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Spirited Away poster

Movies that feel likeSpirited Away (2001)

A young girl, Chihiro, becomes trapped in a strange new world of spirits. When her parents undergo a mysterious transformation, she must call upon the courage she never knew she had to free her family.

If you loved Spirited Away, the closest films we have are Ponyo (2008), My Neighbor Totoro (1988) and Kiki's Delivery Service (1989). All three share Spirited Away's whimsical and warm feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is The Secret of Kells (2009).

🍅 96% Rotten Tomatoes★ 8.6 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Hayao Miyazakiwhimsicalwarmcozydreamlike
10 of 12 streaming nowHBO Max · Amazon Prime Video · Disney Plus

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If Spirited Away hit the spot, these will too

Ponyo poster
Ponyo
2008 · dir. Hayao Miyazaki
🍅 91%★ 7.6animation · fantasy · familyMax

Miyazaki magic where the mundane and miraculous share a table

The difference: Younger, sweeter, sea-soaked

When Sosuke, a young boy who lives on a clifftop overlooking the sea, rescues a stranded goldfish named Ponyo, he discovers more than he bargained for. Ponyo is a curious, energetic young creature who yearns to be human, but even as she causes chaos around the house, her father, a powerful sorcerer, schemes to return Ponyo to the sea.

My Neighbor Totoro poster
My Neighbor Totoro
1988 · dir. Hayao Miyazaki
🍅 94%★ 8.1fantasy · animation · familyMax

Miyazaki's spirit world seen through a child's fearless eyes

The difference: Gentle rural idyll — no bathhouse trials

Two sisters move to the country with their father in order to be closer to their hospitalized mother, and discover the surrounding trees are inhabited by Totoros, magical spirits of the forest. When the youngest runs away from home, the older sister seeks help from the spirits to find her.

Kiki's Delivery Service poster
Kiki's Delivery Service
1989 · dir. Hayao Miyazaki
★ 7.8animation · family · fantasyMax

A girl finding her footing alone in an unfamiliar world

The difference: Cozy coming-of-age, no spirits to appease

A young witch, on her mandatory year of independent life, finds fitting into a new community difficult while she supports herself by running an air courier service.

Princess Mononoke poster
Princess Mononoke
1997 · dir. Hayao Miyazaki
🍅 93%★ 8.3adventure · fantasy · animationMax

Miyazaki's spirit realm at its fiercest and most awe-struck

The difference: War between gods and industry — blood flows

Ashitaka, a prince of the disappearing Emishi people, is cursed by a demonized boar god and must journey to the west to find a cure. Along the way, he encounters San, a young human woman fighting to protect the forest, and Lady Eboshi, who is trying to destroy it. Ashitaka must find a way to bring balance to this conflict.

Howl's Moving Castle poster
Howl's Moving Castle
2004 · dir. Hayao Miyazaki
🍅 88%★ 8.2fantasy · animation · adventureMax

Another Miyazaki curse forcing a girl to find her strength

The difference: A hazier, war-torn tale — its logic drifts more than Chihiro's

Sophie, a young milliner, is turned into an elderly woman by a witch who enters her shop and curses her. She encounters a wizard named Howl and gets caught up in his resistance to fighting for the king.

The Nightmare Before Christmas poster
The Nightmare Before Christmas
1993 · dir. Henry Selick
🍅 95%★ 7.9fantasy · animation · familyDisney+

A wondrous other-world with its own strange rules

The difference: Stop-motion macabre musical

Tired of scaring humans every October 31 with the same old bag of tricks, Jack Skellington, the spindly king of Halloween Town, kidnaps Santa Claus and plans to deliver shrunken heads and other ghoulish gifts to children on Christmas morning. But as Christmas approaches, Jack's rag-doll girlfriend, Sally, tries to foil his misguided plans.

The Secret of Kells poster
The Secret of Kells
2009 · dir. Tomm Moore
🍅 90%★ 7.5animation · family · fantasy

Handmade beauty where marvel and threat share the same frame

The difference: More devoted to pattern and design than to a child's inner life

Adventure awaits 12 year old Brendan who must fight Vikings and a serpent god to find a crystal and complete the legendary Book of Kells. In order to finish Brother Aiden's book, Brendan must overcome his deepest fears on a secret quest that will take him beyond the abbey walls and into the enchanted forest where dangerous mythical creatures hide. Will Brendan succeed in his quest?

Song of the Sea poster
Song of the Sea
2014 · dir. Tomm Moore
🍅 99%★ 8family · animation · fantasy

Folklore treated as weather, sorrow and enchantment arriving together

The difference: Openly tearful; it names its grief where Miyazaki lets you find it

The story of the last Seal Child’s journey home. After their mother’s disappearance, Ben and Saoirse are sent to live with Granny in the city. When they resolve to return to their home by the sea, their journey becomes a race against time as they are drawn into a world Ben knows only from his mother’s folktales. But this is no bedtime story; these fairy folk have been in our world far too long. It soon becomes clear to Ben that Saoirse is the key to their survival.

Kirikou and the Sorceress poster
Kirikou and the Sorceress
1998 · dir. Michel Ocelot
🍅 96%★ 7.5fantasy · adventure · animationPrime Video

Whimsical where it counts, warm underneath

The difference: Sits closer to adventure than Spirited Away does

Drawn from elements of West African folk tales, it depicts how a newborn boy, Kirikou, saves his village from the evil witch Karaba.

How to Train Your Dragon poster
How to Train Your Dragon
2010 · dir. Chris Sanders
🍅 99%★ 8.1fantasy · adventure · animationParamount+

A young outsider taming what everyone else fears

The difference: Viking action-adventure, flight its poetry

As the son of a Viking leader on the cusp of manhood, shy Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III faces a rite of passage: he must kill a dragon to prove his warrior mettle. But after downing a feared dragon, he realizes that he no longer wants to destroy it, and instead befriends the beast – which he names Toothless – much to the chagrin of his warrior father.

Anastasia poster
Anastasia
1997 · dir. Gary Goldman
🍅 83%★ 7.2animation · family · fantasyDisney+

Cozy and dreamlike in the same breath

Ten years after she was separated from her family, an eighteen-year-old orphan with vague memories of the past sets out to Paris in hopes of reuniting with her grandmother. She is accompanied by two con men, who intend to pass her off as the Grand Duchess Anastasia to the Dowager Empress for a reward.

Frozen poster
Frozen
2013 · dir. Jennifer Lee
🍅 89%★ 7.4animation · family · adventureDisney+

Enchantment, transformation, and a girl's stubborn courage

The difference: Musical-theater Disney, spectacle over mystery

Young princess Anna of Arendelle dreams about finding true love at her sister Elsa’s coronation. Fate takes her on a dangerous journey in an attempt to end the eternal winter that has fallen over the kingdom. She's accompanied by ice delivery man Kristoff, his reindeer Sven, and snowman Olaf. On an adventure where she will find out what friendship, courage, family, and true love really means.

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The best-reviewed films that share Spirited Away’s defining feeling.