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Despite being very brief, this charming animation is sure to make you smile as it depicts the story of a boy who is given a mysterious seed, which he plants, and no sooner does he water it and give it nourishment does it sprout into a gigantic house! Searchable on YouTube, this adorable 2-and-a-half minute creation of the brilliant animation genius Hayao Miyazaki is a delight to watch and great for young children.

Totsuzen! Neko no Kuni Banipal Witt, also known as Catnapped! The Movie, is an extremely charming children's movie about the secret world of cats. I was extremely fortunate to find this movie at Media Play (I've had this movie for THAT long...Media Play was still in business! xD) and I've been hooked ever since.

This is definitely one to bring home to the kids. The storyline is simple and fun for kids, and the animation is simple but entertaining. There are plenty of humorous moments to cheer on the progress, and once you hear the ending theme song, Yume He No Tobira, I challenge you to ... try to get it out of your head! :D

If you're a Miyazaki fan (though, who isn't?), though this isn't a Miyazaki creation, Catnapped! The Movie is a fantasy-based film centered around animals, which Miyazaki is well known for. It's also got the same sort of magical action sequences we've come to love and expect from Miyazaki's films. However, if you only seem to find yourself in the more dark, dramatic animes, this may not be the film for you; It is a film intended for children so it has cheerful elements.

Don't forget to add Totsuzen! Neko no Kuni Banipal Witt to your Queue! This is a thoroughly enjoyable film I think you'll come to love. Enjoy!

Another Studio Ghibli masterpiece, and produced by anime genius Hayao Miyazaki, Pom Poko brings something new to the table: Animals who, instead of fleeing from the deforestation that threatens them, choose to resort to a different method by turning the tables on the humans that shamelessly and thoughtlessly tear away at their homes. Based on the Japanese Tanuki folklore, many of the raccoons featured in Pom Poko have magical shape shifting powers, some a little more rusty than others. These creatures begin to notice their food and shelter becoming scarce after the invasion of their land by the crew of new housing construction, and must ... call on their elders, the masters of transformation, to teach them how to change their shapes. They hope to use these abilities in many different ways, but all for one sole purpose: to reclaim the land that is being stolen from them.

Though in the film they are introduced as raccoons, the Tanuki folklore is centered around a very different breed, known as the raccoon dog. In either case, the creatures in this movie are far too plump to be easily identified, doubly so with the fact that in the movie, the raccoons do not possess the famous ringed-tail that raccoons are known for. Studio Ghibli's depictions of the Tanuki are nonetheless charming and adorable. Even the mean and stuffy raccoons are hard characters to hate.

Also featured briefly in the film is another creature of folklore known at the Kitsune, a transforming fox, which in the film tries to convince the raccoons to stop their personal war with the humans and instead use their shape shifting abilities to change into humans and begin new lives. This decision is widely argued over in the film, partly because of the raccoons' inability to transform into convincing humans.

I think a child would thoroughly enjoy this movie, however, here's where the warnings begin to come in. I had not been familiar with the Tanuki folklore before I watched this movie, so was surprised to discover that until about an hour through the movie, I had not noticed the raccoons' exposed genitalia. I later learn that this exposure is a prominent detail of the Tanuki in folklore, representing good luck financially. Though it may seem overly risque to the unknowing, their exposure is never, in the lore or the film, intended as sexual, and the film does not illustrate them sexually either. Rather, in the film they use what is referred to in the English dub as their "Pouches" to contribute to their shifting, such as parachutes which are seen later in the film.

Other material in the film include the deaths of humans and several raccoons, and though there is occasionally blood, it is never graphic. Additionally, there is a short scene narrated by one of the raccoons talking about how, because of lack of food and sheltering, they must halt breeding. While the raccoon talks about the female raccoons making sure this rule is kept, we see male raccoons charging at female raccoons, some seemingly drunk, and the female raccoons using karate moves to fight back, which implies their attempts to cease reproduction. Some female raccoons also have exaggerated breast size with occasional cleavage.

This movie I predict would otherwise be a delightful watch for children, even if they have to watch for 2 hours waiting for the conclusion. I extend yet another ovation for Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki.