RIBURA SAN

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Tonari no Totoro 1988 -  Hayao Miyazaki

When I saw this film for the first time, I was wide-eyed and full of tears. I do not remember how old I was at that time but I remember being taken by a deep nostalgia. Suddenly I could see perfectly that I being not able to imagine and dream. But what really hurts is knowing that you have been able to do it. My neighbor Totoro is a film for children but also not. The first time you see it you quickly realize that there is much more under the simple plot. It’s a film full of symbols and important messages, Totoro himself went on to become the symbol of the Sudio Ghibli. Why? Because Totoro represents everything that this film company wants to convey to his audience. For me Totoro is complex and simple at the same time. And do not already know that animal is just great! Those who consider this film for children probably did not understand anything, or did not look carefully. The story may seem trivial but it is not at all. It ‘s based on Miyazaki’s childhood. The house in the countryside, her mother’s illness are real events. The girls, the stars of this film, without mother hospitalized and her father always busy for his teaching job, take refuge in a fantasy world made of explorations and fantastic animals that only they can see, like Totoro and Catbus . The giant tree in which these animals live becomes the refuge of the girls. Who has not ever wanted a tree house in the country? Cool shade of the branches of the trees which protect it from the summer heat. There is a strong connection with nature, nature becomes a friend. It protects you, greets you, keeps you company.

It’s beautiful also compare the different generations between them. On  one hand the girls are capable of estrangement in a world of their own. On the other, adults are all taken from their work, always too busy for everything. Finally the elderly grandmother, who remembers what it means to be a child who knows and understands the connection with the land.

It ‘a film that has no bad guys to fight, that does not teach specific moral. Simply tells a fragment of life that is childhood, where anyone can reflect himself. Anyone may have been a Mei and all may have encountered a Totoro or Catbus.

It ‘s a film that teaches you to respect and love nature. Totoro is the king of the forest, a good and innocent spirit but mighty and powerful at the same time.

Totoro is Totoro. I loved this movie from the first moment I saw it. Today I love him and will love him tomorrow.

Totoro is Totoro.

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