In this section of our Colossus Movie Guide for Spirited Away, we delve into the significance of the film’s title.
Cast
- Chihiro Ogino/Sen – Rumi Hiiragi
- Haku – Miyu Irino
- Yubaba – Mari Natsuki
- Zeniba – Mari Natsuki
- Lin – Yoomi Tamai
- Chichiyaku – Tsunehiko Kamijō
- No-Face – Akio Nakamura
- Akio Ogino – Takashi Naito
- Yūko Ogino – Yasuko Sawaguchi
- Chichiyaku – Tsunehiko Kamijō
- Aniyaku – Takehiko Ono
- Kamaji – Bunta Sugawara
- Hayao Miyazaki – Writer and director
Why is the movie called Spirited Away?
Like many titles, Spirited Away has both a literal and symbolic meaning. The literal interpretation is simple: we witness Chihiro, a young girl, being whisked away to an unknown land. Here, she is forced to fend for yourself without the help of her parents. It comes at a time when Chihiro is scared of moving to a new town with her family and having to make new friends. But the movie ups the ante by forcing Chihiro to make that journey in a fantastical world with absurd rules.
Spirited Away might be the most spectacular example of defamiliarization—a storytelling technique that focuses on making the unfamiliar feel very familiar. Mysterious, uncontrollable forces have brought Chihiro to an unknown land that resembles a twisted version real world. The rules are similar yet contorted, and the pressures are amplified. As she matures from a sheltered child into a resilient, resourceful individual in this adjacent realm, she’s readying herself for the real world.
The word “spirit” is where we can begin to peel back the profound layers of this film. Because it isn’t just Chihiro’s physical body that travels to this strange land—it’s her inner being, her essence, her very soul. When you’re young, life passes by at 100 miles an hour. We’re often playing catch-up and trying to keep in step with each passing moment. If we think about the future, we might think about getting old or accruing wealth. We are taught how to best position ourselves to find a job or find love. But absolutely nothing can prepare us for the spiritual journey we all inevitably face. That can feel as crazy and daunting as what Chihiro undergoes in the film: a spiritual metamorphosis. It’s a similar formula used by other coming-of-age films, but Spirited Away focuses purely on her metaphysical transformation.
Fittingly, Chihiro is given a new name in this world, Sen. She is stripped of her mortal and mundane identity and forced to start from scratch. With reality gone, you could argue that only Chihiro’s “spirit” is left. Thus, she is “spirited away.” And without all the mortal anxieties that had previously flooded her life, she is forced to solely focus on her spiritual growth. She is given a fresh start from the beginning, a blank slate, and tasked with constructing a person who has the power and determination to not only survive in a scary world, but thrive in it. In order to prosper and blossom in this strange new land, she must reflect on the transient nature of our existence. She must accept the inevitability of change. She must learn to be resilient in facing the ceaseless flux of life. At the end of the movie when Chihiro returns to her parents, she has experienced a spiritual awakening. She is calmer, more empathetic, more compassionate, and mentally prepared for the obstacles of life. Her spirit goes away troubled, but comes back peaceful.
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