This week, Mandy Kaplan discovers that “family road trip” in Japan doesn’t mean stopping at a rest area for gas and Funyuns. No, it means your parents turn into pigs and you’re suddenly employed at a haunted bathhouse run by a chain-smoking witch with the voice of Suzanne Pleshette. And who better to guide Mandy through the bewildering fever dream of Spirited Away than returning guest, film professor, and actual delight, Kynan Dias?
Together they unpack everything: how Disney’s doe-eyed Snow White accidentally inspired anime’s giant eyes, why a sludge monster is secretly about environmentalism, how “No-Face” manages to be both terrifying and adorable, and why Miyazaki’s entire vibe can be summed up as “life is fleeting, please cry into your ramen now.” Mandy, of course, raises the obvious questions: is this secretly a cult film, why does it feel like a divorce metaphor, and how is any of this for children? Kynan, patient as ever, explains concepts like mono no aware while Mandy wonders if this movie is just better enjoyed while high.
It’s chaotic, hilarious, and unexpectedly moving—basically the cinematic equivalent of a fever dream where origami tries to kill you. And honestly? You’ll come away realizing that maybe being “spirited away” isn’t such a bad thing… provided you survive the pigs.
Links & Notes
- Find Kynan on his shows: Every Minute of Everything Everywhere All At Once, The Devil’s Details, Sitting in the Dark
