My Neighbor Totoro (1988) Revisited: Animated Movie Review

We’re back with another episode of Animation Movies Revisited! In this episode, we’ll be exploring Studio Ghibli’s 1988 animated fantasy classic, My Neighbor Totoro.

Directed by Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, Howl’s Moving Castle), this fanciful film invites us to Tokorozawa City, Japan, where a young girl named Satsuki Kusakabe and her family have just moved into enchanted farmland, where mysterious forest spirits are known to cause mischief. Hailed as one of the most influential storytellers in all of Japan, Miyazaki invented Totoro out of an act of frustration with his job as an animator for Isao Takahata’s television series “3000 Leagues in Search of Mother”. Little did he know that Totoro would become a universal symbol for imagination, and a mascot for one of the most influential animation studios of all time, Studio Ghibli.

Throughout the latest episode of this exciting series, we’ll uncover the compelling origin of My Neighbor Totoro, from its humble beginning as a children’s book to its becoming an iconic feature film. We’ll learn about the concepts of animism and Shintoism that influenced the story. If dark conspiracy theories are your thing, we’ve got those too.

Animation Movies Revisited is written and narrated by Steve Seigh, and was edited by Jasmyn Evans-Samuels. Adam Walton and Chris Bumbray produce, and Berge Garabedian is the executive producer. Check out more episodes from our Revisited series below! Do you think My Neighbor Totoro holds up? Let us know in the comments!