Kiki’s Delivery Service Review (1989)– A visually stunning film that is incredibly sweet, and relatable!

We are now on the final anime for the potato birthday month! Do not worry we will review more anime at some point! We enjoy it far too much not to, but we are going to be ending this month’s anime binge with a classic from studio Ghibli: Kiki’s Delivery Service!

We adore this movie! It is unbelievably cute, silly and sweet. We do take some issue with a 13 year old leaving home to work in a new city…by herself. But! It is a beautifully animated movie, and extremely fun!

We will do everything we can to not give too many spoilers in this review but there are likely to be some, so please take that into consideration and read cautiously.

This gorgeous film starts with a beautiful scenery shot panning to a little girl laying amongst tall grass, basking in the sun and looking up at a clear sky. She is listening to a little red radio that is discussing the weather and appears to be contemplative.

Her brow is furrowed as she chews on a piece of grass and listens intently. After hearing the full weather report, she leaps up from the grass walking quickly through the country side.

Kiki, (Minami Takayama, Kirsten Dunst) has made a decision! She is leaving tonight! The weather report stated clear skies and a full moon! Perfect for what Kiki has in mind!

Kiki rushes home and announces her intentions. Her parents are flustered and concerned. They knew she was getting ready to leave but they thought they had more time! They are happy for her but nervous. It is a rite of passage for a young, 13 year old witch to leave the nest to find their way in a new city and become a “resident witch”.

Kiki is thrilled! She has been waiting for the perfect night to leave since she turned 13 and tonight is the best night for flying! She starts packing eagerly and discusses her immediate plans with her familiar, a black cat named Jiji, (Rei Sakuma, Phil Hartman).

Jiji does not think they should leave just yet, but Kiki is determined and way too excited! Jiji is a snarky boy who has a very sarcastic wit, but he loves Kiki, so of course, he will leave with her.

We love Jiji! He is so funny, and a little girl going to a new city by herself definitely needs some kind of support! Jiji is still an animal, but he does his best to help Kiki when she really needs it. He is a sweet boy that we would gladly welcome into our own household! Our dogs would probably take issue with that though…

Kiki’s mom comes into her room to help Kiki get ready. A black dress is traditional and she makes sure to fix up Kiki’s pretty red bow on top of her black hair.

Kiki is not in love with the color black, but like we stated before, it is a traditional color for witches. It is important for Kiki to represent her people!

Once the sun sets Kiki and Jiji are set up with mom’s broom, and they say their final goodbyes. Her family is sad to see her go but Kiki is enthusiastic, as only a child can be, about such a huge change.

Children can be so fearless and so eager for the world. It is part of what makes children so endearing, and it is something we tend to lose with life experience and age. Kiki makes us potatoes feel nostalgic and wish for that level of fearlessness!

She hops on the broom and takes off! One problem though…Kiki is not the strongest flier yet! Her take off is a bit rocky, but she manages to quickly find her bearings and be on her way.

Flying through the night air, Kiki turns on her little red radio to listen to some music while she flies in search of a city without a resident witch.

Thoroughly enjoying herself and not paying attention, Kiki almost bumps into another young witch! This witch already has her own city, and a supernatural gift! This little witch is a fortune teller!

Kiki is impressed, and unsure. She has not discovered her witch gift just yet. She does not know what exactly she is going to be able to offer her new city. …but she’s sure that she will figure it out!

The other little witch arrives at her resident witch city and Kiki focuses on flying through the night. The sun is shining brightly the next morning. Kiki has had a brief rest on a traveling train, and she manages to find a gorgeous Mediterranean inspired city along an exquisite coast line.

The ocean! Kiki is ecstatic! She wanted to live near the ocean, so this spot would be impeccable! If there is no resident witch that is…but there isn’t! She lands hurriedly and tries to get her bearings.

The city is bustling, and far larger than where she grew up. A little overwhelmed, but bold, Kiki tries to figure out where she should go. It was not the most well thought out plan. She does not have a place to stay and struggles to find one as she wanders through the city.

Frustrated and disheartened, they need someplace to sleep! Kiki and Jiji take a pause and look out over the city. It’s beautiful, but this is not as easy as Kiki thought it would be.

Moments later, a young pregnant woman steps out of what appears to be a nearby bread shop waving a binky in the air. “You forgot your pacifier!” She shouts at the figure of another woman who is far away, pushing a stroller.

Kiki kindly offers to get the pacifier to the woman with the stroller to assist the pregnant woman. Seeing the broom, the pregnant woman agrees, and watches in awe as Kiki hops on her broom and delivers the binky!

Kiki returns and the woman introduces herself! Her name is Osono (Keiko Toda, Tress MacNeille) and she runs the bread shop with her husband! She is extremely friendly and after learning that Kiki has no place to stay, she offers Kiki a room. Relieved, Kiki and Jiji immediately take her up on the offer!

The room is dark, and dirty, which does not please Jiji at all. Kiki cleans it up and has her very first night in her new city!

The next morning, after some thought, Kiki has figured out what she is going to do! She is going to be a delivery girl! Her only skill at this time is flying, so she thinks it is going to be a great way to make some money and be of service to the city.

Osono thinks it is a wonderful idea and allows Kiki to use the bread shop’s phone for her business, as well as stay there indefinitely if she helps out at the shop. Kiki is more than happy with this arrangement and gets to work quickly.

Kiki is optimistic and keen to get started with her new life and her new business!

The film progresses as we get to see how Kiki builds her business, improves her flying, meets new people, and interacts with the city kids around her age. It is not all sweetness and rainbows, though! Adjusting to a new lifestyle in a new city is not easy for anyone. Kiki has to work hard, not just at her new business, but to understand who she is and what her gifts are.

We do not want to give too much of the film away, but we simply love it! Who hasn’t had times in their lives when they were unsure about who they are or what they are doing? Who hasn’t felt out of their element? Kiki is so relatable; she is a hardworking, kind, and compassionate little girl who is trying to figure out how she fits into the world.

Kiki’s story is not a new one, but it is so charmingly well done. Kiki is an endearing coming of age story that will leave you feeling nostalgic for childhood, and in awe of the beauty of the animation of studio Ghibli.

We highly recommend this movie!

We give this film…4 out of 5 Spiked Hot Chocolate’s!

Kiki's Delivery Service Drinking Game

Take a sip anytime:

1.     There’s a scenery shot

2.     Kiki listens to her radio

3.     Anyone says "witch"

4.     Kiki says Jiji's name

5.     Anytime Jiji is snarky or whiny

6.     Kiki flies

7.     Kiki delivers a package

8.     Kiki makes a mistake

9.     Kiki gets into hijinks or gets into trouble

10.  Tombo is a little creepy or silly

11.  Tombo rides his bike

12.  Osono laughs

What did you think?? Did you like the movie? Did you hate it!? Do you have suggestions for films we should consider?! Let us know here in the comments and always remember to be safe and drink responsibly!