Film Review: "The Boy And The Heron" ("君たちはどう生きるか") (2023).

From the Academy Award-winning director of Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し), Howl's Moving Castle (ハウルの動く城) and Princess Mononoke (もののけ姫) comes The Boy And The Heron (君たちはどう生きるか). This Japanese animated fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, and produced by Studio Ghibli. After losing his mother during the war, young Mahito moves to his family’s estate in the countryside. There, a series of mysterious events lead him to a secluded and ancient tower, home to a mischievous gray heron. When Mahito’s new stepmother disappears, he follows the gray heron into the tower, and enters a fantastic world shared by the living and the dead. As he embarks on an epic journey with the heron as his guide, Mahito must uncover the secrets of this world, and the truth about himself. 

In September 2013, following the release of The Wind Rises, Miyazaki held a press conference in Venice announcing his retirement from feature animation. However, Miyazaki later changed his mind after concluding work on the short film Boro the Caterpillar (毛虫のボロ) (2018) and decided to come out of retirement to direct another full-length film, a decision. In July 2016, he commenced storyboarding for the film and presented a project proposal for it in August. This proposal included a children's novel The Book of Lost Things by Irish author John Connolly, which formed "a loose framework" for the project. Edogawa Ranpo's Ghost Tower (幽霊塔), which Miyazaki loved as a child, inspired the tower in the film. Producer Toshio Suzuki later approved the project, taking into account Miyazaki's commitment and storyboard work. In February 2017, after Suzuki publicly announced the start of work on Miyazaki's new film, the studio's official website posted a call for staff for the new project on May 19, 2017, and production began in earnest. With Miyazaki coming out of retirement, Studio Ghibli reopened with many of its past collaborators working on the project. In October, Studio Ghibli announced the film would be titled How Do You Live?, after the 1937 novel of the same name by Genzaburo Yoshino. The release date was not determined, but Miyazaki voiced his desire to release the film around the time of the 2020 Summer Olympics in Japan. In August 2018, Suzuki stated that the film was expected to be completed in 2021 or 2022. In late October 2019, the film was confirmed to be 15% complete. In December, Suzuki confirmed that the film is not to be expected anytime soon; Miyazaki in his younger age used to produce ten minutes of animation every month, but now his speed was reduced to one minute per month. Unlike his previous films, Miyazaki did not oversee every single frame and focused solely on creating the film's blueprint through storyboarding, while the animation director Takeshi Honda took charge of the animation process. In March 2020, Suzuki disclosed that since the new film required a significant amount of time and money, the studio planned to finance the production by showcasing their previously released films on streaming platforms like Netflix. In May, Suzuki recounted that the film was a "big fantastical" film. He said that sixty animators were working on the film and that an estimated thirty-six minutes had been completed after three years of production. In December, Suzuki stated that the production was working with no deadlines, similarly to The Tale of the Princess Kaguya (かぐや姫の物語) (2013), which took eight years to make. He said that the animation was half-finished, that production was running faster due to COVID-19 restrictions requiring them to work at home, and that the film would be one-hundred and twenty-five minutes long. He also revealed that Miyazaki wanted to adapt Earwig and the Witch (アーヤと魔女) (2020) during development, but his son Goro ultimately directed the adaptation instead. Cinematographer Atsushi Okui introduced the idea of utilizing Dolby Cinema to Miyazaki during the production of Earwig and the Witch, which received the director's approval. In October 2022, Executive Producer Koji Hoshino mentioned during a press conference that the production of the film had progressed quite smoothly, even during the pandemic, and was nearing completion. Hoshino did not specify the exact release date for the film. Suzuki considered the film to be the most expensive ever produced in Japan. The production timeline spanned approximately seven years, comprising two and a half years dedicated to pre-production activities and about five years for the production phase. In June 2023, Suzuki clarified that the novel is not related to the film beyond inspiring the title.

The film stars the voice talents of Soma Santoki, Masaki Suda, Ko Shibasaki, Aimyon, Yoshino Kimura, Takuya Kimura, Kaoru Kobayashi, and Shinobu Otake. It is the perfect combination, wildly creative animation with warm and subtle performances at its core. It's easy to get lost amid the flow, as characters transform and magical powers emerge and disappear without warning.

The film undoubtedly stands out as a film with an incredible amount of passion and inspiration behind it, bringing to life a story that stays with audiences and engages them on a deeply personal level. A fascinating last film for Miyazaki and a swan song that seems to encapsulate the animator’s recurrent autobiographical strains in largely real-world terms. Miyazaki's swansong is every bit as masterful as Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle, tempered only by a bittersweet sadness which runs throughout. A celebration of craft, graft and inspiration, the film is a final masterpiece from an industry legend - and a ballsy statement that animated wonder needn't be confined to genre ghettos. Impossibly gorgeous, with especially painterly backgrounds and detailed attention to not only everyday sounds but the alien noises during and after a temblor.

Simon says The Boy And The Heron (君たちはどう生きるか) receives:

Also, see my review for The Wind Rises (風立ちぬ).