REVIEW: “The Boy and the Heron” (2023)

Teaser poster for Japan release in July 2023

Hayao Miyazaki has, on more than one occasion, declared he would retire from making anime feature films. In 2013, he publicly made it official. Or so he thought. You see, Miyazaki almost always manages to go back on that statement and deliver more brilliant projects through his company Studio Ghibli. The Boy and the Heron may be his most ambitious and personal film to date. Having been in development and production since 2017, it's the one film I've been anticipating all year, out of any other theatrical release. 

When it premiered in Japanese movie theaters back in July (under the original title, How Do You Live?), Ghibli did the unthinkable: they didn’t release any trailers or interviews or marketing in general, other than one mysterious poster. Word-of-mouth has since ranged from mixed reactions to many immediately hailing Miyazaki’s latest as another masterpiece. Personally, I wanted to know as little about it going in. But, being the avid IMDb user that I am, I couldn’t resist certain spoiler-free articles or photos online. But only a little, I think.) Then, when the first trailer for the North American release premiered (along with the announcement that the film would be screened in IMAX, a first for Ghibli), my jaw dropped. It was different than what I was expecting, but I was still excited. 

The film’s summary is as follows. Traumatized by the death of his mother during the Second World War and now living with his father and pregnant stepmother in the countryside, a lonely boy named Mahito encounters a mysterious and mischievous gray heron that soon leads him on a journey to a fantastical world to find the boy’s deceased mother, who may still be alive. 

According to director Guillermo del Toro, while presenting the film at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, The Boy and the Heron (a title that actually makes more poetic sense in retrospect) has a different tempo than Miyazaki’s previous work. Filled with quiet drama and empathy, you can’t really predict where this story (organically constructed and executed) is going to go. Nevertheless, this independently-produced feature (another first for Ghibli) will test the patience of some viewers, especially during the first half-hour of its 124-minute runtime (hence, one reason for the PG-13 rating in the U.S.). 

Poster for the North American release in December 2023

Mahito’s name means, “sincere one.” Ironic, considering the story’s themes of deception and truth. That being said, it’s hard to tell what is real and what isn’t. But it is thoroughly engrossing and stays with you. Some of the animation is expressionistic, particularly the harrowing opening sequence (which reminds me of Isao Takahata’s Tale of the Princess Kaguya), while the heron itself possesses freaky human teeth. As for the aforementioned realm, is it “a kingdom free from malice,” or just a dream/fantasy that isn’t what it seems (like Alice falling down the rabbit hole)? Is it a choice between eternity and the world? Being stuck in the past versus looking ahead to the future? Either way, this is a story about new beginnings, the challenges of letting go of escapism and creation, and dealing with reality. 

A few story elements recall previous Miyazaki/Ghibli entries (My Neighbor Totoro and Grave of the Fireflies, for example) and even Makato Shinkai’s 2013 entry, Children Who Chase Lost Voices. But for the most part, this is different than anything Miyazaki has ever done before. This time, his trademark of flight is expressed through birds, while images of paper creatures, melting bodies, and glowing doorways will leave you speechless. 

With a great and moving score by longtime collaborator Joe Hisaishi, The Boy and the Heron is a contemplative piece of cinema, if not one of Miyazaki's greatest. It’s certainly one of his most enigmatic, and an undeniable masterpiece. If not the reported swan song of his filmography (again), it could itself be a new beginning, from one generation to the next.