The film Spirited Away is known by fans as one of Studio Ghibli's most iconic masterpieces, and for good reason. The breathtaking visuals, engaging characters, and unique setting makes this movie an enjoyable watch.
The movie is about a young girl who is stuck in a place full of spirits after her parents are turned into pigs, and she has to work in the bathhouse while she tries to figure out a way to save her parents and make her escape. The movie is very creative, but like every other movie, there are some elements in it that do not make any sense.
10 Chihiro's Father Shouldn't Have A Driver's License
At the beginning of the movie, Chihiro's life is in danger before she even meets the spirits. After taking a wrong turn onto a unpaved road, Chihiro's father claims that it's a shortcut, and starts to race down the rocky road like a maniac. Instead of telling Chihiro to put her seat belt on, her parents just tell her to sit down.
The road gets bumpier and the low hanging branches make it difficult for them to see in front of them. Despite this, Chihiro's father continues to race down the unfamiliar road and narrowly misses colliding with a statue.
9 The Parents Happily Helped Themselves To Unattended Food
When noticing a pile of unattended dishes, Chihiro's parents thought that it would be alright to help themselves to whatever they wanted. Chihiro wasn't wrong when she told them that they shouldn't eat something that didn't belong to them. Her father justified himself by saying that he had cash and credit cards to pay for whatever he ate, but didn't stop to consider that the food might not have been for sale in the first place.
Additionally, he already came to the conclusion that the place was abandoned earlier, making it strange that he wasn't suspicious of the food at all.
8 The Stairs Had No Handrails
The stairs leading down to the boiler room had no handrails, making it a huge health hazard. With nothing to grab onto for support, Chihiro was understandably terrified when she saw just how much distance was between the stairs and the ground. The stairs had such poor upkeep that one board even snapped under her weight.
Even if the bathhouse only served spirits, it doesn't make sense that they'd allow a part of the building to be so flimsy. Strangely enough, there is a small handrail at the bottom of the stairs, but it's only located right outside of the boiler room.
7 The Sentient Soot Need To Eat
The soot was enchanted with a spell: they became workers that hauled coal into the fire, but they would only retain their life if they worked. The spell did not only create workers, but the little creatures developed personalities, gained the ability to assess a situation, and are even able to eat. During their breaks, the soot feast on bright, colorful candy.
It's a choice that doesn't make sense, but fans can agree that seeing the soot clamoring for sweets is really cute.
6 The Power Of Roasted Newt
The workers at the hot springs seem to unanimously agree that opposing Yubaba, their boss, is akin to suicide. That's why Haku pretends not to know Chihiro in front of her. Even Lin, Chihiro's mentor, is initially unwilling to stick her neck out for Chihiro. It is not until Kamaji offers her a tiny roasted newt that Lin quickly agrees to help.
It seems that roasted newt is a rare treat, as Lin considered the reward to be worth risking her life, and she easily distracted another worker when she showed the newt to him.
5 The Guest Spirits Don't Care That Chihiro Is Human
Before Chihiro is employed, the spirit workers are rushing to find her, as Yubaba is eager to turn her into a pig. It seems that they all look down on humans, yet none of the guests ever seemed to express any displeasure when they saw her. The Radish Spirit even helped her, and No-Face quickly grew attached to her.
The river spirit also wasn't bothered by the fact that she was human either, which may be the most surprising since humans were the ones that made him so filthy in the first place. It's strange that there is such a huge difference in opinion.
4 Kamaji Conveniently Has Train Tickets
When Chihiro takes it upon herself to return the item that Haku stole from Zeniba, she doesn't really have an easy way to get there, nor does she have a train ticket to get to her destination. She learns that train tickets are difficult to come by, but Kamaji just so happened to be holding on to train tickets for forty years.
He offers up something so valuable to Chihiro without any hesitation, just like the coveted roasted newt. It's a kind gesture, but it was a stroke of luck that a forty year old ticket was still valid.
3 Chihiro Is Quick To Trust No-Face Again
No-Face went on a terrifying rampage in the hot springs, eating every last dish presented to him. When Chihiro refused his offers of extra bath tokens and gold, he threw a terrible tantrum, eating workers and even trying to eat Chihiro.
After fleeing from him in terror after making him vomit up the people he ate, she invites him to join her on her journey almost immediately after. She seemed to conclude too quickly that he only did that because the hot springs made him crazy.
2 The River Spirit's Gift
After Chihiro helped the River Spirit clean off the litter and debris that was stuck on him, he gave her a gift. It was a small, foul-tasting object. She uses it to make Haku vomit the things that were hurting him and uses it to help No-Face, although her initial intention was to feed it to her parents in the hopes that it would be a cure.
It is uncertain as to whether the River Spirit knew that she'd use the reward in this way, and it's even less certain if it knew that she would need it, since it hadn't known her for very long.
1 Boh Liked Being A Mouse
Boh is an incredibly spoiled baby who is constantly coddled by his mother Yubaba. He shows an eagerness for violence if he didn't get his way, until Zeniba turns him into a mouse. Strangely enough, he likes being a mouse, as he refuses to change back even when the curse wears off.
It's likely that he likes it because he gets more companionship as a mouse, as well as the freedom to move around as he pleases. However, once he was away from the bathhouse, he could have easily changed back without worrying about losing his new friends.