Similar Movies?

Central Station, a movie from Brazil, is very similar.

Central do Brasil

If you're still checking this post, cfalcon, I would suggest a film called Kolja (1996 I think). And of course Central Station is also wonderful.

I'm going to suggest a film that's *nothing* like this in style, but the theme is similar. It's a French film called City of Lost Children (1995). Like I said, the style is very different... visually it's dark, green and hi-contrast whereas Kikujiro is bright, blue and washed. The French pace is a lot faster (most people get confused & angry midway). But the substance is the same: the story of a kid and a grownup lost in a big, sometimes senseless world meeting strange characters along the way. Actually it was someone on the City board who suggested Kikujiro to me, and I loved it instantly. Maybe the crossover can be done both ways :)

P.S. Music in both films is absolutely beautiful. Joe Hisaishi in Kikujiro and Angelo Badalamenti in City. East meets West

I just saw another film which reminded me of Kikujiro.

The Fall (2006) - It's about a young (Romanian?) girl in a hospital who meets another patient. The other patient is a man who's suicidal because he just got dumped, lost his career and is crippled. So they form a sort of dysfunctional father-child relationship like in Kikujiro. Lots of quirky humour & fantasy. Great film, the best I've seen in a while.

I know this thread is almost 2 years old, but I'm just leaving this recommendation here for other people who might be looking for similar movies.

Adrift in Tokyo really reminded me of this film. It's about a college student who owes money to a debt collector; the debt collector tells the college student that he is willing to relieve him of his debt under the condition that he accompanies him on a trip to a police station in Kasumagaseki. Along the way, the two characters reveal information to each other about their personal lives. I thought that the way that the film combined comedy and drama was very similar to Kikujiro. Highly recommended.

The original poster might not read this, but for anyone else.. here are some great films that share a similar theme. The first two are highly recommended.

Eureka
This movie has a very similar theme to that of Kikurjiro. By that I mean an adult goes on a long journey with a child(s) and over the course of the movie they rediscover themselves and have an adventure. Plus it has an amazing score, beautiful cinematography and characters that will make you laugh and cry. A very well acted film that's just around 4 hours.
- http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0243889/

The Taste of Tea
This is a perfect family themed movie. Plenty of oddball characters like you saw in this movie - such as the bikers. Fantastic comedy with a slight hint of seriousness. Another film about finding themselves.
- http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0413893/

Quitting
This isn't much of a family friendly film, as it deals with drug addiction and depression.. however, the main character shares quite a resemblance in personality/actions to the character Kikurjiro.

"Kikujiro" shares some plot and thematic similarities with the 1993 Ed O'Neil road movie "Dutch" -- in that movie, Ed O'Neil's character travels across the country bringing his girlfriend's son (played by a young Ethan Randall) back to his mother's house for Thanksgiving.

The parts where they had to get creative to beg rides was similar in both movies.