film

Is there a more perfectly lovely experience available anywhere in cinema history than My Neighbor Tortoro? We'd tend to doubt it, and Hayao Miyazaki’s 1988 treasure has rightly had a resurgence in popularity and visibility in the last couple of years, with a dazzling stage adaptation by the Royal Shakespeare Company in 2022 followed by the re-release of the film last year, with legions of new fans of this beautiful story coming in the wake of both.

The tale follows two young sisters, Satsuki and Mei, who move to the countryside with their father while their mother recovers from an illness in a nearby hospital. As they explore their new surroundings, they encounter magical creatures, including the gentle and mysterious forest spirit, Totoro. The beautifully simple and innocent hand-drawn design and Gershwin-like musical score help realise a piece of work that's nothing short of flawless.