What is the theme of the film My Neighbor Totoro or what are the thoughts expressed?

The film tells the story of Tatsuro Kusakabe, whose wife Yasuko Kusakabe fell ill and was hospitalized, and he took Satsuki Kusakabe and his four-year-old sister Sugabe Mi back to live in the countryside.

The entire "My Neighbor Totoro" has its consistent magical realism style, using some natural scenery to cut into the protagonist's stream of consciousness, allowing the viewer's heart to get the most real excitement.

The film was originally a mid-length project of about 60 minutes, which was difficult to release on its own. In order to cooperate with "My Neighbor Totoro", Ghibli decided to release the medium-length work "Grave of the Fireflies" directed by Isao Takahata at the same time. But the two final works were both long-form projects that lasted about 90 minutes. On April 16, 1988, two animated films with completely different themes and styles were released on the same day.

Extended information

Plot summary:

In order to facilitate the recovery of his wife Yasuko Kusakabe, Tatsuro Kusakabe decided to move with his two daughters Satsuki Kusakabe and Mi. In the countryside near the nursing home where Kusakabe Yasuko was located, the father and daughter moved into an old house that was in disrepair. The two little sisters soon discovered that there were many magical things in the seemingly ordinary countryside. There were "soot" in the uninhabited houses that could gather energy, disperse and fly, the elves in the forest, the master of the forest, Totoro, and... The cat bus that always smiles.

One day, after her younger sister Sobi Mi and her elder sister Sobe Satsuki had a quarrel, they went out alone to find their mother who was sick and hospitalized, but got lost on the way. My sister searched everywhere to no avail, so she had to turn to Totoro for help. The kind and gentle Totoro called the cat bus and took the elder sister to find the lost sister. Taking the Totoro train, the younger sister gave the corn picked by herself to her mother, hoping that she would recover soon.