I. A Masterful Worldbuilding
Animation Animation in Spirited Away is nothing less than skilful. From the meticulous attention to details, to the fluidity of movement...
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Spirited Away, a 2001 Japanese animated film, is directed by Hayao Miyazaki under his production company Studio Ghibli. It is a marvellous realisation of magic realism, that is to include “magical happenings in a realist matter-of-fact narrative” (Bowers 2). To put it another way, “the film looks nothing like everyday reality, but the story unfolds effortlessly, as if propelled by nothing more than the actions of the characters themselves” (Nichols 177). Though the film is originally targeted towards 10-year-old Japanese children, Spirited Away successfully appeals to spectators across different ages, precisely due to its magic realist approach.
To delve into magic realism in Spirited Away, my analysis will be divided into three parts: worldbuilding, cinematography and characterisation. Let us embark on our journey and immerse ourselves in the wonderful world of Spirited Away…
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II. An Immersive "Reality"
Editing Spirited Away, in adopting a magic realist approach, allows “viewers [to be] absorbed in the experience of the story rather than...
III. Characterisation
A Realistic Character Arc A realistic character arc which embodies personal growth is that of the protagonist of Spirited Away, Chihiro,...
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All in all, Spirited Away employs “realism as a style or constellation of strategies aimed at producing an illusionistic reality effect” (Stam and Spence 757) due to its magical element. Spectators of all ages are made believe this world through the marvellous combination of film-making practices in worldbuilding, cinematography and characterisation. It comes as no surprise that Spirited Away is considered to be one of the greatest animated films ever made, winning the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature at the 75th Academy Awards ("Hayao Miyazaki"). Spirited Away is truly the epitome of magic realism.
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