As I’ve watched many other Ghibli movies, I’ve watched My Neighbor Totoro many times, but it never gets old. The story is not complex at all, it was merely a story of an ordinary family (of course, except for their marvelous experience with totoros). The girls would fight like any siblings do, they would miss their mom who’s sick, they would running around in the house just like us. It is close to our life enough that we would relate and resonate, yet the movie is slightly different that it portrays a more attractive and fascinating (or utopian?) version of the world. Everyone is so pure, nice, and kind. The neighbors look out for each other. Tatsuo did not accuse the kids to be whimsical and he believed in the magical story his daughter told him. He even took the girls to say thank you. That kind of innocence and naturalness always hits the soft spot in my heart and makes me want to believe people and kindness more.

My Neighbor Totoro is a movie I’ve seen many times throughout the years; watching it this week, I realized I’ve never sat down and watched it through an adult lens. I mostly watched it when I was very young, and then after that, with younger family members. It’s always been a delightful movie to see, partially because it’s told primarily through the voices of the children.

Watching it this time, I picked up on a lot of details I’ve never noticed before. I’ve always seen the film as magical and happy, but I realize now that a lot of emphasis is placed on the children’s mother being in the hospital. It was a detail I’d expected, but now that I’m a bit older, I’m understanding more of the implications of the mother’s illness. It should be a sad and scary time, which makes it all the more delightful when Totoro and the forest’s creatures appear to play with the cast. Similarly, the scene where Mei is missing is scarier to see as an adult, even if I know how it ends. As a child, I always thought her shoe floating in the water was just a detail, but I now realize the implications of it, and I know if it happened to me I would be terrified. Seeing these details in the context of the movie, they serve to draw out the happier moments better.

After watching this again, I’m excited to see it again with the next young child I encounter who needs babysitting. It’s really good storytelling, and it always manages to tell an effective story with the its magical ups and downs.

For a while now, I had been familiar with Studio Ghibli films and seen Totoro themes desserts and plushies across the internet, but I never understood the love for this movie until this Film Friday. This movie was delightful and whimsical and brought back the feelings of imagination from childhood. There is a beauty in the simplicity of going on adventures to another world all from your backyard, whether they are real or assisted by the creativity of a child’s mind. The family in this movie was sweet and heartwarming and made me think of my own parents and sisters, especially as I have been more disconnected from them this year since being at school and separated by the pandemic. I think I will definitely have to try watching more Studio Ghibli films if they are all this wonderful.

Many are familiar with My Neighbor Totoro, a classic Japanese anime film and one of the most popular. Pretty much anyone who is a fan of the genre has seen it. There are so many reasons to love it, whether for its imaginative, whimsical characters, its stunning animation, or for the feelings of nostalgic adventure, discovery, freedom, or so many others. For me, it gives me a unique sense of abstract nostalgia. There’s no particular scene, or event, or character that reminds me of something from when I was younger, but rather the emotions associated with childhood. There are so many wonderful things that we take more and more for granted as we grow older, and some things that we lose as we grow older like our childhood imagination. On the surface, the film appears like a children’s movie with cute playful characters that don’t talk and just fly around making magical things happen, but the film goes so much deeper. While it does give me that wonderful feeling of being a child again, it also reminds me of how much bigger the world feels at that age, and how powerless you feel compared to adults. It also shows me how seeming well-intentioned actions can end up causing others to stress and even anguish as a result. All in all, it’s a movie for all ages that provides endless wisdom and insight while feeling both extremely familiar yet in a world of its own at the same time.

I really enjoyed the animation and child-like innocence portrayed in the film; it was different from the serious films that I usually watch during Rose Scholars events. The plot of the movie surrounded family and the children’s mom returning home and meeting new friends and spirit animals. This event was a great reminder to cherish your family and friends since Thanksgiving break is coming up and many of us are about to be reunited with our families. The relationship the two young girls had reminded me of the relationship I have with my sister.

When I was a child, I watched Disney and other similar animated films. Upon signing up for this activity, I had not heard about the film or knew anything about it. I was pleasantly surprised and entertained by the sisters and their friend Totoro as the film progressed. Additionally, I was unaware the original movie was in Japanese and did not find it as difficult to read the subtitles as I did when I studied German a few years ago. I would not normally choose an animated film to watch for fun as an adult, but after watching My Neighbor Totoro, I would definitely look into similar films that would end as happily as it did because I enjoyed it so much.

I am someone who has always been a big fan of anime.  Back in 2019, I had a chance to visit the Studio Ghibli in Mitaka, Japan; while I had previously watched some of the films such as Kiki’s Delivery Service and Princess Mononoke, I found that I never got around to watching My Neighbor Totoro, even though it was immensely popular.  I am glad that I was provided an opportunity to finally watch it last Friday, as it was a fun, entertaining, and light film to release some stress right after semifinals.  Totoro was adorable, and I finally know which film the Cat Bus is from.  I hope that this program will host more Studio Ghibli films in the future, since they’re so fun and full of life!

I had always heard great things about Totoro, so I was incredibly excited to finally sit down and see what it was all about! I was certainly surprised by the content of the film, as I was really unsure of what to expect, but it’s extremely wholesome nature was something not often found in movies but certainly welcome! It was incredibly heartwarming in it’s messages regarding family and it was visually stunning in its fantastical elements, definitely the perfect film to cap off my final Friday on campus before traveling home. But overall, the film just brought a smile to my face, and that’s really all one can ask for in the middle of a global pandemic and constant change.

The Friday Film event yesterday was something I’d been looking forward to for the whole week. The whole week I was working on homework or presentations and studying for classes. My friend, who lives two doors down the hall in Mennen with me, and I set up a mini viewing party in my room. We turned off the lights and had some snacks and candy. We also did some painting afterwards, and it was a great opportunity to relax and de-stress from the prior months of work.

I really enjoyed the movie, I remember watching half of Totoro years back, and never got to finish it. I love watching the signature Miyazaki animations, so far I’ve watched “Spirited Away,” half of “Howl’s Moving Castle,” and at least two more I can’t remember the names of. All the scenery and storylines and characters are so beautiful and I want to hop into the world of the movies and experience it for myself.

The last time I watched Totoro was years ago and I’m surprised by how much of the movie I had forgotten about. There’s Totoro + the mini Totoros and then the kind of unsettling Catbus but for some reason most of the plot just slipped my mind…

One of the things I find fascinating about the slice-of-life genre is how there isn’t much plot yet it’s still a consistently enjoyable hour and a half. A good chunk of it focused on Mei getting lost and I thought it was really nice how the whole village? town? came together to help search even though they had just moved in only recently.

I also really liked how open-minded the adults were when interacting with the children. For most of the movie you’re kind of left wondering if the kids just have really active imaginations but then the corn-on-the-windowsill just catches you a little off guard. Also, Kanta’s sailor cap was cool.

Overall this was a nice, (mostly) relaxing movie for a stressful semifinals week and I enjoyed it a lot.

The film My Neighbor Totoro really illustrated how important family is. More specifically, it illustrated how important siblings are. No matter what situation it was, Satsuki and Mei always had each others’ backs. For example, when Mei came to visit Satsuki at school, although it was extremely annoying, Satsuki allowed Mei to sit with her and comfort her. Throughout the story, things like this would always occur, and by helping each other out, it helped strengthen their relationship further. It reminds me of when I was a young kid and my siblings would always be super nice to be. Yes, we would occasionally have fights, but they would have my back. Although I was a pain sometimes, they would always help me whatever the case would be. Since I’m older now, I will now help them out as well and return the favor.