Movie Critique. Visual & Performing Arts Movie Review

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Spirited Away
Introduction
In 2001, the world witnessed a significant landmark in the history of animation movie with the introduction of Spirited Away. The Away movie is an imaginative art written and directed by Miyazaki Hayao. The film targets the young audience starting from around ten and older. Although it is designed for a particular age group, it is perhaps more important for the adult audience. The tale follows a young girl known as Chihiro in a challenging situation trying to deal with her separation from family as well as self-identity. A significant portion of the story is in the bathhouse, where spirits visit for nourishment. Just like other humans, Chihiro fights to survive in the house, while venturing on a journey of self-maturation. Spirited Away is perhaps rich in detail as it offers a foundation in the animation bedrock. The movie uses its characters to symbolize the world in the context of the indistinct line between good and evil. The main protagonist, Chihiro, along with Haku, and Zeniba face numerous conflicts in the guise of being good and evil. In other words, the characters in the film represent a conflict of morality that humans go through. The essay attempts to analyze the movie and point out its essential aspects.
Character Checklist
Chihiro.At the start of the movie, Chihiro is like any other ordinary girl who is overprotected by the parents. She is first introduced to the audience while feeling angry because of the proposed move to the new town, where she does not want. Although her parents try to convince her to view the trip as an adventure, she deliberately refuses. Besides behaving childishly, Chihilo's maturity and wisdom are at the peak of her understanding, though she is not aware of that in the beginning. One of the signs that show her maturity is her intuitive observation of the rules, and understanding of their importance. She continues to do this even at times when authoritarians tell her to break them. For instance, when her father decides to explore the park, she wisely predicts that it is not a good idea (0:26). Furthermore, while in the park, her parents come across food, which they gorge on, but Chihiro’s refrains from eating anything. Admittedly, this is a sign of absolute respect for rules, and this helps her when struggling in the spiritual world.
In addition, when Yubaba changes her name to Sen, she appears to have lost her identity. While under the character of Sen, she goes through numerous changes (Reider 2). At the moment, she desperately holds on her real self. She is told that if she forgets her name, then she will remain in the spirit world forever. In this process, she thinks that resisting the new identity is the only way to survive. Surprisingly, while in her new identity as Sen, this is the period Chihiro’s true self manifests. Right from the beginning, Chihiro has been kind and respectful, and these are the qualities she heavily relies on as Sen (Reider 14). She does not give way for scary circumstances to reduce here trust and optimism. Her kindness turns out to be of great importance in her escape as she forms a friendship with bathhouse inhabitants. More so, she helps Haku a...