Japanese lit. ’Witch’s Express Home delivery ‘ is a 1989 Japanese animated fatasy film. Written, produced & directed by Hayao Miyazaki. It is based on the 1985 novel by Eiko Kadono. It stars voices of Minami Takayama, Rei Sakuma & Kappei Yamaguchi.
The story follows Kiki, a young witch who moves to the port city of Koriko with her cat Jiji & starts a flying courier service.
Made from % 6.9 million it garnered $ 41.8 million. Rotten Tomatoes gave positive reviews. Rating at 8.1 /10.’heartwarming, gorgeously rendered tale ofa young witch discovering her place in the world.
Miyazaki & his team travelled to locations such as Visby, Sweden to research it’s landscape. Miyazaki altered the story, with new scenes to emphasize the theme of independence & growing up. According to him , the film portrays the gulf between independence & reliance among teenage Japanese girls.
Kiki getting attacked by the crows, losing her powers or the airship incident at the flim’s climax are not from the original story. The athour wasn’t happy. Miyazaki & Suzuki invited her to the film’s studio. After her visit to the studio, Kadono decided to let the project continue.
Just like other characters in his work, Kiki also finds her independence with the help of her friend. Young girls , Chihero from ‘Spirited Away’ & Kiki , attempting to seek independence without being rebellious.
In 2020, it was announced the Japanese version & the Disney dub would be streaming on Netflix.
It is a feel good film.
Asian Entertainment 