Spirited Away (2001) review

I honestly don’t know what to make of it. It just feels and looks weird to me. The animation itself doesn’t feel new or striking to my eyes. It reminds me a lot of the kind of animation I grew up with in the late 90s to early 2000s, so instead of feeling timeless, it feels familiar in a way that doesn’t excite me. Because of that, I struggled to appreciate it on a visual level. What really kept me curious, was the girl and the dragon photo I seen before. I’ve always felt there was something deeply spiritual about their connection. To the point na gusto ko pa nga sana ipatattoo dati (even if I don't know the context behind it) because I thought it symbolized something profound, like untapped potential, soul connection, or a deeper mythic bond. But watching the film now, that expectation didn’t quite land. Their relationship turns out to be more about circumstance, protection, and brief companionship rather than some grand, cosmic or cathartic connection I imagined. Emotionally, it didn’t resonate with me. I couldn’t fully connect to Chihiro, Haku, or even the world itself. Everything feels grotesque, surreal, and dreamlike, yet none of it grounded me enough to care deeply about any one character. I felt like I was observing a strange world. For me, that magic stayed distant. Instead of feeling transported, I felt disconnected. Curious, yes. But emotionally invested? Not really. It’s one of those films where I just couldn’t feel the bond everyone else seems to have with it.