The Boy and the Heron is a Masterpiece (First Viewing Thoughts)

 For my cat,  Amy

2005-2024

I have wanted to address this movie for a very long time, and now that time is upon me. Here are my first viewing thoughts on the award-winning hit anime film from Hayao Miyazaki; "The Boy and the Heron."

Taking place in Japan in the 1940s, the story follows a young man named Mahito Maki. As he tries to adjust to a new living situation and the loss of his loved ones; he is taken on an adventure to the land between living and dead, with an enigmatic heron and a cast of characters that parallel his extended family as his guides. 

Courtesy: Studio Ghibli/GKIDS

In many respects, this movie is the reverse of Spirited Away. Whereas that film was about Chihiro finding herself in maturity by getting caught in parallel world of spirits, this one is about Mahito willingly going into another world of many layers to prove himself. However, there are two major constants between them. The first is that they both show the limitless potential of animated storytelling (with their Best Animated Feature Oscar wins being well-deserved). The second is that the fantastic journey undertaken also serves as a personal one.

The film's Japanese title, "How Do You Live" is a question that comes from an in-story journal left to Mahito by his mother; and one that the movie explores to answer. Though many critical moments in the story were leaked to me online (something I certainly did not appreciate), seeing them for myself is always something I know I need to do to make sure they're true.

With that said, the acclaim and success the film has garnered is well-deserved. Every story moment and piece of character growth is animated in colorfully vivid and striking detail. From a hospital fire that kicks off the plot to the ending moments in the Japanese countryside; it is certainly worthy of being Miyazaki's final film. 

Not only is it a spectacular animated fantasy to cement his vast legacy, it is a well-rounded and nuanced portrayal of grief. The only definitive story and character details I will reveal ahead of a full review (at a later date to be determined) are these- not only does Mahito care deeply for his surviving family despite everything; this is one film I've seen that accurately captures the more subtle and numbing details of grief. The scene where he deliberately hits himself in the head with a rock just to feel something again resonates with me more than you know.

I have every intention to watch this movie again for a full review in the near future, as it has joined the list of my all-time favorite movies (in the process of revising it for 2025). Before I do that, I have unfinished business with an anime nowhere near as good as this. That will be all for now, take care.