My Neighbor Totoro parents guide

My Neighbor Totoro Parent Guide

Overall A

In this quietly charming, animated tale, two sisters (voiced by real-life siblings Elle and Dakota Fanning) move to the country to be closer to their hospitalized mother. In their new home the girls meet some magical creatures called Totoros and have amazing adventures.

Release date April 15, 1988

Violence A
Sexual Content A
Profanity A
Substance Use A

Why is My Neighbor Totoro rated G? The MPAA rated My Neighbor Totoro G

Run Time: 82 minutes

Parent Movie Review

It has been many years since I last watched My Neighbor Totoro. Suffering a similar fate to Puff the Magic Dragon, my aging children merely put it on the shelf one day and forgot to pull it back out again. Grander and more mature cinema adventures beckoned…

Then one day, a copy of the new 2 Disc edition showed up in my mailbox. Feeling somewhat sentimental, I put the DVD into my player—and before the opening credits had finished, the sound of their accompanying music had summoned all my family members. With a chorus of “I remember this,” they settled around the TV to watch the familiar tale unfold.

Using the incredible art form of Japanese anime, the movie opens with two young sisters peeking out of a moving truck as it heads toward their new home. Relocating to be closer to their hospitalized mother, the girls can hardly wait to explore the rural residence and its surrounding woods and rice patties. Soon they discover the place is full of soot sprites (little, black, fluffy blobs with blinking eyes) and some other amazing critters called Totoros. Invisible to adults, but very real to children, these fuzzy bunny-like “forest spirits” create a wealth of possibilities for fun and friendship.

Told through the eyes of these youngsters, the world is a wondrous place where the biggest worries are windstorms, forgetting one’s umbrella, and making-strange with the babysitter. There are no bad-guys—only the uncertainties associated with an ill parent. While the story builds sympathy for their fears, it never becomes too scary for even the youngest of audiences. The mythical Totoros are also believable, as these warm and wonderful creatures accurately represent what many children would desire in an imaginary companion.

The viewing experience was even more enchanting this time because the audio track has been redone, and now features a better script where less is lost in translation. Real-life sisters, Elle and Dakota Fanning, have provided the voice talents. Their excitement about working with each other comes right through the microphone and infects the project with an almost tangible charm.

But the real magic, which has delighted audiences since My Neighbor Totoro’s debut in 1988, is how accurately this animated film captures the essence of childhood—simply by illustrating believable situations and expressions. Not dimming with age, I found myself smiling as the amazing production once again held my now-teenaged kids spellbound.

Directed by Hayao Miyazaki. Starring Tim Daly, Elle Fanning, Dakota Fanning. Running time: 82 minutes. Theatrical release April 15, 1988. Updated

My Neighbor Totoro
Rating & Content Info

Why is My Neighbor Totoro rated G? My Neighbor Totoro is rated G by the MPAA

In this quietly charming tale, two sisters move to the country and have adventures with some magical creatures. Concern over their mother’s ill health motivates a four-year-old girl to try to walk to the hospital on her own. Her other family members and neighbors fear for her wellbeing when she becomes lost, and set out to find her.

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My Neighbor Totoro Parents' Guide

How does the fact that the mother’s health concerns are never explained in the movie contribute to the sense of seeing the world through the children’s eyes? What other ways do the film’s creators capture that feeling?

Home Video

The most recent home video release of My Neighbor Totoro movie is May 21, 2013. Here are some details…

Blu-ray Notes: My Neighbor Totoro

Release date: May 21, 2013

My Neighbor Totoro releases on Blu-ray with the following extras:

- Behind the Microphone

- Behind the Studio

- Original Japanese Storyboards

- Original Japanese Trailer

DVD Release Date: 14 March 2006

With a newly recorded English audio track (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) My Neighbor Totoro reappears in the home entertainment marketplace as a 2-disc set. The DVD package includes the original Japanese soundtrack (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) and theatrical trailer, the complete storyboards set to the movie’s soundtrack, as well as the opening and closing animation without credits. A short featurette gives viewers a chance to go Behind the Microphone with sisters Dakota Fanning and Elle Fanning when they recorded their voices. A French language audio track (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo) is also available, with subtitles in English, Japanese and French.

Related home video titles:

Filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki and his company Studio Ghibli have produced other movies acclaimed for their animation, such as Howl’s Moving Castle and Spirited Away. Sisters look out for one another in the Shirley Temple classic film, Curly Top.

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