S6E6 - My Neighbor Totoro (1988)

About this episode

The episode discusses the 1988 film My Neighbor Totoro, exploring its deeper themes and cultural context.

In the latest episode of Heroic Purgatory: An Asian Cinema Podcast, John and Jason move to the countryside for a friendly chat with magical owls and bus-sized orange cats. That's right, we are covering My Neighbor Totoro, the 1988 Hayao Miyazaki film who's titular character became the logo for the newly minted Studio Ghibli. Though often viewed as a "children" film, Totoro is not all about laughs and cuddles. We discuss the more tragical underpinnings of the story and how it reflects the ambivalent Japanese society of Miyazaki's youth. Enjoy! Website: https://www.heroic-purgatory.com/2026/06/s6e6-my-neighbor-totoro-1988.html Follow the show on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/heroicpurgatory.bsky.social Follow Jason: https://bsky.app/profile/filmnohito.bsky.socia Follow John: https://bsky.app/profile/jmhimara.bsky.social

People in this episode

Hosts: John Atom, Jason Maher

Topics covered

• My Neighbor Totoro
• Hayao Miyazaki
• Studio Ghibli
• Japanese society
• children's film
• film analysis

Keywords

• My Neighbor Totoro
• Hayao Miyazaki
• Studio Ghibli
• Japanese cinema
• film analysis
• children's film
• cultural reflection

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Studio Ghibli

Books & works: My Neighbor Totoro

Places: Japan

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• S6E5 - My Sassy Girl (2001) · May 25, 2026 · 1h 31m
• S6E4 - Yi Yi (2000) · May 11, 2026 · 1h 23m
• S6E3 - City on Fire (1987) · April 27, 2026 · 1h 15m
• S6E2 - Joint Security Area (2000) · April 13, 2026 · 1h 30m
• S6E1 - Seven Samurai (1954) · March 31, 2026 · 1h 37m
• Best Films of 2025 · February 9, 2026 · 2h 22m