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Title:
  My Neighbour Totoro 

UK distributor: Optimum Asia

BBFC Certificate: PG

Suggested Retail Price (SRP):
£19.99

Running Time: 87 mins (approx.)

Audio Options: English 2.0, Japanese 2.0

Subtitles: English

Reviewer:  Tom (Webmaster)

 

It may have taken 18 years, but finally the wonderful My Neighbour Totoro has been granted a UK release courtesy of Optimum Asia as part of their excellent The Studio Ghibli Collection

Seeing Totoro for the first time is nothing short of a revelation.  I say this because no matter if you are a hardcore anime fan, a newcomer or a casual filmgoer, you will still be stunned by the brilliance of this film.  Simply put it has something that no other film has but it is hard to say exactly what – could it be magic?  Well other Miyazaki films have ‘magic’ but Totoro has it from start to finish.  What Totoro has is something that words cannot explain because a word has yet to have been invented to describe what Totoro has that other films do not. The following paragraphs hopefully will though.
 

The plot of Totoro is a simple one.  Two children - Sasuki and her younger sister Mei - move to the countryside with their father in order to be closer to their sick mother.  Naturally the children go exploring in the vast country, poking into every nook and cranny they can of their house, garden and surrounding fields until they stumble across the 'Totoro' - fluffy creatures of various sizes, similar to bears.  The children start play with the Totoro and other creatures such as the Catbus whenever they can.



Probably the scariest picture ever...
 


Although the plot of My Neighbour Totoro may sound thin and similar to many children's films, it manages to achieve something that very few other films have - it actually manages to capture everyone's childhood perfectly through it's scenes of countryside exploration and curiousity.  Also the film never talks down to children by explaining what is happening on the screen in detail or by delivering a very obvious moral message like most American animation.  Instead it manages to leave the viewer wondering exactly what the Totoro represents - an imaginary friend invented by the children for fun or to take their mind of their sick mother?  It isn't really important but does show that you endlessly analyse Totoro if you wish or just sit back and let it remind of your own childhood days. 
 


Mary Poppins before the Atkins diet...
 

The animation throughout the film is equally as staggering as story, with marvellous colour and amazing detail throughout.  Although this is true of all the director's, Hayao Miyazaki, films, with My Neighbour Totoro the achievement feels even greater as Miyazaki films prior featured future and fantasy worlds, where as in My Neighbour Totoro the backgrounds are scarily realistic and proof that it will be sometime before CGI can even come close to producing the same effect.  The animation is still stunning even eighteen years on and will no doubt continue to be for many years. 
 

Put shortly, My Neighbour Totoro is essential viewing for people of all ages that cannot fail to astound.  I've never seen any other film like it and it is unlikely another film could match the magic that it manages to create from start to finish.  Fun for all the family is not a phrase I would use often but it is definitely a phrase I would use for My Neighbour Totoro.  If you and your family are growing tired of the textbook 'Hollywood CGI parody' film, then venture outside and seek out Totoro.  You will not be disappointed. 

The best children’s film ever, the best family film ever and possibly the best anime ever.  Fantastic. 

Extras

As with previous titles in the Studio Ghibli Collection, fully alterative angle storyboards are included which allow you to watch the entire film with storyboards and dialogue.  Also featured is the excellent 'Birth Of Studio Ghibli' documentary which is a detailed account into the studio's beginnings. 

Other extras include the original Japanese trailers and TV spots for the film as well as the opening and ending sequences with the credits removed, which make for fun viewing.  There is a trailer reel for the other titles featured in the Studio Ghibli Collection as well. 

Ratings

Feature: Extras:

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