Welcome back to the countdown, as we are nearly at the end of my top ten best movies of the decade.

And continuing on,


Possibly the only person in the world that rivals the might of Pixar is Hayao Miyazaki. If Miyazaki has any large credit for, it is he has been in the film/animation industry much longer than Pixar and possibly one of the great masters of animation itself. And very deserving too. Miyazaki doubles the amount of magic and wonder that any animation studio including Pixar has too offer and is not afraid to go off boundary (which he showed in Princess Mononoke and recently Ponyo). After he did Princess Mononoke, everybody thought they won't see anymore magic when Miyazaki retired away. But he came out of it just to give one of the greatest and most beautiful animated films of all. Although Kiki's Delivery Service is still my favorite Miyazaki film, it is no doubt that Spirited Away is his all-time masterpiece.

You can say that this is the Japanese version of Alice in Wonderland, a girl uncertain of growing up and fitting in only to teleport to a whole new magical place where she learns to mature. The audience can feel off in the beginning to have Chihiro being whiny and braty, but those things gradually fade away as she has take on responsibilities and duties around the bath house. And many characters have their own depth and likability, influencing from both Japanese and Western culture. You do see alot of beautiful, funny, emotional and human moments in the film and the imagery is just astounding. And what can I say about the music? Joe Hisaishi have been collaborating with Miyazaki throughout most of his films and his work in this film is nothing short but beautiful. You'll be soaring high with this film.

Favorite Defining Moment: (Spoiler Alert - Don't see this until you see the movie)
One can show the beauty and serenity of as simple as a train ride. The cinematography, the animation, the music and the imagery, it is just so beautiful, subtle and magical.




Tomorrow, I will reveal #2 best movie of the 00s. What will it be....