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You know what’s way better than live-action remakes of animated classics? Short, creative recaps of animated classics.
Photorealistic remakes of beloved kids films aren’t just redundant, they don’t bring much more to the table than the lazy dopamine rush of “oh, hey I remember that scene!” And look, there’s nothing wrong with doing what you need to do to boost your mood. But if you want to save time and, more importantly, support artists who can cover old ground while bringing something new and creative to the table: animated recaps are where it’s at.
Cas van de Pol’s abridged takes on classic animated films like Bambi and The Lion King aren’t just summaries, they’re funny, insightful, and irreverent in their own right, underlining recurring motifs and exaggerating quirks all while retaining the artists’ own endearingly, off-kilter sense of humor. Which brings us to van de Pol’s latest: a recap of Studio Ghibli’s My Neighbor Totoro that captures the heart and visuals of the Hayao Miyazaki-helmed original while adding a sizable dose of the childish chaos.
You can watch “The Ultimate “My Neighbor Totoro” Recap Cartoon” here:
Who made this?
Cas van de Pol is a Dutch animator who has made it his business to create endearing, off-kilter cartoon summaries of beloved kids films. You can subscribe to van de Pol’s YouTube here. And you can follow van de Pol on Twitter here.
More Videos Like This
- The ultimate recap of Lilo & Stitch (plus: a full, adorable, cover of “Burning Love“)
- And here’s the ultimate recap of Bambi
- The recap of The Lion King
- I first encountered van de Pol through his recaps of Avatar: The Last Airbender. Here are his takes on Book 1, Book 2, and Book 3
- Van de Pol did a collaboration with musical comedy duo Ninja Sex Party that merges “The Monster Mash,” Castlevania, and ’80s power ballads
- Here’s a featurette from the My Neighbor Totoro DVD with interviews with the English cast, including teeny tiny Dakota and Elle Fanning
- 200 people remade Shrek shot for shot, and it’s as marvelous as it is horrifying
- Why Totoro became Hayao Miyazaki’s most beloved creation
- Here’s Adam Savage at his first New York Comic Con in 2016 disguised as Totoro