Japan, 1963, the city of Sayama, Saitama prefecture; a gruesome murder is committed involving two sisters. Japan, 1988, the city of Tokorozawa, Saitama prefecture; the setting of a beloved children’s film starring two sisters. There have been several instances of speculation regarding the movie, many viewers wondering if there were any correlations between the murder case and the movie. Fan theories spread like wildfire through the internet, calling Totoro a ‘God of Death’ and a ‘grim reaper’. Could the friendly guardian Totoro actually be a spirit of death or simply a curious forest spirit who wishes only well for the two girls he finds? Many people have wondered if the movie’s creator Hayao Miyazaki was purposefully using the Sayama incident
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Regardless of the official statement and in light of the prevalent theory, it would be unlike Studio Ghibli to hide something so deep in their films that there was less than an abundance of visual evidence to prove the theory that Totoro is in fact a guardian of death. Studio Ghibli is known for its hand drawn, detail oriented backgrounds, as is evident in their other movies such as Howl’s Moving Castle, Spirited Away, and Kiki’s delivery service. Had they meant to convey a more violent message I have full confidence that they would have been able to do so by hiding more than a few cleverly placed hints in their backgrounds. I, myself, have failed to find any hidden hints alluding to the death of these two inquisitive girls, even as I watched the movie again -taking into account the theory –I failed to find any visual evidence aside from a frame change during Satsuki’s frantic chase to find Mei that flickered by a little too fast as if concealing or conveying something. In regards to the lack of shadows in the later scenes many people have decided that this meant that this meant the girls had left their world to become spirits, however each of these discrepancies can be attributed to either a rush to …show more content…
As human beings we want the things we love to remain relevant, perhaps for some fans the theory of Totoro being a god of death is their own way of keeping it relevant to their own interests, and while that is all well and good, I do not believe that this theory should be taken as fact, especially when the producing studio itself has already rejected many peoples claims. After all, a theory that is taken as fact is not a theory after all. There is no tangible evidence to support the claim that Totoro is a god of death, to turn this theory into a fact and since that is the case with this particular movie, a theory is all that it is ever going to
Regardless of the official statement and in light of the prevalent theory, it would be unlike Studio Ghibli to hide something so deep in their films that there was less than an abundance of visual evidence to prove the theory that Totoro is in fact a guardian of death. Studio Ghibli is known for its hand drawn, detail oriented backgrounds, as is evident in their other movies such as Howl’s Moving Castle, Spirited Away, and Kiki’s delivery service. Had they meant to convey a more violent message I have full confidence that they would have been able to do so by hiding more than a few cleverly placed hints in their backgrounds. I, myself, have failed to find any hidden hints alluding to the death of these two inquisitive girls, even as I watched the movie again -taking into account the theory –I failed to find any visual evidence aside from a frame change during Satsuki’s frantic chase to find Mei that flickered by a little too fast as if concealing or conveying something. In regards to the lack of shadows in the later scenes many people have decided that this meant that this meant the girls had left their world to become spirits, however each of these discrepancies can be attributed to either a rush to …show more content…
As human beings we want the things we love to remain relevant, perhaps for some fans the theory of Totoro being a god of death is their own way of keeping it relevant to their own interests, and while that is all well and good, I do not believe that this theory should be taken as fact, especially when the producing studio itself has already rejected many peoples claims. After all, a theory that is taken as fact is not a theory after all. There is no tangible evidence to support the claim that Totoro is a god of death, to turn this theory into a fact and since that is the case with this particular movie, a theory is all that it is ever going to