Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) / UK: PG / USA: PG
  

[edison]

I even watched this movie in english! I thought it was pretty good and actually didn't know it was released that long ago! thanks for your review.

[AxiuM1485]

I think i've seen the dubbed version i didn't like the voices caseu i thought it didn't match the characters. Now that i know the Japanese name i can get the subtitled version Thanks

[hlkari]

edison Wrote:I even watched this movie in english! I thought it was pretty good and actually didn't know it was released that long ago! thanks for your review.

You're very welcome !

AxiuM1485 Wrote:I think i've seen the dubbed version i didn't like the voices caseu i thought it didn't match the characters. Now that i know the Japanese name i can get the subtitled version  Thanks

Well,what can you expect from a Japanese kid?
I watches every Japanese film in its own language therefore I know the original title of it,obviously

Anyways,I'm most please to help anyone with my reviews.There's no need to thank me,really.It's my pleasure in helping and if you really insist on thanking me,rep me ! By that,it's more than a simple thank for me

Cheers,
- Andrew.