Zac's Blind Studio Ghibli Watchthrough (ongoing spoilers)

I forgot to give an actual rating for Grave of the Fireflies , but it was easily a 10/10

#2 - My Neighbor Totoro
So, this is kind of what I was afraid of, but I was severely underwhelmed by Totoro. I have no issue with the slice of life genre, but it really felt like nothing happened until the final 15 minutes of the film; After opening some windows in their new home, the children learn that forest creatures exist, they find a couple in the woods/bus stop, and then do a dance with those spirits to grow some seeds. It's only in the final act that there is any sort plot progression, but just as suddenly as the letter about mother's extended hospital stay arrives, it is also resolved thanks to the magic cat bus with a literal tracker to the runaway child.

Most surprising of all, is that while Totoro is more or less the mascot of Ghibli, he only ever appears a total of 4 times throughout the entire film. First while asleep in his hidey-hole, second at the iconic bus stop, third to do a seed-growing dance, and then finally to call for an uber the cat bus. Given that he is featured so prominently in the poster and other promotional material (seriously, where was the fishing scene?!), I would have expected him to have a much bigger role than what he ended up with.

I'm not saying it was a bad film, but it definitely wasn't for me (Despite there being a giant cat bus).

My Neighbor Totoro - 7/10