Top Hayao Miyazaki Films Of All Time

Japanese animation is always a blast to watch regardless if it’s a series or a movie. Not only are the visuals stunning, the narratives are also compelling and at times, simply jarring. 

One of the best studios in Japan that’s world famous for its animation is Studio Ghibli.  At its helm is director, producer, animator, author, and screenwriter Hayao Miyazaki. Some consider him as the father of Japanese animation. He has created over a dozen movies in his career and here are some of his top films of all time.

Miyazaki has done works that alluded to past masterpieces like Ponyo which was his take on “The Little Mermaid,” or the adaptation of the novel, “Howl’s Moving Castle.” But none of those compare to the magnificence of Miyazaki’s take on “Alice in the Wonderland” in “Spirited Away.” The whole movie is riffed with fantastic elements and a tender story which won the movie an Oscar for Best Animated Feature.

One of the most lighthearted works of Miyazaki, “My Neighbor Totoro” simply exudes childish wonder and fantasy. It’s a creative take on the spirituality of the Japanese people, and the bond of a family.

One of his earliest creations, Miyazaki’s “Princess Mononoke” depicts war between the greed of mankind and gods fighting for survival. This movie gave Miyazaki and his studio, Studio Ghibli, international notoriety. Fun fact, Miyazaki redrew 80,000 of the 144,000 cels in the movie.