My Neighbour Totoro

A family favourite! Such a gentle humorous film, with lovable and eccentric animal characters. A kids film with no violence, fast cars or 'mild peril' - but even the grownups love it. One of the best from Ghibli Studio - and that's saying something!

Beautiful animation. Lovely life affirming story about two little girls in Japanese countryside meeting a Totoro- I think it is a kind of tree spirit, and his friends.

My DDs all love it at 2, 4 and 9 yrs.

This is one of the most popular movies in Japan, and not just with kids, with good reason. An animated delight from the director who made Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke, but more approachable for a younger audience and really sweet.

It centres on two young sisters who move with their dad into a rundown old house in rural Japan. It's filled with strange little 'dust creatures' and in the forest outside lives the mysterious and wonderful Totoro, a huge yellow creature like a cross between a cat, dog and teddy bear. He shows the girls a wonderful night-time world which distracts from the fact that their mum is in hospital. As a film it works on lots of different levels and is so beautifully drawn and full of fascinating details so I don't mind watching it over and over. And most dvd versions come dubbed and with subtitles so you can choose between them and get older kids to practice their reading skills (or their Japanese!) - bonus!

Wonderful escapist fun. Brilliant animation. Positive upbeat with a magical story.

This is my two daughter's favourite film and my absolute favourite to watch with them. Unlike some of the films from the Ghibli studio in Japan there are no scary moments or monsters to scare your little ones. This is a delight from start to finish. Totoro is a joyful nature spirit that the two girls meet when they need a helping hand while their mother is ill. It is beautiful to look at and we are great fans of the music too (it is a theme to their early childhood I think!). Highly recommended as a disney antedote - if you get the chance to go to Japan you can go to the museum where children can jump about on the 'cat bus'and play with real dust bunnies (you will need to see the film to know what I am talking about!). Just a warning - other films by the same artist Miyazaki, although wonderful may scare your children so watch them through once yourself.