My Neighbor Totoro is probably the movie I’ve seen the most times in my life (I have four children—one of whom is watching it as write this). It’s also among my favorite films. One of the things I love about it is how it refuses to insult the intelligence of its audience, even though its audience is children. It deftly uses its medium to communicate and to allow us to fill in blanks, not holding our hands and spoon-feeding things.












