There's not a great deal of plot or incident, but there's some fine scenes involving kids lost in the forest or flying through the air, and some nicely-judged character work, particularly in the form of the ultra-shy neighbour's child. However, the film works due to the level of creativity present in the story, and particularly in the two creations thought up for the movie: there's the troll-like Totoro of the title, an intriguing and odd creature, and then there's the crowd-pleasing and lovable Catbus, the highlight of the whole thing. Adult themes do intrude on the plot - the mother's illness, for instance - but for the most part this is a simple, straightforward children's adventure film. Don't go in expecting another GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES, because this is all about magical childhood experiences and a break from the real world, a bit like THE SNOWMAN. First off, this is a kid's film through and through, like the later PONYO (one of my all-time favourites). MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO is my latest watch from the studio, and while it's not my favourite, it does have plenty to recommend it. I'm not the world's biggest animation fan, but I always make a point of watching Studio Ghibli movies whenever they're on something about the creativity of such films appeals and reawakens the child in me. See the movie, as it's about as good an animated film as you can find-regardless of where it was made. Anyone (except a total curmudgeon) will love this charming and simple film. The story, though very simple, is very captivating and the emotional response the film triggers is amazing. They seem to yell out "QUALITY PRODUCTION" throughout.
Now about the movie itself, the animation is about the best you'll find anywhere-particularly the gorgeous backgrounds. Of the dubbed, my loyalty is to the Fox version-it just sounds more charming and cute. I am a bit compulsive and actually have seen all three versions! I think the subtitled is best because there are also a few tiny scenes that are in neither dubbed versions (not enough to change the story, but still I prefer a complete film). Finally, there is the original Japanese version that is subtitled into English. I think it's the same lady who does the voice of Angelica on Rugrats.
However, I prefer the original voices-particularly the voice for Mei. The Disney version has, perhaps, more realistic voices-as the children sound more like kids.
This has resulted in a more widespread release of their pictures but has also recently resulted in a new dubbed version of the movie. Then, a few years later, Studio Ghibli (who made this film in Japan) signed a deal for exclusivity with Disney. Originally in the United States, 20th Century Fox released the movie on video in the early 90s. Although so many reviews have been written here for the movie, I am including one because there are now 3 different video versions of this movie and all three are certainly worth watching.