Hugely influenced by his mother’s illness as a child, Hayao Miyazaki created My Neighbor Totoro as nostalgia for his younger life. And, in doing so, he created a masterpiece that lifted Miyazaki to international stardom and the characters from the movie (notably Totoro and Catbus) are almost national symbols in Japan. It is a simple tale of children, but the mood and the characters make the movie memorable and exciting. So, let’s go visit Totoro.

In 1950’s Japan, a college professor moves his two daughters to a rural house so they can be closer to the hospital where the mother is recovering (supposedly tuberculosis which is what Miyazaki’s mother had). The two daughters are Satsuki (a school aged girl) and her younger sister Mei (around 3-4 years old). The house is initially infested with soot spirits, but the family settling in and laughing drives them away. While Satsuki is at school and the father is at work, Mei follows a strange creature into a tree and meets Totoro. Everyone thinks Mei is making up imaginary creatures (the father says that it is the spirit of the forest). But when Mei and Satsuki are waiting for their father’s bus (which he missed and had to grab a later one) during a rainstorm, Totoro shows up next to them. Satsuki shares her umbrella and Totoro gives them some seeds and then leaves in a catbus before the father shows up.

The girls plant the seeds, which grows into a giant tree that takes the girls for a ride and then disappears. After the girls find out that their mother is being delayed in returning home, Mei runs away, scared that her mother is dying. Satsuki goes to the tree and pleads for Totoro to help her find Mei. Totoro calls the catbus and together they find Mei and sneak to their mother’s window where they find out that their mother will be coming home soon.

The story is very simple, but it is deliberately so. The movie is more about the characters and the location and the mood. Simple drawings and wonderful color make the characters, especially the magical ones, stand out in the movie. This movie is much different than the traditional Disney bright colorful songfest. It is a more emotional and experiential story that flows through you and captures your attention. It’s not a movie that will wow you on the first viewing, but it will stay with you and make you want to watch it again to revisit old friends and monsters.