I have to admit, I'm kinda hitched on Hitchcock's movies...sorry...

I generally tend to dislike so-called classic artists and authors such as Shakespeare (In my opinion, his plays are generally of substandard quality). And, since Hitchcock has a legacy almost as big as Shakespeare, I was close to dismissing him as just another over-hyped director. However, I was pleasantly surprised as to the quality of his movies, and the hilarity of the intros for "Alfred Hitchcock Presents." He has a style truly of his own, and really is the "Master of Suspense." The plots in his movies are always superb, the camera work is second to none, and he often uses a lot of complex camera tricks way ahead of his time. His legacy and fame are truly well-deserved. All in all, there is not a whole lot to complain about when it comes to Hitchcock! (unlike Shakespeare...)

The film is called Spirited Away, because that is what is does to your sense of normalcy whilst watching this film!

My group watched Spirited Away by Hayao Miyazaki. Now, there are two ways to view a "very Japanese" movie such as this. If you are expecting a logical movie that makes sense, you are going to feel very lost, and generally unsatisfied. However, if you understand this style of cinematography and all of its collective kooky goodness, you will enjoy this movie a lot.

The movie uses a familiar Japanese animation style: "animeish" characters with a more detailed background, almost like a painting. The voice acting is of great quality and fits the movie perfectly, as it is very well synced and the voices are believable. These qualities are great and all, but what makes the movie unique and brilliant is the characters. All of the characters are deep and mysterious, and are almost never what they seem at first. Almost all of the characters have a "revelation" scene in which their past and true motives are revealed. This keeps the story going and the plot fresh and gripping, showing that there is in fact a method to the copious amounts of madness!

As crazy as the movie is, it is charming nonetheless. Everything that happens is memorable in its own, unique way. (However, I almost vomited when I heard "The spell can only be broken by love!" Can you think of anything more stock! Go back to Disney!)

All in all, this movie is a definite must-see for anyone who understands Japanese cinematography, and isn't expecting someone to get shot at least once every ten minutes. This is a long movie, but if you know what you're getting into, you'll love it!

Introduction

There are many different flavors of film. Some of them are bad, and some of them are good. I usually go for the good ones.