My favourite Studio Ghibli Movies.

Tuesday 10 July 2018


Back when I was 16 my sister's partner introduced me to the world of Studio Ghibli and ever since then I have been hooked, as a media student studying animation I was in ore over the beautiful artwork that Studio Ghibli produced, each movie different from the previous with their own unique story and look to them. I didn't know many other people who were fans of the Studio Ghibli and when I would talk about the animation style in college most people had no idea what I was on about but I used my love for the franchise as inspiration for ideas not only in animation but also in any film work I produced, I would often try to make my work stand out and seem unique from others which are pretty hard especially when you're put with a group of people who didn't tend to listen and left you to do everything on your own at times whilst they took credit for it, it used to really get me down because so much pressure was put on me and my teacher would tell me to deal with it as best as I could which is what I did. Anyways my animations class was cut due to the teacher leaving and having no one to replace them, I was pretty annoyed but grateful for all the tips and everything I learnt about animation, it made me have so much respect for the artists behind animations we see who don't tend to get that much credit, well at least not as much as the director and producers, so in honour of my love for Studio Ghibli here are just some of my favourite movies made by them: 


The first movie I ever saw was Spirited Away, my sister knew I would like it straight away and she wasn't wrong, the movie is about a young girl called Chihiro who is travelling to her new home with her parents, but whilst travelling her father takes a wrong turn and they end up in a magical world which isn't obvious to them at first, they come across an empty restaurant with a feast of food, may I also add the food in Studio Ghibli movies always looks delicious and there are various youtube channels that showcase the recipes being cooked and served which I enjoy watching. Chihiro's parents will turn into pigs if they are unable to stop feasting on the food. Chihiro ends up at a bathhouse and is obviously terrified but with the help of a young boy she meets he helps her and warns her she needs to get back to the river before sunset but she is too late and discovers her parents are now pigs. The movie is a journey that Chihiro takes on in order to have her parents turned back into humans, she is a brave little girl in a world full of talking animals and a mysterious character called No Face that has an appetite like no other.


My Neighbor Totoro has to be the next movie I choose, yes it's the typically one everyone chooses but it's a wonderful classic with the most beautiful and cute characters in. What I love about Studio Ghibli movies is how they transport children into magical worlds or situations, as a child I believed that raindrops falling to the ground were little rain ballerinas and that made me want to sit and watch the rain for even longer, my mum had so many magical little stories she would tell us and yes we was gullible but it helped our imagination run wild and that's what I think Studio Ghibli movies do perfectly! My Neighbour Totoro is about two young girls who move house with their father, their mother is sick in hospital and they are trying to prepare the house for when she is well enough to come home, the youngest girl Mei is the first to discover the magical creatures where she lives and has lots of fun with them, her older sister eventually see's them and these magical creatures help the girls out, another thing I would like to add is Studio Ghibli movies don't tend to have a modern era that they take place in which I think gives the movies more character, My neighbor Totoro turned 30 this year!


If you like witches this movie is perfect for you, Kiki's Delivery Service is about a girl who has turned 13 and is ready to leave home for a year on the night of a full moon, they do this in order to pursue their witch skill training. Kiki (the young witch) takes on the journey with her familiar spirit which is a cat, yes I know what a typical thing to choose but seriously cats are awesome! The movie takes Kiki on a journey where she starts having a crisis because she becomes depressed, I think that is a very important element to the movie because it shows not just adults get depressed but the younger generation can too. Along the way she has a delivery service which she tries her best to keep up with, she is a lovely little witch just a little lost and unsure how to find her way back to learn her skills, the reason I think I like this movie so much is it shows how tough being a teenager can be, if you put aside the fact that she is a witch she is learning how to deal with problems that come her way.


This is a newly discovered favourite of mine, one that I knew about but never got around to watching until a few weeks ago, Ponyo!! When I watched it I realised how much it reminded me of The Little Mermaid, I don't think it ripped it off as The Little Mermaid is based on a Danish fairy tale anyways which is a lot more darker than both of these films but Ponyo does follow the path of the original when it mentions Ponyo turning into sea foam but I won't say if that happens! Anyways the movie is about a little goldfish named Ponyo who has magical powers she wants to explore and decides she wants to have legs and become human to play with her new friend Sōsuke who also renamed her Ponyo, her father forbids it and tries everything to stop her but in doing so disaster strikes, can the two of them stop it getting worse? Well, you will have to watch, I've been telling loads of people to watch it ever since I did. So there you have it! Although there are many more Studio Ghibli movies to watch, not all are enjoyable as these three but they might be to someone else, so much time goes into these beautifully crafted movies even down to the music, I'm so glad I was introduced to the world of Studio Ghibli and the next movie I plan on watching is Only Yesterday! What's your favourite Studio Ghibli movie?

Elle May
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