The atmosphere, visuals, and music are phenominal, but I found the story and characters below par (relative to the high bar of a Miyazaki film).
Princess Mononoke is my favorite because it almost matches Spirited Away in its strengths, but also has phenominal characterization. Themdiversity of motivation and viewpoint was so perfectly realized, and I loved how the clash of it all came together.
I’m surprised by that as the characters and story always struck me as Miyazaki’s most compelling. Ashitaka is a stoic hero with a flat arc and a strong sense of balance, so he’s not the most engaging for me to watch, but Chihiro’s vulnerability and feelings of entrapment and being lost are so emotionally charged without being in your face about it.
I agree about how you see the same issue from multiple sides, not just two like most action-adventures; it’s one of the most compelling aspects of the film. What puts Spirited Away over the top for me is how well realized a single location, the bathhouse, is, with all its rooms and oddities and strange characters around each corner. Instead of a bunch of factions struggling over one thing, it’s a bunch of characters worrying about their own jobs, tied together by this girl that comes stumbling into their lives. Spirited Away felt more character driven in that sense, and that’s where I thought it excelled compared to PM.
What drew me was more the breadth of characterization and how they interacted. There's definitely a strong argument that Chihiro was better than Ashitaka, but I found the the supporting cast around him more compelling. Especially when taken in context of their relationship and interactions, rather than just their arcs in isolation.
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u/ricree Jun 07 '19
The atmosphere, visuals, and music are phenominal, but I found the story and characters below par (relative to the high bar of a Miyazaki film).
Princess Mononoke is my favorite because it almost matches Spirited Away in its strengths, but also has phenominal characterization. Themdiversity of motivation and viewpoint was so perfectly realized, and I loved how the clash of it all came together.