Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi

"On the other side of the tunnel was a mysterious town."

Mar 28 2003 PG 2h 5m
Adventure, Animation, Family

A young girl, Chihiro, becomes trapped in a strange new world of spirits. When her parents undergo a mysterious transformation, she must call upon the courage she never knew she had to free her family.

Plot

Chihiro and her parents are moving to a small Japanese town in the countryside, much to Chihiro's dismay. On the way to their new home, Chihiro's father makes a wrong turn and drives down a lonely one-lane road which dead-ends in front of a tunnel. Her parents decide to stop the car and explore the area. They go through the tunnel and find an abandoned amusement park on the other side, with its own little town. When her parents see a restaurant with great-smelling food but no staff, they decide to eat and pay later. However, Chihiro refuses to eat and decides to explore the theme park a bit more. She meets a boy named Haku who tells her that Chihiro and her parents are in danger, and they must leave immediately. She runs to the restaurant and finds that her parents have turned into pigs. In addition, the theme park turns out to be a town inhabited by demons, spirits, and evil gods. At the center of the town is a bathhouse where these creatures go to relax. The owner of the bathhouse is the evil witch Yubaba, who is intent on keeping all trespassers as captive workers, including Chihiro. Chihiro must rely on Haku to save her parents in hopes of returning to their world.

Written by

Hayao Miyazaki

Directed by

Hayao Miyazaki

Production Countries

Japan

Production Companies

Studio Ghibli

Languages

Awards

Won 1 Oscar. 58 wins & 31 nominations total

Scores
# of Votes
898,655
Average Rating
8.6 out of 10
Metascore
96
Popularity
NA