The Boy and the Heron

All, what the Master has ever created and all that I wanted to see. At times, the fantasy atmosphere is darker than in Mononoke, borrowing realities from Howl's Moving Castle, waves like from Ponyo, buildings hidden in the forest like in Laputa or Totoro. And of course, the boy and girl are friends again, although this time their relationship is completely different than ever before. Miyazaki's world symbolically closes in a story full of doors that can lead anywhere and that can change a person or any other creature when they pass through them. More than ever, the viewer must accept the rules of the world they see in front of them, otherwise they would constantly be annoyed by why they will never see the inhabitants of the tomb or how stubborn parrots could come to power. The Heron has surprisingly little optimism in it, showing more realistically the process of growing up, the choices that no one will make for us, as well as leaving and death. And in that is an indescribable sadness, as well as boundless hope. (01/16/2024)

As Miyazaki's (surely this time?) last animated feature, The Boy and the Heron combines the artistic stylization of his previous films and proves that the master's imagination and skill are not yet past their prime. Although the opening is more gradual, from the first confrontation with the heron and especially after the entry into the tower, it is a visually captivating and plotfully sophisticated spectacle that – although depicting serious themes – can be humorously light-hearted – whether it was the cigarette-smoking maid, the army of totoro parrots or the heron itself. I appreciated that the theme of certain fatality in connection with other realities was handled in a subtle and not weepy way. Last but not least, I also praise Hisaishi's spare but very nice musical score. A fine end to a career spanning fifty years! (12/03/2023)

Wonderful! Miyazaki's graciously poetic mind has conjured up a fantasy fairytale fable from post-war Japan, a bit in the style of Pan's Labyrinth. It is perhaps impossible to watch except with a permanent smile and the occasional tear in the eye. The animation is breathtaking and, in comparison, the Pixar, Disney and Sony trailers that preceded it are truly pathetic. It's not that I don't like CGI animation, but The Boy and the Heron simply took my breath away, something that didn’t happen (yet) when watching those other films. (11/25/2023)

It was said that The Wind Rises would most likely be Miyazaki’s last film, but that turned out not to be the case. And The Boy and the Heron will not necessarily be the final chapter of his career either, though it is possible to see from it a bit of creative repetition as he looks back to his own work and passes the torch to the younger generation in the end, which is also presented in the story. In any case, the master of animation and film narrative has not eased up in terms of the number of ideas, the diversity of his visions and the depth of the ideas presented; his film looks beautiful and overflows with the magical, dreamlike, fairy-tale elements that can be alternately cruel and tender. The introduction of the film is uncomplicated and practically devoid of the supernatural, but as soon as the titular heron smiles and begins speaking with a human voice and the main (unfortunately not very interesting) protagonist falls into the fantasy world, in which he must come to terms with the loss of his mother and with feelings of pain, loneliness, anger and sadness, Miyazaki’s powers of imagination and playfulness kick into high gear. However, the effort to say as much as possible in the space of two hours leads to the fact that the film is very dense in places and doesn’t let some of the scenes fade out properly. At the same time, Miyazaki returns to his tried-and-try story formulas (he most noticeably draws from his own Spirited Away) and frequently used trademarks. The Boy and the Heron is practically a catalogue of everything that can be associated with Miyazaki’s films, but it doesn’t reach the level of his best works. (10/12/2023)

It's not my cup of tea. I can appreciate the truly admirable animation and imaginative world-building, but I'd be lying if I said it satisfied me as a viewer. The one-dimensional, soft-spoken protagonist is a dull and uninteresting link between Hayao Miyazaki's many fantastic dream sequences. Emotionally, it completely passed me by and, especially in the last third, I found it quite annoying. Not a fan, sorry. (10/07/2023)