Have you ever watched Ghibli movies? Ghibli movies are one of the most famous anime movies in Japan. Ghibli’s popularity is not limited to Japan, but extends overseas as well. In this blog, we will introduce four Ghibli movies from among a number of them.
First of all, Ghibli movies are the works of the animation company called STUDIO GHIBLI INC. The studio name Ghibli means the hot air that blows in the Sahara Desert. During World War II, Italian military aircraft used it as a name, but Miyazaki, an airplane fanatic, knew about this and chose it as the studio name. The intention was to “create a whirlwind in the Japan animation world.”
- one of the most popular Ghibli movies “My Neighbor Totoro”.
The Kusakabe family, father, Satsuki, and Mei, moved to a run-down house in the countryside to recuperate their mother. There, Mei found makkurokurosuke, a ghost that only children can see. That night, the three of the family were able to drive them out with a big good laugh. One bright and sunny day, Mei met a big creature called Totoro and fell asleep on him, however, when Satsuki and her father came, Totoro was not there. On a rainy day after a few days, Satsuki met Totoro and get nuts in a parcel in return for giving him an umbrella. In summer, after learning that her mother’s temporary discharge from the hospital was postponed, Mei tried to head to the hospital, but got lost. While everyone was looking for Mei, Satsuki found her on a cat bus with Totoro. Then they looked at their mother talking with their father happily on a tree.
- a spin-off movie of Whisper of the Heart, The Cat Returns.
A normal high school girl, Haru accidentally saved a black cat that was about to run over by a truck. The black cat is the prince of the cat country, and the cat king of the cat country appears in front of Haru to thank her. Haru, who was skeptical at first, is puzzled by the mysterious events that occur one after another, and finally becomes impatient when she hears that she will be the princess of the cat country. Someone’s advice echoed there, and she decided to look for a cat office as advised. Led by a fat white cat, she finally meets Baron at the cat’s office, but she is forcibly taken away to the land of cats. She was welcomed, but she panicked when she realized that her body had become a cat. With the rescue of Barons, she was able to escape from the cat country and returedn to her daily life.
- “Sprited away” which awarded best Animated Feature at the 75th Academy Awards
A 10-year-old girl, Chihiro, and her parents wander into a hot spring town where gods and ghosts come to heal their tired bodies. However, her parents end up here and are turned into pigs because of their rough behavior. In this town that rejects humans, her name is taken away from her and she is given a new name, “Sen,” and Chihiro is assigned to work as a servant in a huge bathhouse. Will she be able to help her parents return from pigs to humans, and will she be able to return to the human world?
- One of the best animation movie “Kiki’s delivery service”
Kiki, a young girl born to a witch mother and a human father, sets out on a journey on the night of the full moon at the age of 13, following a tradition to train for a year in a town without witches. Gliding on a broomstick with her partner, the black cat Gigi, they eventually arrive in the bustling port town of Colico. Kiki is allowed to borrow a room in a delicious bread store and immediately starts her own flying delivery service. How will Kiki change as she comes into contact with various people here?
Although we have focused on these, there are many other Ghibli works that we would like to recommend. Many of Ghibli’s works are not simple stories, but are animated movies with many scenes that make you think deeply the more you pay attention to the story. If you have a chance to see a Ghibli movie, which is a part of Japanese culture, please do so!