Best Anime Film

Published on Tuesday 30 September 2008 20:10

SPIRITED AWAY (2003) The Oscar-winning Spirited Away is a cinematic gem and widely recognised as being among the top-50 films of all time. The story focuses on ten-year-old Chihiro, a young girl who is forced to take a job in a bathhouse frequented by spirits in a bid to rescue her parents who have been turned into animals.

Behind this seemingly simplistic story lies a film of such depth and beauty that only an immediate viewing on your part will suffice.

GHOST IN THE SHELL (1995) A vastly complex and intelligent film in which a female cyborg cop and her partner hunt a mysterious and powerful hacker called the "Puppet Master" who is able to hijack the minds of innocents for his own needs. The film's ambience is akin to that of Blade Runner.

MY NEIGHBOUR TOTORO (1988) Bypassing the rather cheesy song that accompanies the film, along with some of the "cutesier" moments, one is left to enjoy a wholly quaint and, at times, moving piece of work. The scene at the bus stop is worth the DVD purchase price alone, and, to borrow an opinion held by a fellow reviewer, there is enough visual creativity in that sequence alone to rival the average Alfred Hitchcock film.

HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE (2005) The Oscar-nominated Howl's Moving Castle is a good old-fashioned tale of witches and wizards, good versus evil. As the title suggests, much of the film surrounds a castle that can, indeed, transport itself across the land. The Dark Knight himself, Christian Bale, takes one of the lead voice roles.

KIKI'S DELIVERY SERVICE (1989) In this light-hearted film, a young witch, on her mandatory year of life away from the bosom of home, finds fitting into a new community difficult while she supports herself by running an air courier service. The now deceased Phil Hartman, who many will recognise from The Simpsons where he was the voice of Troy McClure, threatens to steal the show as he lends his voice to the young spell-caster's cat, Jiji.