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Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (2001) More at IMDbPro »

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?For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi can be found at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0245429/parentalguide.

No. Hayao Miyazaki, Japanese director of animated films and co-founder of an animation studio and production company, came out of retirement to write and direct Spirited Away/Sen to Chichiro no Kamikakushi. Miyazaki based the story on his friend and the friend's daughter.

According to Ghibli sources, Chihiro is 10, Haku is "about 12," Lin (Rin) is "about 14," Chihiro's mother is 35, and her father is 38.

The story line is tight enough to determine that Chihiro was in the Spirit World for three nights--in Spirit World Time. There are many differing opinions about how long that was in human world time.

This is a minefield question, as it is largely up to the interpretation of the viewer. It might be better to start with describing what No-Face is not.

- No-Face is not, as some people maintain, Noh-Face--a reference to a mask worn in a Noh play. It is merely a coincidence, as the Japanese name for the character is Kaonashi. No-Face is the literal English translation of the name.

- No-Face does not represent a single character trait such as greed. No-Face exhibits greed, to be sure, but he also exhibits generosity and affection.

One consistent interpretation is that No-face is a metaphor for an impressionable, introverted adolescent male. He has few if any friends and no girl ever paid him any attention--until Chihiro smiles at him in the rain. No-Face is in love and desperately wants Chihiro to return his affection. His actions, including showering her with gifts she has no desire for and looking at the others in the bathhouse to see what's "cool," are all consistent with that desire.

Greed and selfishness. Notice that all they wanted was the gold and later when they found out that No-Face was a "monster" all they wanted was to save their own skins.

Not according to Hayao Miyazaki. The source is an interview with him in the film pamphlet sold in theaters during the film's first run in 2001. He did, however, make a distinction that not recalling an incident is not the same as forgetting it. He raised the possibility that the memory could always come back to her at a later time.

However, one of the major modifications to the film's script in the English dub is an extra line that implies that Chihiro does remember the events of the film. The English script was approved by Studio Ghibli.

Yes because according to Hayao Miyazaki. The source for this is the same film pamphlet cited in the question about whether she remembered the experience. Instead of being a story about growth, he stated, he wanted this to be a story about something which was inside Chihiro all along, waiting to get out.