Thelongestfilm.com – Anime My Neighbor Totoro. Satsuki (Noriko Hidaka) and Mei (Chika Sakamoto) looked happy sitting behind a transport motorbike filled with household goods. He took out caramel candies and offered them to his sister, Mei, and gave one to his father. Apparently that day, the Kusakabe family moved to a rural area so their mother could receive treatment for her illness.
Mei and Satsuki are so carefree. They chatter non-stop, commenting on all the things they encounter on the road. The father, Tatsuo Kusakabe (Shigesato Itoi), is no less excited. He greeted everyone he met on the street and introduced himself. The Kusakabe family’s move to the old house begins their encounter with supernatural figures guarding the forest.
Synopsis My Neighbor Totoro
Totoro, the magical creature, doesn’t appear at the beginning of the episode. The story of the film My Neighbor Totoro begins with a scene where Mei and Satsuki are so happy to find that an old haunted house in a village in Hachikokuyama will become their home.
The behavior of these brothers and sisters is beyond expectations. Finding a dilapidated house with weathered beams and dirty walls makes them even more excited. Even though it is still livable, it is clear that the house has been abandoned for a long time. Lots of cobwebs and rusty keys.
Arriving at their ‘new home’, these two energetic and agile children immediately combed all the rooms out of curiosity while unloading their belongings from the vehicle to the house. While searching the room, Satsuki saw an acorn falling from the roof of the house. He also told May
Then, Mei and Satsuki were asked to check the back of the house, and in the kitchen and toilet room, they saw something black running and disappearing. Kangta’s grandmother, the housekeeper, said that it was Susu Atari (the Soot Fairy) who usually inhabited an empty house.
If a house is inhabited by people who are always laughing and happy, then the soot fairy will go away by itself, he said.
The next day, Mei and Satsuki visited their mother, who was hospitalized. They tell of meeting the soot fairy and asking their mother if she would like living in a haunted house. Laughing, the mother nodded and said she would like it.
One day, Mei saw a white creature passing nearby. He followed the creature until it entered a large tree not far from Mei’s house. Apparently the sacred tree was their nest, and there Mei saw an even bigger creature sleeping.
Mei, who was curious, approached the big creature that was sleeping. Because the creature was stocky and adorable, Mei named it Totoro.
Satsuki, who had just arrived from school, then looked everywhere for Mei. Satsuki saw Mei’s hat lying near the big tree. He went in and found Mei sleeping under a thicket of trees. Mei tells about her meeting with Totoro and his friends.
Since then, Mei, Satsuki, and Totoro have often gone on magical and amazing little adventures that only they can experience. Totoro is a fun friend as well as a neighbor who is always ready to help, including when looking for a lost Mei.
Who is Totoro?
Totoro a creature created by Hayao Miyazaki, which means it’s not a real creature. This creature’s physical form is a combination of raccoon, owl, and cat. Totoro’s body is tall, hairy, and oval in shape, with a kind of horn on his head and short legs and arms.
This supernatural being described as a figure who is cheerful and familiar with children. It said that if someone can see Totoro, it means he blessed by nature. Many people think that Totoro is a tree guardian genie, similar to the Indonesian genderewo but in a very kawaii version.
The character created by Hayao Miyazaki later became the icon of the first animation studio in Japan, Studio Ghibli, the production house that worked on the animated film My Neighbor Totoro.
Light Stories with Deep Messages
Studo Ghibli well known as a production house that produces various animated films with light themes that are close to the daily lives of the general public.
It is this light story content that keeps the films produced by the studio founded by Hayao Miyazaki alive today.
The animated films never go out of date, even though they are old and battered by various animated films that have more complicated and interesting graphics. Anime My Neighbor Totoro is just like that. This film contains things that we commonly encounter, such as the story of a child who is cranky because his father left him to work.
Then, there is also a small conflict with a neighbor’s child, represented by the characters Kangta and Satsuki. The overall conflict in this film is fairly light. We will not presented with tricky problems full of riddles. The story flows so smoothly that we don’t even realize the film is over.
Nonetheless, this film is far from boring. The typical simplicity of a film made by Studio Ghibli combined with the message implied in every scene makes this film leave a deep impression on the minds of the audience.
Through the film Anime My Neighbor Totoro, it as if the audience invited to return to nature and learn to live side by side, as if they were friends. As Mei and Satsuki’s father said, “Trees and humans are friends. If we take care of it, nature, including the trees, will take care of us.”
Contains the Teachings of Shinto Religion and Animism
According to Eriko Ogihara-Schuck, a lecturer at Dortmund University who came from Japan, in his book Miyazaki’s Animism Abroad: The Reception of Japanese Religious Themes by American and German Audiences, My Neighbor Totoro is thick with animist beliefs.
This can seen from the environment where the Kusakabe family lives, who believe in forest spirits. In addition, Totoro described as living in a large and tall camphor tree, surrounded by a special rope of Shinto religious beliefs.
After Mei saw Totoro, her father asked her to pray at the shrine as a form of gratitude that she could meet Totoro. When Mei goes missing, the people pray at the shrine so that Totoro will help find her. This is a common thing that often done by followers of the Shinto religion.
A simple visual becomes attractive
There has been something interesting about this film since it was first shown. Hayao Miyazaki’s straightforwardness makes the characters in this film very interesting and lighthearted, which can enjoyed by viewers of all ages.
The visual simplicity of this film is not adventurous. Despite being over 30 years old, My Neighbor Totoro never seems out of date. It is a timeless film that is always interesting to watch at any time.
We know that modern anime is very interesting because it features unique visuals and complicated characters. But enjoying Totoro’s adventures with Mei and Satsuki in this film is a pleasant refreshment.
Watching Anime My Neighbor Totoro does not require certain insightful knowledge and analytical skills. Our eyes will actually given a beautiful view that will make us miss our childhood, where we could freely play and run around in the open.
This is a film with a simple charm that is strong and very memorable. After watching Totoro, I miss my hometown.
Ah, in essence, Anime My Neighbor Totoro is more than just an old film. Hayao Miyazaki wrote the story for this film with a very strong ‘soul’. We just have to sit back and enjoy where Totoro, Mei, and her brother are adventuring.
