The Boy and The Heron is Out
Studio Ghibli is a beloved global animation powerhouse, and it was a childhood cornerstone for a bunch of people who aren’t me.
Yeah, I was pretty late to the party. Back in childhood I saw Nausicaä and the Valley of the Wind on Cartoon Network, and I really enjoyed being traumatized. Then I watched Princess Mononoke a few years later and ended up so confused that I didn’t think about it again for several years.
Then college came around, I saw My Name is Totoro for a film class, yada yada yada, I’m a huge fan. And the studio’s animation master, Hayao Miyazaki, has just released what could end up being his last film, The Boy and the Heron. I watched it this weekend and in brief, it is beautiful, the score is fantastic, and I had a blast. This was actually my first time seeing a Studio Ghibli film on opening weekend, and only my second time seeing one in theaters.
But for anyone who’s interested in checking out the film but isn’t familiar with the rest of the films I’ve been talking about, here are a few pointers that I could have used when I first found these films:
Pace: These films move at a very different speed than most movies out there. They don’t speed from introducing the protagonist to “I Want…” song to villains gonna villain, etc. etc. etc. Ghibli films slow down. You have permission to just take it in.
Plot: The story will probably go places you weren’t prepared for them to go. Be prepared now. Don’t leave and be all like, “but why does the old lady have a giant baby, wait, it’s a rat now?” and “hold up, the root vegetable was a prince the whole time, why didn’t they foreshadow that?” or “why does she have to write a novel in a month, I don’t think the kid who carves violins really cares, does he?” “Why?” will not serve you well in many of these movies. Accept that whatever’s happening is happening, and go from there.
The Point: There are lots of recurring messages in Miyazaki’s films in particular: war is full of horrors, and must be avoided; nature takes care of us, and we need to return the favor; wonder can be found in the most unexpected places. All of these are worthy messages, but even more than wanting you to think, the point of these movies is to make you feel, and they’re very good at it.
To put it simply, Ghibli films need to be met on their own terms. When you agree to those terms, you tend to find adventures unlike any other around. And if that sounds like a good deal to you, go check out The Boy and the Heron.