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Japanese animation director Hayao Miyazaki has been writing, directing, and animating beautiful and imaginative films and series for the last six decades. But for his latest (and reportedly last) film, The Boy and the Heron, he takes viewers on one of his most personal journeys yet.
The Boy and the Heron travels to another world with Mahito (voiced by Soma Santoki). After losing his mother during the war, Mahito leaves Tokyo with his father to settle in the country—in a new home with a new stepmother, his mother’s younger sister, Natsuko (Yoshino Kimura). But Mahito misses his mother, and he struggles to settle into this new life. And when pregnant Natsuko goes missing, Mahito follows a pesky talking heron into a world that’s somewhere between the living and the dead to find her and bring her home.
Life has not been easy for this serious, straight-laced little boy, who’s been forced to adjust to so much in such a short time. The country is in the middle of a war, he’s lost his mother, and he’s been moved to a new home filled with strangers. He suddenly has a new mother and a baby sibling on the way—and his father is too busy with his new factory to pay much attention. Yet through this beautiful and sometimes terrifying journey, he learns to find peace and friendship in his difficult circumstances.
The animation here is as striking as ever, playing with light and color and movement and imagination to take audiences on this journey through the harsh realities of life and on to this strange alternate world. At times, it can be odd and eerie and more than a little creepy—with its human-like talking heron and its army of gigantic parakeets. At other times, though, it’s light and whimsical and dreamlike.
Mahito’s story is beautiful and often moving—but, admittedly, it can feel rather busy and complicated, too. There’s a lot going on here—and while some characters and adventures add to the story, others seem to be an unnecessary roadblock along the way. This is certainly a striking journey—but one that may leave viewers feeling somewhat baffled in the end.
Like Miyazaki’s earlier films, The Boy and the Heron is imaginative and visually stunning—an animated work of art. And though the story may not be one of the filmmaker’s most memorable, it’s a personal journey that his long-time fans will appreciate.
You can join Mahito on his journey when The Boy and the Heron arrives in theaters on December 8, 2023.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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