The Boy and The Heron is Studio Ghibli’s latest movie and the 12th feature film Hayao Miyazaki has directed. The Boy and the Heron is currently available in theaters and has so far made 129 million United States dollars (USD) internationally, and 36 million USD domestically.
While Miyazaki isn’t the only creator in Studio Ghibli, he is the most well-known due to co-founding the studio and is also acclaimed as one of Japan’s best animators. Although Miyazaki’s retirement was predicted to happen after the creation of The Boy and The Heron, he has since teased more projects expected to be released soon.
The Boy and The Heron follows a young boy, Mahito Maki, after his mother’s death during the Pacific War. Maki and his father move in with a woman who fills the empty role of his mother. Maki is a lovable character who struggles with the passing of his mother, while the heron is more of a grumpy old man. He is the guide for Maki, leading him throughout the mysterious world he is thrown into.
The Boy and The Heron was a beautiful movie. It delivered the striking beauty known from Studio Ghibli, while also delivering the perfect amount of weirdness I would expect from Miyazaki. If I had to compare it to another of Miyazaki’s works I’ve seen, I would say it’s the most like Spirited Away due to the stunning scenery, and a lot of odd, along with the classic, weird little guys. While Spirited Away has Soot Sprites, The Boy and the Heron has Warawara, who are probably the blobbiest of Miyazaki’s weird little creatures. However, The Boy and The Heron is very unlike Ponyo or Kiki’s Delivery Service, mainly because it’s not a mystical world showing people there just living their lives.
There’s danger and conflict at every corner, while still giving the comfort that comes from all Ghibli. Overall, I absolutely loved this movie and all of the fantastical weirdness that made it great.
