Club Ghibli #23 - My Neighbor Totoro (1988)

[Diddy]

So it's come to this - after last week's curveball at the very end of the current timeline, it's time to finish the canon. It's a Miyazaki (Hayao this time), it's arguably the most famous of them all, it's LITERALLY iconic, just look at the Ghibli logo. We draw the curtain at Club Ghibli with "My Neighbor Totoro" ("Tonari no Totoro").

What is there left to say? While we have explored the bumpy latter days of the studio, I wanted to go out on a high, so it's back to the classics. "Totoro" was undoubtedly another of the milestones in the Ghibli story, perhaps not as financially successful out of the gates as other movies, but defining the studio in the long run.

The story follows two sisters, Satsuki and Mei, who move to the countryside with their father, to be closer to their hospitalised mother. However, younger sister Mei stumbles upon a mysterious creature deep in the undergrowth. The girls' subsequent encounters with Totoro and other unusual beings will bring life and excitement to their otherwise subdued country life. But don't take this for a magical caper, the dangers of the world are ever-present.

The thing that still blows my mind about this movie is its insane release plan - a double bill with "Grave of the Fireflies" of all things. On the face of it, one of the most young-skewed movies twinned with a historical adaptation many adults have a tough time with. But as yin and yang, the pair showed everyone two facets of the studio: unflinching reality with a dash of children's innocence, and vice versa. Both films also captured a sense of history - "Fireflies" the deep pain of the latter days of WWII, "Totoro" the idyllic nostalgia of the post-war era. Maybe this is also kismet for @Queen of the Bay - since these are the last two movies to watch, right?

The film captured imaginations far beyond Japan - the US and Europe have gradually woken up to its charms, and even China fell under its spell, with the film getting a very belated release in 2019 after being a notoriously heavily-pirated title.

As always, I recommend the Japanese audio with subtitles - American child actors just don't seem to translate (see "Ponyo").



HOW THIS WORKS

WELL it's all over now so this part is a bit irrelevant but I wanted to tag everyone anyway - serves you right for indicating your interest
In a semi book club format, the films will be announced, and over the course of about 2 weeks we can watch it and let everyone know what we thought. We are in the last third of the movies now, so I have decided to curate the last run and not pick the last big ones too soon - we've been really restrained I think so far, so thank you!

I was thinking 2 weeks should be enough time for most people to fit in a viewing at some point, but it's not strict so please come back when you have a chance, no pressure!
@Christian @GNL @jivafox @COB @Haiku @ZenGiraffe @Lucille @KindaCool @Eyes @Queen of the Bay @RaspberrySwirl @RJN @Beverley @big ron @ButterTart @Mats (let me know if you don't want to be tagged any more)

 

[Diddy]

Is @Mats the Helen_S of Club Ghibli?

 

[Peekaboo]

What a wonderful life-affirming slice of life this film is. I love how it's up to the viewer to decide whether Totoro is real or just a product of the kids' imagination (it's real).

Also I love that he is *just* a tiny bit scary, not just some lovable, talking good-eyed monster voiced by BILLY CRYSTAL or something. There's a slight edge to the scenes where he is yawning and it looks like he may eat the little girl ALIVE

The music is awesome too. Have I mentioned I've had tickets for the Joe Hisaishi concert in London for over THREE YEARS? It got postponed due to Covid and rescheduled for last month and two days before Hisaishi went and GOT ACTUAL COVID I hope this happens in the end and they end the concert with the Totoro marching song.

 

[Eyes]

Aww this one is awesome! Of course of course, Hisaishi's music on this one will forever live with me, I think the only Ghibli film where I love the music more is Howl's. Story is as far as I remember very much a great example of iyashikei which I love indulging in for the nostalgia and happy feelings.

I'll see if I pick up anything further on a rewatch soon.

 

[Marina Salty]

Can't wait to watch this one

 

[Diddy]

I think this was a good high to finish up on for me. I was dithering between a 9 and a 10 but ultimately it's a struggle to think of a more compact movie that's quite so iconic.

I like that it's not a straight-up fantasy (although obviously there's some of that), it's more of an optimistic movie. I mean compare Satsuki and Mei to Chihiro in "Spirited Away", both movies start with the families moving, but Chihiro is sulking, while the girls are getting turnt - even though the reason they are moving is because of their mothers' illness. There's this sort of subplot (if there is a plot for it to BE sub to) about the mother's illness - nothing fantastical about that, in fact nothing actually happens there, she just gets a cold and that's all - I think another movie would've rinsed that out for drama and conflict.

The two kids are very cute and their personalities are so well-established (the father's too) - Mei just copying her sister all the time. If anything, the supporting characters were a bit of a nothing - Granny was a bit spaced out, and a pretty bad babysitter , and Kanta, again another movie would've put too much on his and Satsuki having an arc, but basically all he did was get used to Satsuki.

I haven't even mentioned Totoro - I don't think any of it needs to make sense, the little ones collecting acorns for what? Why does Totoro use a big spinning top when he can just fly? etc etc and I think that sort of analysis doesn't help the movie or the enjoyment. Iconic character, I like how he gets these thrills out of unexpected things - rain splatter, lost child reports. THEN the CAT BUS! I mean it's a strikingly odd idea, lots of legs, RATS FOR HEADLIGHTS! But nobody reacts to it going " eww that's creepy", they just accept it and that's that. I guess that echoes @Peekaboo when he said Totoro could easily be dangerous or scary. Just walking along that line is much more interesting than just going straight-up cute like a Disney sidekick or Mr Bing Bong.

I don't know what point I'm trying to make here. I mean I know these things are storyboarded and planned a lot (although often they start production without completing the story), but I love this film for not feeling calculated in any way. I know it's a bit of a dead horse to compare Ghibli to Disney/Pixar, but I think picking apart the differences has made me dislike the Disney approach more and more. This film makes me cry at certain moments - Pixar finally twigged that animation could not only made with adult viewer in mind but it could also make them cry, but I think since Toy Story 3 they plan movies like "OK so what's the scene where we make everyone cry?" and it makes me resistant to it.

Oh whatever, I'm just rambling now - GREAT MOVIE, I LOVE GHIBLI

 

[Peekaboo]

Have you seen Nightmare Totoro Duddy? Your eyes will not be able to unsee it.

 

[Marina Salty]

Definitely an excellent choice to close this Ghibli special.
It's very simple but not in a bad way. I enjoyed it for what it is, unpretentious without deep hidden messages and metaphors or anything of the sort, just an exploration of childhood.
Once again it made me wish I had kids (something that normally I'd never wish for) so that I could watch this with them.
Thank you Diddy for introducing me to all of this, I've never heard of Ghibli or watched any of their films before. It's been a very interesting journey.

 

[Eyes]

A great film throughout. I remembered when rewatching it just now that Totoro indeed comes across as somewhat menacing, though this is completely unfounded on anything he does. More that it's perhaps part of this respect and respectful distance the Japanese culture here keeps from the natural world. I don't pretend to know anything deep about Shinto religious practices but there's an emphasis on praying at the shrine, being grateful for nature's bounties that seems to be a part of this film's point. A longer or more serious film might have contrasted this with destroyers of nature - hey, like Princess Mononoke, which slots Totoro right into place with classic Ghibli themes.

That smile though, burned into memory. In a good way.

The idyllic time out of time (aka the FIFTIES) that this film is set in is also very welcome, at least for the feeling, while watching. You get a sense of community in this village environment where people look out for each other, and that's amazing - not as prevalent today. Any setting of a film where I'd want to live there is good - the dad must be having the time of his life (once his wife gets over her debilitating illness of course), a family in the country while he works as a university professor in the city. And every single character is a good person. Iyashikei, man, it heals you - somewhat the point but you know.

This has been great filling in the Ghibli gaps, Diddy. I had mostly seen only the major ones before. Still got a few from before I joined commenting but I'll round those up soon enough.

 

[Diddy]

@Eyes Have you seen "Old Enough!" yet? If you need that endorphin hit of not-real-peril but child drama, you need to get on that, it's all on Netflix now.

I keep remembering the end of the rainstorm scene where that frog is just sitting in the road, at the end of the scene it just looks straight to camera and goes HEEEAAAAHHH, that just sent me

 

[Eyes]

@Eyes Have you seen "Old Enough!" yet? If you need that endorphin hit of not-real-peril but child drama, you need to get on that, it's all on Netflix now.

I keep remembering the end of the rainstorm scene where that frog is just sitting in the road, at the end of the scene it just looks straight to camera and goes HEEEAAAAHHH, that just sent me

I've heard of the concept but never gotten around to watching it, maybe I'll try a few!

Actually quite a lot of this movie could go on the 'how weird but adorably so' scale with scenes like that and basically whatever Totoro and his compatriots do