Why I LOVE Ghibli Films

I love Ghibli movies and I love Hayao Miyazaki.

    For those of you who don’t know, Hayao Miyazaki is a Japanese artist who specializes in animation, filmmaking, and illustration. He co-founded Studio Ghibli, which is responsible for the epic films that are the topic of this rant annddd which many people call ‘Japanese Disney’. According to wikipedia, he is “a masterful storyteller and creator of Japanese animated feature films, and is widely regarded as one of the most accomplished filmmakers in the history of animation.” He fills his films with so many wonderful things; like magic, myth, history, culture, philosophy, and connection. They teach us perspective, empathy, patience, humility, and countless other valuable moral and spiritual lessons. There are ecological lessons in films like Princess Mononoke or in My Neighbour Totoro. In those movies a personification of nature allows for the story to capture a deep connection to our environment and spirituality. There are beautiful coming of age stories like in KiKi’s Delivery Service or in Spirited Away. He is able to capture the complexity of life and feelings. With all this complexity, many people have described the films as sublime. Aside from being a rad band - the sublime is something so powerful, so enormous, and so magnificent that it evokes really intense emotions - like standing on a cliff looking over the Grand Canyon or something. Not only do these movies capture that awe of the universe - they feature so many women and young girls as protagonists and heroes! In KiKi’s Delivery Service they explore themes that really hit me where it hurt. After Kiki leaves her quaint homey upbringing to come of age in the big city, she encounters themes of simple living and connection to nature in relation to the transition from girlhood to adulthood. Howl's Moving Castle, My Neighbour Totoro, Arrietty, Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, KiKi’s Delivery Service, and Ponyo (and I'm probably missing some!). These movies are art and it is the magnificently beautiful artwork in the animation, the thoughtful writing and plot, the moving soundtracks, and the lovable characters that make it really good art in my eyes. Please, If you got to the end of my little paragraph, treat yourself to a Ghibli movie tonight. xx