I really liked the movie “My Neighbor Totoro”. At first, I didn’t expect it to be animated or did I expect it to be in Japanese. However, I grew very fond of the style and found it to be a nice contrast to the other movies I have seen through this program. When you watch this movie you can very much relate to the characters, and the main characters go through a lot of character development, being multifaceted and complex.
I found the story of two girls’ (Satsuki and Mei) exploring a new home heartwarming. The way they were able to play outside and have fun while also not getting into much conflict was wonderful, and their sense of exploration was very interesting and fitting for their characters. Their family was the definition of perfect, save for the mother. I hated to see them argue about the mother not leaving the hospital though — they both wanted the same thing but Mei was too impatient and wanted to see her mother so badly.