My Neighboor Totoro: Tears Come To Mind

[CRASHiC]

Link to original post: [drupal=2315]My Neighboor Totoro: Tears Come To Mind[/drupal]



Yesterday, I cried, I cried during a movie, a children movie, not for anything the actual plot shows, but for what lies underneath.

Something wasn't sitting right with me during the movie, and all of a sudden, during the shower scene, it hit me, the girls were victims of sexual assault.

At first, I thought it was just me, surly there was no way such a delightful movie could be about such a thing, so I began to research.

http://www.cinema-crazed.com/totoro.htm
Quote:
Never has fantasy been such a ripe and sharp metaphor for childhood traum
http://community.livejournal.com/miyazakisociety/70786.html

Quote:
I came to realize something about My Neighbor Totoro. The entire movie is a metaphor for being sexually assaulted as a young child.
We first see evidence of sexual abuse in the scene where the father is naked in the bath with his two daughters, and seems to be enjoying himself a little too much, eventually grabbing and tackling his daughters while making vaguely threatening remarks about supernatural creatures that could be a metaphor for his plans to **** them.
The monster Totoro is an explanation of what happened made in their daughters' minds to explain their father's monstrous treatment of them. While not shown on-screen, we can tell that the younger girl Mei was ***** and left unconscious during her first encounter with Totoro, an image she is projecting onto the face of her rapist father. Notice that Totoro's symbol is the acorn, a very phallic symbol. When we are shown the acorns close-up we are given an idea that they represent the ***** that has been thrust by force upon both girls by their father.
The sick mother symbolizes the loss of dignity, honor, and feminine grace that comes with the girls' being *****, and when she says at the end that she is going to live we know that the girls have managed to come to terms with their experience as **** victims.


I'm not sure if I can watch it anymore. Had I realized this say, 3 years ago, there would have been no problem, however, the woman I plan to spend my life with was molested from the age of 3 to 11 every day by her grandfather, and I was the first person she told. It was up to me to give her the strength to confront this, to tell her parents, and to seek therapy. Because of what has happened to me, I can, unfortunately, not watch Totoro with out crying desperately.

I will continue to watch and enjoy his many other movies, but this one I will unfortunately have to relinquish from my collection as soon as possible.

 

[Lythium]

CRASHiC, I think you're reading too much into this.

 

[CRASHiC]

Weather or not I am, I can no longer watch the movie.

 

[Dark 3nergy]

actually alot of Miyazaki movies are pretty deep like this...i cried pretty hard at the end of Grave of Fireflies

The guy has some really amazing story telling abilities..and is a fantastic artist

 

[Wrath`]

actually alot of Miyazaki movies are pretty deep like this...i cried pretty hard at the end of Grave of Fireflies

The guy has some really amazing story telling abilities..and is a fantastic artist

I think you are overthinking Totoro, but Grave of the Fireflies is one of the first movies I cried a little. (I ussaly don't cry much at all)

 

[peregrine monkey]

If this is all true...

What does the Catbus symbolize?

 

[Fatmanonice]

Totoro as a sexual monstrosity? Wait... what? He's the kids' source of fun when their Dad is busy with work and their Mom is in the hospital. Also, the bathtub scene is how things are in Japanese culture especially in rural areas. Seriously, the guy who wrote that interpretation needs to be shot in the face, point blank, and then his twitching corspe needs to be repeatedly kicked in the crotch before being fed to wild dogs. What garbage. What pervertion. If you believe this guy then you are just as hopelessly dumb as he is. My Neighbor Totoro is probably the most wholesome cartoon movie ever made and, according to Miyazaki, the movie is based mostly on his experiences in post WWII Japan and dealing with a similar problem as Mei and Satsuki in how his mother was in the hospital with tuberculosis. As a fellow fan of Miyazaki, I'm completely insulted that you even gave this pinhead the time of day. My God... I honestly feel like punching a hole in a wall right now... excuse me...

 

[Nysyarc]

Seriously, the guy who wrote that interpretation needs to be shot in the face, point blank, and then his twitching corspe needs to be repeatedly kicked in the crotch before being fed to wild dogs. What garbage. What pervertion. If you believe this guy then you are just as hopelessly dumb as he is.

People are entitled to an opinion. Movies, just like poems, can be interpreted in many different ways, even if a distinct meaning was given by the creator. Besides, if you really meant what you said in the quoted statement, maybe you should have been talking about yourself >_>

 

[El Nino]

Never has fantasy been such a ripe and sharp metaphor for childhood traum

The only Miyazaki film I've seen is Grave of the Fireflies, and I am only vaguely familiar with Totoro. However, I think the "childhood trauma" referred to in that summary is the trauma of the mother being ill.

I think if Totoro were a predator, he would have been more villainous (or WAS he, in some way, a villain?). Children sometimes develop fantasies to cope with abuse, but usually the abuser is not characterized as a friend or anything cute. Maybe something with two sides. But I would guess that Totoro was part of a fantasy world that the girls created to escape from the reality of their mother's illness. He might have been something used to relieve their anxiety rather than a symbol of evil.

Also, taking group baths is common practice in Japan. It conserves water, I think.

And I'm not sure if an acorn is considered phallic in Japanese culture. You know how different cultures have different symbols.

the woman I plan to spend my life with was molested from the age of 3 to 11

I'm surprised how many people I know have been abused at some point in their lives. Sadly, I don't even know that many people to begin with. So I have to wonder exactly how pervasive abuse is in my society.

The thing is, though, with something like that in your personal life, you'll likely start making connections and seeing things in works of art that aren't there. You'll see it because it is important and immediate to you, though it may be removed from the creator's intent. Of course, even realizing that it may not be the creator's intent isn't necessarily going to make you stop seeing those subtexts. So, yeah, you might have to stop watching Totoro (or at least for the time being).

Best of luck to you and your girlfriend.

 

[Silent Beast]

Link to original post: [drupal=2315]My Neighboor Totoro: Tears Come To Mind[/drupal]

http://www.cinema-crazed.com/totoro.htm
Quote:
Never has fantasy been such a ripe and sharp metaphor for childhood traum

The "ripe and sharp metaphor for childhood trauma" in this link talks about Satsuki and Mei moving to a new house and their mother being sick; it mentions nothing about sexual abuse.

Quote:
I came to realize something about My Neighbor Totoro. The entire movie is a metaphor for being sexually assaulted as a young child.
We first see evidence of sexual abuse in the scene where the father is naked in the bath with his two daughters, and seems to be enjoying himself a little too much, eventually grabbing and tackling his daughters while making vaguely threatening remarks about supernatural creatures that could be a metaphor for his plans to **** them.
The monster Totoro is an explanation of what happened made in their daughters' minds to explain their father's monstrous treatment of them. While not shown on-screen, we can tell that the younger girl Mei was ***** and left unconscious during her first encounter with Totoro, an image she is projecting onto the face of her rapist father. Notice that Totoro's symbol is the acorn, a very phallic symbol. When we are shown the acorns close-up we are given an idea that they represent the ***** that has been thrust by force upon both girls by their father.
The sick mother symbolizes the loss of dignity, honor, and feminine grace that comes with the girls' being *****, and when she says at the end that she is going to live we know that the girls have managed to come to terms with their experience as **** victims.

Considering the cornerstone of the evidence in this theory is the father's behavior in the bathtub, I can confidently say that this theory is completely off the mark. As others have already said, that type of behavior is perfectly normal in Japanese society.

I'm not sure if I can watch it anymore. Had I realized this say, 3 years ago, there would have been no problem, however, the woman I plan to spend my life with was molested from the age of 3 to 11 every day by her grandfather, and I was the first person she told. It was up to me to give her the strength to confront this, to tell her parents, and to seek therapy. Because of what has happened to me, I can, unfortunately, not watch Totoro with out crying desperately.

I will continue to watch and enjoy his many other movies, but this one I will unfortunately have to relinquish from my collection as soon as possible.

I'm very sorry to hear that about your girlfriend/wife and I'm very glad to hear that you were able to help her. As for the movie, I hope that we who responded to this thread can convince you that Totoro is totally devoid of any hints of sexual abuse, and that you'll be able to enjoy this wonderful movie again.

 

[finalark]

My Neighbor Totoro, Porco Roso (?) and the Cat Comes Back are the only one of Miyazaki's (spelling?) movies that I have yet to see. Honestly, I doubt that sexual assault would be a topic covered in a kid's movie, even a Japanese kid's movie. Then again, Animaniacs (completely different, I know) proved to me that if you're sneaky enough you can get away with anything in a kid's show. You might just be looking into it a bit to much, but as I've said, I have yet to see this film.

 

[LoganW]

Crashic you're so wrong it hurts

 

[Fatmanonice]

People are entitled to an opinion. Movies, just like poems, can be interpreted in many different ways, even if a distinct meaning was given by the creator. Besides, if you really meant what you said in the quoted statement, maybe you should have been talking about yourself >_>

As my Mother always said, there's a difference between having an opinion and then throwing it around like it's fact. That's what the person clearly did here. Also, screw political correctness, I don't have to tolerate "opinions" that are up and beyond ******** and, thankfully, most of the people who responded to that review didn't.

 

[Nysyarc]

As my Mother always said, there's a difference between having an opinion and then throwing it around like it's fact. That's what the person clearly did here. Also, screw political correctness, I don't have to tolerate "opinions" that are up and beyond ******** and, thankfully, most of the people who responded to that review didn't.

Sometimes people express their opinions as fact. After all, it's what they believe to be correct. If you have a different view you can try to convince them you're right, but nobody should have to be shot point blank in the face for having an opinion that differs from your own, that kind of blind arrogance is disturbing.

 

[Fatmanonice]

I beg to differ; when you turn a well loved children's character into a pedofile based on your own ignorance and ethnocentrism then, yes, you probably should be removed from the gene pool. When I went to Japan about three years ago, I bathed in one of the hot springs and one of the people who was there at the time was a 10 year old kid and his grandpa. They were both naked and clearly, CLEARLY the boy was being molested, am I right?

See what I did here? I used American standards to judge another culture and label it as evil because it's different from I'm used to. Granted, I disagree with pratices like female circumcision in Africa/the Middle East and tribes that still practice human sacrafice but this situation isn't the same because someone isn't getting hurt. If anything, the boy and his grandpa were bonding. It's like with nudists too; they all must be sex crazed freaks because they run around naked and even encourage their kids to do the same so OBVIOUSLY it's all just a giant mess of incest, pedofilia, and other wild sexual atrocities. Again, ignorance gone off the deep end. As I said, ignorance can be tolerated. Full blown *********** shouldn't be.

I understand why you're chastising me but the excuse "it's just his opinion" has worn very thin with me especially how, in American culture, it has become the crutch of every pleading racist, sexist, and people with other forms of prejudice who are cowards about admiting it. That's what this all comes down to, prejudice. This guy pre judged Japanese culture based on his own ignorance of bathing practices in Japan which is why I'm going on this tyrad in the first place. Also, as one sane person to another, please don't buy into the whole "be tolerate of everything" movement that has swept most of Western culture because, when you really look into it, it's absolutely loaded with double standards.

Add in:

You know what I learned from My Neighbor Totoro? I learned that childhood is a magical time but, like adult hood, you have to deal with your own problems and people who look at childhood as completely carefree are kind of delusional. As a child, you have less control on what happens in your life and you have less resources to get over them. You are also weighed down by your own ignorance of the world. It's not ideal and, all in all, it's like the rest of life and this is something most people greatly overlook.

 

[Nysyarc]

I beg to differ; when you turn a well loved children's character into a pedofile based on your own ignorance and ethnocentrism then, yes, you probably should be removed from the gene pool.

If ignorance and ethnocentrism are the only problems, that can be solved by informing them on the culture in question. Human beings are capable of learning and adapting.

As I said, ignorance can be tolerated. Full blown *********** shouldn't be.

When did you say ignorance can be tolerated? Shouldn't the ignorant all be slain according to the last quote? I don't even understand why you're so upset about this. If only a handful of ignorant people will buy into the whole deal, why does it concern you so much? If someone is enlightened on the matter, they would obviously have different opinions.

Besides, like you did say:

I don't have to tolerate "opinions" that are up and beyond ******** and, thankfully, most of the people who responded to that review didn't.

So what's the problem? A minority can't cause any real issues, especially with something as trivial as this.

Also, as one sane person to another, please don't buy into the whole "be tolerate of everything" movement that has swept most of Western culture because, when you really look into it, it's absolutely loaded with double standards.

Well I'm not really sure what 'Western culture" means, but I'm from Atlantic Canada and I've been an accepting and understanding person for most of my life. I didn't buy into anything. If this is really just a case of someone forming a false opinion based on ignorance, then they should be corrected and the world should move on.

 

[Fatmanonice]

If ignorance and ethnocentrism are the only problems, that can be solved by informing them on the culture in question. Human beings are capable of learning and adapting.



When did you say ignorance can be tolerated? Shouldn't the ignorant all be slain according to the last quote? I don't even understand why you're so upset about this. If only a handful of ignorant people will buy into the whole deal, why does it concern you so much? If someone is enlightened on the matter, they would obviously have different opinions.

Besides, like you did say:



So what's the problem? A minority can't cause any real issues, especially with something as trivial as this.



Well I'm not really sure what 'Western culture" means, but I'm from Atlantic Canada and I've been an accepting and understanding person for most of my life. I didn't buy into anything. If this is really just a case of someone forming a false opinion based on ignorance, then they should be corrected and the world should move on.

As a former racist, I understand how this guy's mind works. The stereotypes you believe may be outlandish stupid but, under this mindset, you go out of your way to try to reaffirm them. What you have to realize is that not everyone is willing to learn. Like in this situation, despite having an opinion that literally psychologically hurt Crashic, this guy is no doubt unapologetic about his views and it's doubtful that his views have even changed. Despite the majority thinking this guy's intelligence is on par's with a rock, he still managed to convince someone of his assinine views and remind him of how his financee was molested by a family member. When an older guy is brought to tears because he's been convinced that a children's movie is secretly about **** and molestation, there's definately a problem.

Also, keep in mind that ignorance is not knowing something. Stupidity is throwing your ignorance on other people and not bothering to research or even check your beliefs for any form of truth. Ignorance is poking someone with a toothpick. Stupidity is using a javelin.

 

[Dr.Brawl]

Link to original post: [drupal=2315]My Neighboor Totoro: Tears Come To Mind[/drupal]

I'm not sure if I can watch it anymore. Had I realized this say, 3 years ago, there would have been no problem, however, the woman I plan to spend my life with was molested from the age of 3 to 11 every day by her grandfather, and I was the first person she told. It was up to me to give her the strength to confront this, to tell her parents, and to seek therapy. Because of what has happened to me, I can, unfortunately, not watch Totoro with out crying desperately.
.

Not to sound like an ******* or anything but i understand what you are seeing is in your mind "**** from a giant acorn" but I think that you might be imposing what you learned from your girlfriend on the movie. I mean, I probably do the same thing when I am watching a movie, such as the Land Before Time, which is just basically a metaphor for that growing up sucks however if you keep positive and keep striving what you are looking for everything should be fine, no matter what happens. However you could say that when little foots mother died it was a symbol that Little foot lost his innocence and he lost everything so near and dear to him,it was horrible and what was the point to living if everything you love is going to be taken away from you? Even if you reach your goal and find new and loving people to take care of you. However not everyone reads this far into movies, or books, like catcher in the rye, the stranger, not to be confused with that awful movie, and stranger in a strange land.

I understand that what happened to your girlfriend/ future wife was horrible and my condolences go out to her. However I really do not think that was Miyazaki was looking for in his movie. I mean movies like that have been banned from Japan, or censored since some time after world war II. I also think that if that was Miyazaki's intention that, the board that approved the movie would have picked up on something like that.