Sprited Away

Spirited Away is a Japanese anime film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki in 2001. I love how the story present in such way that allow the audiences to imagine, link and create their own interpretation throughout the film. Overall, this movie does surprise me as I don’t often watch Japanese Anime. 

Firstly, as the sun goes down and the spirits all came out in the abandoned theme park, it is just like another space for spirits to live like a human being where the spirits able to eat, massage, communicate and even pay for their spending. One thing I was curious about this, how do they get money to pay for their spending there? As we all portray the living daily life where we need to get work or job in order to get money and spend for something else. An imaginary question pop-out in my mind as how do they get this money? I have made a hypothesis for the answer of this question. Is it possible to say that when some Buddhism Chinese they often burn those “hell bank note” to their ancestor. Is this the one of the way how spirits get their money and spend on their joyous? So I might able to imagine and persuade myself that our ancestors are having fun in their worlds. 

Secondly, part of the story tells us something cannot be exchange or measure by using the value of money. Some people always think that money is everything as they believe they can solve everything in money. This is a yes for most of the people in present. As when we are outgoing we all do wish to have more cash or credit card around us because our mind set already fix that money can solve everything and it became our talisman to give us a sense of safety in daily life. So do the movie when Chihiro’s parents were eating those foods without knowing the source or thinking any consequences as they believe they can solve it later with cash and credit card where these 2 stuffs give them the sense of safety to make them feel better in eating the foods. But something is not mean to be solve in money as they end up became pig. 

Thirdly, how importance is money to someone? From the story as we can see those spirit workers are desperately want the gold but except Sen. Some of the opinion says that Sen is not greedy and she does not get influence by the money. But I explain that as Sen is still a child, she does not know the capability of money can be done for. Because I believe that people or those spirits do not born to be greedy or in love with money, there is definitely something that provokes their greediness or makes them wanted to have money in order to achieve and satisfy their needs. So in order to say that Sen is not greedy to money, let’s just say she is just too young to know about it or she does not need the money to achieve anything. Greedy is just a sense of desire that they need to have more money to satisfy their needs. Taking up to another point, I can see Sen is a girl of feeling where she cares more about love, family and even friendship. At first I don’t really perceive love between Haku and Sen. I rather persuade myself as the feeling of gratitude friendship of Sen to Haku since he is the one who save Sen and taught her what to do to save her parents. Sen is so hopeless and she desperately wanted to see Haku that makes her feels secure. When comes to the part where Sen gives part of the dumpling to save Haku’s life, it creates a little bit love within the emotion because she rather to use the dumpling that she intent to save her parents life for Haku. I feel the love within the part where Sen willing to sacrifice for Haku. It is also can be explained that some people defined love is the priority when comes to everything. 

These are my own opinion and thought after watching this anime. But overall this anime film is one of the best cartoon films I ever watched. It does contain a lot of hidden or abstract meaning that allow the audience to reflect on the reality world. Indeed, the director Hayao Miyazaki has explained that this movie was actually reflecting the prostitution issues that happen commonly in Japan. But I do able to interpret other aspects throughout the Sprited Away movie.