ET 23: Spirited Away as Anime

There is a lot of misconception of anime from the general public, many of it negative. Anime itself is a little too large to be called a sub-genre, in fact I'd group anime in a genre all by itself as it contains subgenres of anime. I wouldn't dare to say that anime is all good, because I've seen really bad ones, but there are gems in all categories. Spirited Away is one example.

Studio Ghibli is pretty much the Disney of anime. Most of the anime movies created by them have been heaped with praise, which they deserve. And rightly so. What sets Spirited Away from the sea of other anime films is the principle of Studio Ghibli. The studio is adamant in defining its visual style, the long and old tradition of hand-drawn animation. The director, Hayao Mizaki, is also very particular about backgrounds and scenery: and truthfully, all this attention to detail is the best showcase of quality. Generally, "lazy animation" is boring, a lack of facial expression unless expression are needed, otherwise it's the same image being used again and again. However Studio Ghibli films are never boring. There are always things moving, there is no slight pause in the actions, there are no empty spaces in the background. The animation becomes much livelier and coupled with gorgeous imagery, truly Spirited Away is the epitome of anime.

In terms of subject matter, Spirited Away may at first seem like a typical anime plot- girl meets boy in a strange world, they fall in love after many adventures together, etc etc- but when you watch the movie it's not. It's not typical at all. Firstly, the characters make the difference. Generally in anime the character is a high school girl with the typical anime look- big eyes and a slender body. Chihiro is not. She's not particularly pretty, she's a little too thin, she's not perfect. She's an average Japanese child, she's someone we would meet on the streets and forget. Her parents are typical parents as well. Her father looks fatherly and her mother looks motherly. There is nothing special that sets her apart, unlike other animes in which the main character has special powers or looks or statuses. Characters in the spirit world are as unique in a well-grounded way. It isn't easy to forget any of the characters that appear in the movie, as unimportant as they may be. Also the romance between Chihiro and Haku is subtle. It's not cheesy love-at-first-sight romance, neither is it possessive love. It's the right balance of trust and friendship that blossomed into love. They didn't have to tell each other how much they cared for each other, they could do it all by actions alone. That, for me, can go further than any amount of words would. It also encompasses a coming of age theme, as shown by how Chihiro grows up from the beginning of the movie until the end. Her parents aren't forgotten as pigs as well, as she spends a good half of the film worrying over her parents, quite unlike how typical animes portray familial bonds.

The film is also distinctly Japanese, full of Japanese culture and references. However such cultural touches are not lost to the non-Japanese viewer, as many other anime does. We see traditional Japanese spirits and gods, the traditional Japanese bathhouse, among others, and don't feel isolated from the world. Instead we are quite absorbed into the bathhouse quite like Chihiro is, and this is also mainly due to the great attention to detail and background.

There are definitely many sub-genres within anime, like romance or horror or psychological thriller. Since animes are animated, it can hardly be fair to compare them to picture film genres, but there are quite many which do a great job. I think anime can still be developed a lot, but not like film, where we can play with camera angles and lighting and whatnot.

It is my opinion that the main reason why so many young people like anime is because, like with movie stars, we project onto the anime characters. Many of us can't do the same with movie stars because we're not pretty or rich, but anime characters are typically high schoolers, from a relatively average family that most of us can relate to. We see them being thrown into a world they're not used to and then fighting for themselves or their friends (a major theme for most anime is friendship and comradeship), strong-willed and stubbornly clinging to their values. They don't back down or give in to their enemies, they trust their friends whole-heartedly with not a shadow of doubt and everybody are nice people. I think many people want to be like that, which is why the genre appeals to so many people.

Anime aren't cartoons. Anime can be comical, but they're usually not as child-orientated as cartoons. Neither is anime purely entertainment, a number of them are works of art or absolutely genius creations.   There is always a main theme to the stories of anime and they tell of the values that we have overlooked- trust, friendship, love and moral values. Indeed I think anime is very humane in this aspect.

There are many must-see anime and anime films indeed, but suggestions would be Grave of Fireflies, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Ano Hano (The Flower We Saw That Day), just to name a few. It's a genre to be explored (though tread with caution, for every gem that comes along are at least seven pieces of dirty coal) and without negative bias.


Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Studio_Ghibli