| My Neighbor Totoro (1988),
				Director: 
				Hayao Miyazaki, rated G 
				This strange 
				creature is still in Japan. Maybe. 
				
		  Starring: 
Voices: Dakota Fanning, Elle Fanning, Tim Daly, Leo Salonga, Frank Welker, Pat 
Carroll, Kath Soucie, Ashley Rose Orr 
DML Rating: 
★★★★★★★★★☆ 
- near perfect 
				"Trees and people used 
				to be good friends. I saw that tree and decided to buy the 
				house. 
				Hope Mom likes it too." – 
				Tatsuo Kusakabe 
				Why watch this? It's 
				a beautiful, panging vision of childhood and imagination. 
				Plot Summary: 
				When two young sisters, Satsuki and Mei, move with their father 
				to a new home in the Japanese countryside to be closer to their 
				ailing mother in the hospital, they discover that their new home 
				and the nearby woods are filled with strange and delightful 
				creatures. They soon befriend a giant and gentle forest spirit 
				known as Totoro. Totoro and his friends introduce the girls to a 
				world of magical adventures, including a ride aboard the 
				extraordinary Cat Bus. Dad's Preview: 
				This wonderful film, from the mind of the masterful Hayao 
				Miyazaki, takes us inside the brains of two children who move 
				into a new house to be closer to their ailing mother. When their 
				father boards the bus to work, the children's fantasies, to 
				explore, to learn, to be sad, come to life. They encounter 
				benevolent spirits to accompany them. It's a warm film that will 
				touch your memories of childhood and the joys you had. It will 
				perhaps also flush out some perhaps painful memories, too. Both 
				are a valuable part of who we are. The genius here is that all 
				those thoughts are better dealt with as a big fluffy, 
				bouncy-bellied cat-creature. That should give you comfort. 
				 Studio Ghibli; 
				Toho
 |