I only started watching studio ghibli movies as an adult, but I still find them really enjoyable and impactful. I can relate to how everything seems to be going wrong for Kiki. Although the film is geared towards children, I thought the movie did a great job showing depression and the real emotions that people feel when they fail at something. I recently declared my major and am now looking at specializations, so I can really relate to how Kiki is struggling to find her purpose. I find it amazing that the film covered really deep topics but remained interesting and light. By the end of the film, I felt really encouraged and have decided to watch more studio ghibli movies over the summer.

I’ve been a fan of Studio Ghibli films for a while and was very excited that one of the Friday films would be showcasing one. Kiki’s Delivery Service has gorgeous animation and the same whimsical spirit that makes Ghibli films so timeless. I had watched this movie before several years ago, and when watching again for this event, Kiki’s overzealous enthusiasm to begin her new independent life as a witch really reminded me of the college experience, and the feeling of burnout when it comes to pushing yourself too hard in your work in search of that independence. Throughout the movie, Kiki is desperate to prove herself and not be a failure when it comes to helping others with her magic. She takes on continuously hard jobs in order to prove her worth, thus over-extending herself in the process, and finding herself getting sick, losing interest in her hobbies, and even beginning to lose her magic itself. Her magic, in my eyes, represents her drive and spirit – which is what allows her to fly and reach her ambitions. But refusing to rest and set reasonable goals to reach those ambitions leads to her losing that spirit. This reminded me of a common experience when it comes to college and work itself, where outside pressures lead to people over-exerting themselves in pursuit of their goals and losing the drive that got them there, to begin with. Kiki’s Delivery Service reminded me that not pushing yourself too hard and taking the time to get the necessary rest, will allow one’s spirit to truly soar.

I always will enjoy a Ghibli film. They have such great stories filled with enchanting character, interesting concepts, and themes of adventure, imagination, and growing up. Kiki’s Delivery Service was the first Studio Ghibli film I saw as a kid so I definitely have fond memories of it. Revisiting it now as an adult, the movie still help up to my memory of it. This film was so great and I love Kiki’s story as she tries to grow up and find her place in a new city and find her purpose and role as a witch. Ultimately, Kiki is a person who wants to help people and will go to extremes to do so. She will ride through the rain to deliver a birthday gift, she’ll search through the woods to find a toy she dropped, she’ll even fly through the air with a borrowed broom and damaged powers to save her friend in a pinch. One of the most distressing parts of the film is when Kiki can’t talk to her cat anymore and realizes that her powers are fading. This worried me so much because it seemed like she was losing her purpose and what made her herself. It was also hard to see her struggle through this. In the end though, it was inspiring to see her overcome this and truly discover herself and find her purpose as a witch and as a friend.

I’ve been meaning to watch Kiki’s Delivery Service ever since my friend recommended it to me. I know that her recommendations never disappoint, and this position held after the Friday Film. I really appreciate the film for its wholesome plot and theme of overcoming self-doubt. Although Kiki starts to lose her powers at the end of the film, she was determined to save her friend Tombo from hanging precariously from a blimp’s drifting vessel. She uses a borrowed broom to catch him midair. Seeing Kiki gain her confidence back was heartwarming, and something I will not forget. This is now one of my favorite movies. I cannot wait to watch it with my nine-year-old sister when I see her again! I know she’ll appreciate it.

Kiki’s Delivery Service is a wonderfully beautiful film that showcases many of the struggles of being a teenager. The film has a relatively straightforward, linear plot, but this benefits the film by allowing the viewer to focus more on the characters and challenges that pop up throughout the film, instead of having to keep track of a convoluted plot. Many of the challenges that Kiki faces in the film revolve around newfound independence.

From having to leave home, to accidentally losing a delivery, to forgetting how to ride her broom, Kiki is faced with a multitude of problems that she, for the most part, has to figure out on her own. While she certainly has people who help her, the problems primarily rest on her shoulders. By the end of the film, Kiki manages to solve all of the challenges. This shows to the viewer, that even if you have to navigate new surroundings and are faced with unique challenges, with some resilience, and a little help from some friends, you can solve any problem that comes your way.

When wrapped in a beautifully animated film, with an amazing soundtrack, this makes the message even more accessible for the younger audience that it is aimed at.

This week we watched Kiki’s Delivery Service. When I heard that there would be an option to watch the film this week, I was so excited. I’ve loved Studio Ghibli’s films ever since I was a child. I can still remember spending summers watching My Neighbor Totoro over and over again. The film has always been one of my comforts whenever I’m feeling stressed. There’s a certain whimsy and wholesomeness that Miyazaki imbues in his films that can’t be found in western animation. Moreover, I love the sometimes dark material that he delves into in his films. In Tororo, he describes the mother’s illness in a very interesting way. We, as the audience, know that it’s sad, but the loving relationship between the sisters and the father makes us believe that they can make it through. I think there’s a similar sense of sadness in Kiki as well when she finds herself unable to speak with Jiji. Although Western animation does delve into these subjects sometimes, it’s always very hard-hitting. Pixar movies are known for making audiences cry. On the other hand, I would argue that Miyazaki’s films can be just as sad but audiences don’t cry, they laugh. I think the dynamic between western and asian animation is worth looking further into.

It was my first time in a long time watching any anime-related work as I used to feel physically nauseous for some reason whenever I watched along some anime with my cousins when I was younger. I have also heard about how this film is a classic in anime and many people have recommended me to watch it if I ever got the chance. I think there are some really important themes in this film that resonate with my life. For example, when Kiki had lost confident (in both her work life, as she could not continue delivering because of her lack of flying abilities, and personal life, since Jiji has left to spend more time with a pretty, white cat) and was in a slump, she had to remind herself to pick herself up together and soon was able to regain her confidence. I can relate to Kiki in that once something goes wrong, it is easy to conclude that nothing is going right but, in reality, only a small portion of my day was not going the way I had intended to. I also empathize with Kiki in that it can be hard at times to pick yourself up once you fall into a slump.

This part Friday, I had the opportunity to watch Kiki’s Delivery Service hosted by GRF Tom with about 20 others in the Rose Scholars program.  This activity was reminiscent of an event last semester where we watched My Neighbor Totoro, and I was always hoping that another Ghibli film would be shown during this program.  I was thrilled when I saw this event on the calendar and immediately signed up, since I am a huge Ghibli fan!

The story of Kiki’s Delivery Service is all about growing up.  As people (and animals, in the case of the film) mature with time, they move along at different paces.  Even the closest of friends can find that their interests no longer align so perfectly anymore as they change at different rates.  However, the movie really does its best to portray this as not a bad occurrence, instead urging the viewer to strive to apply their skills to the things they want to do rather than stay grounded in the past.

(Originally posted 3/31/21 on the Fall 2020 blog)

Alright, I realized I may watch too much anime when I kept wondering when the action of the movie was, although I got used to it after a short time. This movie was super sweet, and I love Kiki as the positive, light-hearted young protagonist. I loved watching her learn to enjoy her new life in the town as she made lots of new friends–my favorite character was probably Ursula, who lives in the woods and draws ravens. Even though the overall tone of the film is positive, it also hits on some great themes: Kiki is upset when a young girl is disrespectful to her grandmother, who was shown to be extremely kind, and Kiki has a sort of identity crisis when her magical powers begin to fade. In the end, Ursula tells her that sometimes abilities can come and go, and you just have to wait and not force yourself to perform to your expectations immediately. In the end, Kiki regains her powers in time to save her friend.

I should also add that the animation of the film was very nice. Despite the older age of the movie, the settings feel either adventurous or homey. I would definitely love to watch more films like this.

Studio Ghibli always does a phenomenal job with its films and Kiki’s Delivery Service was brilliant. This film follows a thirteen-year-old who leaves her home with her talking cat for witch training. There were many wholesome and tear-jerking moments as Kiki, the protagonist learns about herself and grows as a person. After leaving home, she arrives at a town where starts her own flying delivery service. She struggles to run the business but continues to try her best. However, at one point, she falls into a cycle of self-doubt and insecurities, causing her to lose her magical abilities. Through this experience, Kiki learns that she must know her purpose and why she wants to have her abilities. In a moment of great urgency, Kiki regains her powers to save her friend. She realizes that she never lost her abilities; they were just within her the entire time. This film was so beautiful, as are all Ghibli films. It was really enjoyable and the animation was stunning. It was a bit slow, but I think it’s worth it to watch it. I definitely plan on watching more Ghibli movies.

Watching Kiki’s Delivery Service was a great way to end off my week! The film, which tells Kiki’s journey through self-discovery and learning her place in the world, reminded me a lot of this past year. For me, coming to Cornell last semester was the first time I’ve been away from my family and living on my own. As someone who grew up in a big family, I was scared about being alone and having to be truly independent. Like Kiki, there were ups and downs, and learning curves to adapt to, but my experience here so far has been great. Overall, the film was enjoyable, and I definitely look forward to checking out more works from Studio Ghibli!

I really enjoyed this film! I thought the character interaction between Kiki and Jiji was super adorable. Though the episode seems childlike, it brings to light many challenges associated with growing up: for example, finding a job, balancing passions and responsibilities, and understanding that things do not always go your way.  The most heartbreaking part was realizing that Kiki could no longer speak with Jiji. Coupled with self-doubt, Kiki had a long journey to face in order to get her powers back. It’s a great story (a little bit cliche), but I would definitely recommend it!

I found one thing that stuck to me the most is the fact that how overdoing lead to negative result. A character talks about how she loved painting. Because of how obsessed she was with painting, this lead to the fact that she could not paint anymore, and she had to take break. This fact from the film reminds me of my journey as a college student. Sometimes, doing more is not going to benefit, even though I might think more is better. Going forward, I would be more mindful with the 80/20 rule

I enjoyed watching Kiki’s Delivery Service because it was a great way to destress after all my prelims. It was nice to see a teenager leave home and find independence and her role in the world. Kiki was obviously the good character, but it was always heartwarming to see more good characters for every bad character introduced to us. I haven’t seen a movie like this in a while, so it kind of took me back to the past when I watched a lot of Disney movies.

I attended the viewing of Kiki’s Delivery Service and greatly enjoyed the film. I liked the quintessential coming of age story as Kiki tried to grow up far quicker than she was prepared for. Her adventure into the world outside her hometown of witches left her feeling isolated and she beings to realize that her role in the world would not be so easy to determine nor live out. I enjoyed how to show Kiki’s loss of self-confidence, the writers coupled this with the loss of her witch powers. This emphasized the struggle that Kiki was experiencing and made the climax of the story, her regaining her confidence and ability to ride a broom more impactful.

I finally watched Kiki’s Delivery Service for Friday’s Film. I’ve always wanted to watch this movie and it completely exceeded my expectations. At the end of the movie, I was so sad it ended so quickly and I was surprised it just ended right after the climax of the plot. It’s now my favorite Studio Ghibli movie. I loved all the characters, especially seeing Kiki’s growth, independence, and sense of justice and self. I really resonated with her struggle, and since I also love to paint, I understood how it feels to have that artist’s block and to feel like nothing is coming out right. I was inspired by Kiki’s friend who just said even if she has a block, she still just paints, and I think that it’s a good way to grow out of it, because you can’t exactly wait for something to happen or wait to get inspired because you have to make it happen by practicing. You can’t get better at something if you don’t practice it. I think I also need to apply it to my life and stop getting discouraged right when something doesn’t go the way I had hoped.

This was such an enjoyable film to end a week filled with exams with! A lot of the aspects of the film resonated with me, such as feeling isolated and not really knowing what to do/what path to take. Kiki ends up making a bunch of mistakes throughout the story but ultimately it turns out okay for her. It isn’t the most realistic but it’s also heartwarming in the sense that the characters she meets feel very real. Even if some of them don’t get much screentime I liked how their personality still showed (like the baker trying to impress Jiji). I also liked how Kiki starts off carrying this huge weight of responsibility that she thinks she needs to tackle all by herself but slowly starts to have more fun and starts being less hard on herself, which leads to an overall improvement. Personally, I felt it was reassuring to be reminded that it’s ok if things go wrong sometimes and to not get discouraged because I didn’t live up to my own expectations.

There is something inspiring and admirable about 13 year old Kiki leaving home and finding her independence. Throughout the film I was in awe of how she was able to navigate the town and interact amicably with those around her. She had only Jiji and a few personal possessions when she first arrived, and now, she had made a place for herself. But no matter how fearless Kiki appeared, she was still someone who was unsure of herself. She carried herself with a mature aura that projected her assuredness, yet she carried unease too. Kiki was a person – someone who could exist in our world. I had a strong connection with her the moment she was introduced. Kiki’s day-to-day emulated the blurry time in my life when I first left for Cornell. I had to face reality and create my own space within the world. There was no glittery lens of everything working out or life going perfectly: I simply had to have the motivation to keep moving forward and see what laid ahead. Like Kiki, I doubted myself and sat in my thoughts wondering how I would be able to be an “adult.” But with time I realized it was not about that. It was about being comfortable with myself and taking everything as it came. Watching Kiki’s Delivery Service like a refreshing breeze. I hope I can watch more Ghibli films in the future.

One thing that stood out to me about Kiki’s Delivery Service was the way in which the world around Kiki was fundamentally good. Whenever things went wrong, there was always a kind person (or animal) willing to help. As a result, situations that normally cause tension or turn out badly in a typical movie, such as a large dog finding a small cat, turn out to be positive. It was interesting to see a fictional world that was essentially a fantasy land, with nothing ever going wrong for more than a few minutes — for me, it seems like it’s been a long time since I watched a movie with that kind of setting.

This week, I really enjoyed watching “Kiki’s Delivery Service.” I had high expectations for the movie going in because I loved watching other Studio Ghibli movies like “Spirited Away” and “Howl’s Moving Castle,” and this movie did not disappoint. I resonated with Kiki when she lost her ability to fly as a result of her self-doubt after the negative feedback she got. However, it was inspiring to see her find a new purpose and regain her powers after saving Tombo from the blimp. Part of the reason why I enjoy watching animated shows and movies is that I find it easier to identify with the characters since they don’t exist outside of the show. For example, sometimes I can’t help but associate Spiderman with Tom Holland, which makes it harder to see myself in Spiderman’s character. Overall, I thought watching “Kiki’s Delivery Service” was refreshing and a great study break. I will definitely be watching this movie again in the future.

In the film Kiki’s Delivery Service, a character talks about how she loved painting and was obsessed with it. She painted so much that one day, she couldn’t paint anymore, and she learned that she needed to take a break. While this was far from the main point of the film, this part really resonated with me. I think that especially as a college student, it is very easy to overwork oneself and to become burnt out, even if you are working on something that you enjoy. Kiki experiences this too in a sense, when she is perhaps so desperate to become a real witch that she loses her powers for a brief period of time because she is putting so much pressure on herself. I think it is important to have the mindset that taking a break is progress, too!