Film Forum

(1989) “Leaving home at 13 to find her way in the world, plucky witch Kiki heads for a nearby port town with her cat Jiji and sets up a broomstick delivery company that’s an instant hit with the locals. So far, so sweet-but-predictable – if we were in Disney’s world, that’d be the extent of Kiki’s personal growth, and that’d be fine. But this is Miyazaki’s world, where things go a little deeper. So, following a bout of illness, Kiki struggles with depression, loses her powers and must search for a new purpose in life. As a story about how hard it is to make your own way in the world, Kiki’s Delivery Service is truthful and scalpel-sharp. That it manages all this while remaining consistently funny, optimistic and exciting – even for little ones – is a mark of Miyazaki’s genius.” – Tom Huddleston, Time Out

DCP. Approx 103 min.

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