Studio Ghibli doesn’t go for simple ideas, imbuing even what appears to be a straightforward children’s story like this one with a complexity rarely seen in fantasy fiction.
Children’s films have a habit of either leaning too hard into vulnerability or individuality. Their kids either need saving or need to stand on their own. Few films are better at blending the two than one of Ghibli’s biggest early hits, the story of a young witch finding her way in the world. As Kiki makes friends along her journey, Miyazaki and his team deftly capture that in-between time in which a young person is carving out an identity but reliant on adults at the same time. This is a movie that understands that empowerment doesn’t have to extinguish vulnerability, a message that’s hard to convey in any form of fiction, especially a genre of fantasy kids’ movies that usually traffics in simple ideas. Studio Ghibli doesn’t go for simple ideas, imbuing even what appears to be a straightforward children’s story like this one with a complexity rarely seen in fantasy fiction.