Spirited Away

The Daughter had never seen this one, so The Younger Son, The Husband and I watched it with her this afternoon. Spirited Away won an Oscar for best animated feature film. It is a 2001 Japanese anime movie directed by Hayao Mitazaki. We watched the English dub, which includes the voice of David Ogden Stiers (who has a Star Trek connection), Jason Marsden (also with a ST connection) and Suzanne Pleshette. We have a 2-disc edition, and some of the special features are actually worth watching. We are often disappointed in the "special" feature offerings on DVDs but not this time.

trailer:


Roger Ebert says, "I come bearing news: This is a wonderful film," and he ends by saying, "Apart from the stories and dialogue, "Spirited Away" is a pleasure to regard just for itself. This is one of the year's best films." "Rolling Stone says it "damn near bursts off the screen". The New York Times considers it "Mr. Miyazaki's ''Through the Looking Glass.''" Variety calls it "an out-and-out charmer." Moria calls it "a film filled with a genuine magic" and "an exquisite and extraordinary film from an animator who has no equal" and says it's "like an epic quest that draws upon traditional Japanese mythological elements."