My Neighbor Totoro <\/em>follows Satsuki and her sister, Mei, as they\u2019re moved to an old country house with their father while waiting for their mother to recover from a recent illness. The sisters are able to stave off boredom and wandering thoughts by exploring their new home, introducing them to spirits that inhabit it and the nearby forest, and, of course, the massive, grinning creature known as Totoro. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Miyazaki possesses a keen eye for how to make fantastical creatures real and regular beasts fantastical,by drawing from mythology or incorporating additional quirks which allow them personality and charm. Totoro is an example of contradicting parts, massive in build, cuddly in design, and enigmatic in personality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For those lucky enough to experience Miyazaki\u2019s work for the first time, My Neighbor Totoro<\/em> is the perfect starter pick for the uninitiated, as it offers a greater sense of his core values as a storyteller. His previous and future films are bound by declarative, ongoing thematic undertones. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Why wouldn\u2019t they, when the natural world in the film is abundant in substantial life, overgrown and green, offering a level of vitality they seek? Environmentalism has also been a key aspect of Miyazaki\u2019s work, especially in its relation to spiritualism and man-made catastrophe, so often the main destroyers of the natural world. Satsuki and Mei honor the world around them, in part due to the influence of their father.In return they receive gifts such as acorns which allow their garden to sprout, something they\u2019d hoped their mother could see, or an early evening ride on the cat bus after the sisters are momentarily split. It\u2019s another instance where, by welding together the fantastical with reality, Miyazaki creates potent imagery, suggesting a world in which good things are given to those who respect the natural world around them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the finest elements of My Neighbor Totoro<\/em> is Miyazaki\u2019s ability to bottle nostalgia. He captures the foggy memories of our youth, ones tinted by sunshine or sunburns, days aching with boredom or filled with adventure. We remember the big emotions and in-between days \u2014 the thunderstorms that roll through and leave the pavement steaming, the phone calls we weren\u2019t supposed to hear where we get our first glimpse at parental vulnerability, to the feeling of sand-covered feet shoved into sandals. My Neighbor Totoro,<\/em> for all its tranquility and visual poetry \u2014 just look at how the sun hugs the horizon or how the night sky bleeds in hues of blue \u2014 is beloved by so many responses. It\u2019s greater still though as we age and are able to recall similar emotions, even as we can\u2019t say we\u2019ve shared the same experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Miyazaki\u2019s ability for empathetic storytelling is immense. My Neighbor Totoro<\/em> remains timeless because it\u2019s able to offer sweet adventure while simultaneously growing with us as we age, offering different perspectives and moving details that are lost in our youth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “My Neighbor Totoro” is streaming on Max<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/totoro2-scaled-1024x551.jpg\")
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One of many is the perception of children, with those in their adolescence often at the heart of his stories. In films such as Spirited Away<\/em>, Kiki\u2019s Delivery Service<\/em>, and My Neighbor Totoro<\/em> in particular, the narrative highlights the ability of children to sense \u201cwrongness,\u201d even if they\u2019re unable to determine the inciting issue. Miyazaki captures this unease through compositions where the world looms large \u2014 as it would look to a child \u2014 or actions of ill or good intents which inspire greater reactions, full body chills that ripple through the characters. Miyazaki recognizes the natural resilience of children, something given greater weight in My Neighbor Totoro<\/em> due to Satsuki and Mei\u2019s adventures acting as coping mechanisms \u2014 a means to escape from their real world where their mother is sick.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n