Kiki’s Delivery Service is the fifth of Miyazaki’s 11 films as writer/director

Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki, perhaps best known for his work with Studio Ghibli, has gained popularity around the world for his creative and imaginative animated feature films. While they were originally released in Japanese, all of them have been dubbed into English with prominent voice actors and Hollywood stars. For the next several weeks, I’ll be reviewing the English-dub versions of each of Miyazaki’s 11 films as writer and director.

Last week, I tackled Ponyo (2008).

This week: My Neighbor Totoro (1988) and Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989).

Synopsis: Kiki, a 13-year-old witch, (voiced by Kirsten Dunst) must spend a customary year away from home to learn how to make it on her own with only her magic. Even though she’s not very good at any magic aside from flying on her broom — and even that she sometimes struggles with — Kiki and her black cat Jiji (voiced by Phil Hartman) travel to a far-away town by the sea. While she initially struggles, Kiki eventually starts a delivery service where she flies packages around the town on her broomstick. And even though she learns to make plenty of friends along the way, Kiki still faces the ups and downs of a teenage girl AND those of a witch.

Spoiler-free review: Not only had I seen this movie before doing this Miyazaki series, but this was the first and only Miyazaki/Studio Ghibli film that I watched as a kid. I didn’t see Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke or the others until I was in college or later. This wasn’t a movie that we owned, but I’d definitely seen it at some point… maybe it was at summer camp. Anyway, I actually submitted it as part of my 1989 Filmsplosion list, putting it at #4 behind (in descending order) The Little Mermaid, Indiana Jones & the Last Crusade and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. While the animation is on the older side, the characters absolutely win you over, particularly Kiki. And, like My Neighbor Totoro, the plot is a bit slower and more episodic, but it keeps you engaged. It’s a simply story, but it allows for plenty of time getting to know the characters and seeing them interact with each other. Overall, it’s definitely one that the whole family would enjoy!

Letter grade: B+ / A-

Full review and critique: (Warning: here be spoilers!)

In case you missed it, here’s what I wrote about the movie for the 1989 Filmsplosion episode:

Rewatching this movie last night, I really loved the stellar animation, which isn’t as good as later Studio Ghibli films, but is really well-done for 1989.

I also really appreciated the character of Kiki and the great messages this movie has. Kiki has a fantastic work ethic — leaving home at 13 and very quickly starting her own business. She’s polite, kind, hard-working, and thorough, and many of her customers see and appreciate that. But, she’s not without her struggles, and I loved how the film addressed her losing her powers. Yes, she gets them back in a time of crisis, but everyone around her was telling her to take time for herself and reach out to her support system. It actually kind of struck me as a good parallel to what we need to teach young people to do when they have mental health problems. It’s unhealthy to sit in your room and mope about it; you have to get out, be around people you love and who love you, and talk to them about what you’re facing.

I also really loved all of the people who come into Kiki’s life and how they help and respect her. They don’t give her a pass because she’s a kid. They allow her to learn the value of earning things through hard work, but when she goes above and beyond, they reward her in kind. And, when she’s sick or struggling with her powers, they don’t hesitate to help her. Plus, Osono is the best, and I love her! Anyway, along with the stellar animation and great characters that come with all Studio Ghibli films, this movie also likewise boasts some compelling music courtesy of Joe Hisaishi. If you’ve never listened to his stuff, you absolutely should. Even without the visuals, it gives you such a sense for the world and the characters of these movies. So, yeah. Kiki’s Delivery Service — if you don’t like it, then you can go ride on a dirigible for all I care!

To expand on that a bit more, I’ll say that I really appreciate how the film is very vague about how and why Kiki loses her powers, because sometimes things just happen, and instead of beating yourself up about it, you have to roll with it and work with the people around you to figure out how to address it. Of course the ‘losing her powers’ storyline made me think of Spider-Man 2, and then I thought ‘Hey, Kiki is almost like a superhero; she’s the town’s friendly, neighborhood delivery witch!’ and then I thought ‘Wouldn’t it be great if we could get an Avengers movie of all the Miyazaki main characters? I think my brain would explode from overexposure to pure awesomeness!’

But, all kidding aside, this really is a great movie. As I’ll talk about more in the My Neighbor Totoro post, this film really makes the episodic plot lines work (while the other movie doesn’t, IMO). The voice cast is also incredibly talented; the animation itself is well done, especially for that era, although the colors don’t pop quite the way newer movies do; and overall the characters, the story and the atmosphere of this quaint little town by the sea are all very charming and pull you into the film so that it seems to … fly by.

Maybe I’m a little biased, but I think it’s a must-watch among Miyazaki’s filmography, because of how well it endears you to Kiki and her story in such a short amount of time.

Next week: Princess Mononoke (1997).