SEN TO CHIHIRO NO KAMIKAKUSHI (Spirited Away, 2001) ** Long stroked, impressionistic Japanese animation tied to a wantonly inconceivable, but readily decipherable, plot. Manga and anime aren't what I'm into, but I definitely found parts of it moving. Joe Hisaishi's beautiful piano adagio on the train ride, to the visual accompaniment of passing neon signs seemingly free of association to businesses or anything tangible, was very pleasant. The three unattached heads that bounce merrily along their way were funny...I think most of my problems with it are associated to my immersion in western ideals and expectations. I don't like cartoons to be gross, I prefer even free association to somehow be metaphorical (the impressionism of Dali and Buñuel is fine, so maybe it's my frame of reference that's lacking here-dragons aren't particularly meaningful to me), and...I don't like as much darkness in seeming children's tales, though in my defense I have the same problem with much of the Grimm Brothers stuff.
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