Hayao Miyazaki’s latest film, “The Boy and the Heron” is filled with many traditional Studio-Ghiblisms, including a young kid discovering a fantastical world, 1940s Japan, cute creatures, scary-looking people and absolutely breathtaking visuals.
Despite all of these commonalities, “The Boy and the Heron” stands out among Miyazaki’s work. It follows a darker tone, one slightly more in line with “Princess Mononoke” than “My Neighbor Totoro.”
This being said, it is very much a movie made with kids in mind, and this audience is instrumental in the storytelling. It is a coming-of-age story about Mahito, a young boy whose mother tragically passes away in a hospital fire when he is young. Mahito’s father, stricken by grief and the troubles of the war, moves away from Tokyo. He moves in with his late wife’s sister — his new wife. From here, Mahito starts seeing the Grey Heron, which begins to talk to him and tell him his mother is still alive, saying it can help him find her.
The Talent
The immediate standout of the film is the amazing performances throughout. From Robert Pattinson as the Grey Heron, who does some of the best voiceover work I’ve ever heard, to Luca Padovan, a young, relatively inexperienced actor who really captures the emotions of Mahito, to Mark Hamill doing what he does best, kind-of-creepy men. Florence Pugh, Christian Bale and Dave Bautista also make appearances, putting their all in as well.
The only real issue with the movie, though incredibly moving and well put together, is the English dub. Some of the voices sound like they are recorded on Zoom. Occasionally, they get a kind of strange second layer added that makes it sound like the audio got messed up. But for the most part, thankfully, this isn’t noticeable.
The Art
Back to the good: this is probably my favorite-looking Ghibli movie. The scenes and shots are absolutely gorgeous. The animation, especially of fire is incredibly evocative.
Miyazaki said he was retiring in 2013, but thank god he didn’t. Seeing a new Miyazaki movie in theaters is a special treat — especially one as fantastic, fantastical and emotional as this one.
There are many scenes where Mahito cries. When he does, it doesn’t feel like watching an animated character on the screen. I felt an urge to go comfort him and tell him everything would be okay. This is the magic of Ghibli movies. Most of the time they are completely unrealistic and fanciful, but the worlds feel so real, so lived-in and plausible.
This movie has that feeling more than most others in the Ghibli catalog. The fantasy world has so many working parts that never get delved into, which makes it seem all the more realistic. Things happen that would be impossible in our world and they are not really given any special attention.
Definitely go and see this in the theater if you are a Ghibli fan. You will not be disappointed.
