The Boy and the Heron (2023)

[ManW_TheUncool]

Title: The Boy and the Heron (2023)

Tagline: Where death comes to an end, life finds a new beginning.

Genre: Animation, Adventure, Fantasy, Drama

Director: Hayao Miyazaki

Cast: Soma Santoki, Masaki Suda, Ko Shibasaki, Aimyon, Yoshino Kimura, Takuya Kimura, Keiko Takeshita, Jun Fubuki, Sawako Agawa, Karen Takizawa, Shinobu Otake, Jun Kunimura, Kaoru Kobayashi, Shōhei Hino, Robert Pattinson

Release: 2023-07-14

Runtime: 124

Plot: While the Second World War rages, the teenage Mahito, haunted by his mother's tragic death, is relocated from Tokyo to the serene rural home of his new stepmother Natsuko, a woman who bears a striking resemblance to the boy's mother. As he tries to adjust, this strange new world grows even stranger following the appearance of a persistent gray heron, who perplexes and bedevils Mahito, dubbing him the "long-awaited one."

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

Probably gonna go see this on Wed evening (at the Lincoln Square AMC) as part of my 3-film marathon (after Napoleon and the Hunger Games prequel both in giant IMAX), LOL -- was originally gonna try seeing The Holdovers again, but looks like that theater's ending its run before then... plus this may not stay in AMC theaters here NYC beyond the week... and I'll probably buy the disc and/or 4K digital for The Holdovers sooner than for this anyway...

Normally, I'd probably just wait for disc for something like this... but hey, why the heck not since I have AMC A-List now...

Hmmm... looks like it's just the Lincoln Square AMC that might not show this beyond the week over here while other midtown AMCs will -- they musta just added those showtimes...

_Man_

 

[Jake Lipson]

This isn't opening wide until December 8 (with the customary "previews" on December 7.) New York must have it early.

 

[Jeff Adkins]

I have my ticket to see it in Laser IMAX on 12/4. It's some sort of "IMAX Early Preview". I'm very much anticipating this film. Ever since I heard he was coming out of retirement to make one last film, I've been looking forward to this.

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

I ended up holding off on Wed -- saw The Holdovers again instead as that AMC added (well-timed) showings for that after my previous post.

Not quite sure yet when I'll get around to seeing this...

_Man_

 

[Jake Lipson]

I just got my ticket for Thursday night and my theater is going to have a crowd. I can't wait.

Also, here are a couple interviews with the film's cinematographer that I ran across. I haven't read it yet because I want to go into the movie knowing as little as possible. So I can't say whether it has spoilers in it or not. But I thought I'd post it for anyone interested. I'll read it after.

‘The Boy And The Heron’ Cinematographer Atsushi Okui On Adding Dark Aspects To The Animation To “Bring Forth The Darkness” In The Main Character

Cinematographer Atsushi Okui on adding darker colors to the animation to emulate the darkness within the main character in 'The Boy and the Heron'.

deadline.com

‘The Boy and the Heron’ Cinematographer Explains How Film’s Color Palette Reflects Story’s Emotions

'The Boy and the Heron' cinematographer says film's color palette reflects the story's deep emotions.

variety.com

Ever since I heard he was coming out of retirement to make one last film, I've been looking forward to this.

With all due respect to Miyazaki, I think he has said every film since Princess Mononoke has been his "last film" at one point or other until it wasn't.

And now there's this:

Studio Ghibli Gives Update on Hayao Miyazaki’s Next Movie

Studio Ghibli president Toshio Suzuki opened up Hayao Miyazaki's next movie following The Boy and the Heron.

www.comingsoon.net

‘The Boy and the Heron’ Is So Personal, Hayao Miyazaki Needed a Year to Grieve Before Pivoting in a New Direction

Miyazaki came out of retirement to make a new movie inspired by his real-life friendships at Studio Ghibli.

www.indiewire.com

I have my ticket to see it in Laser IMAX on 12/4.

Without plot info, what did you think of it?

 

[Jeff Adkins]

With all due respect to Miyazaki, I think he has said every film since Princess Mononoke has been his "last film" at one point or other until it wasn't.

Good point. I had forgotten how he said that several times.

Without plot info, what did you think of it?

I ended up moving it to tomorrow night. At the time I booked it, I didn't think it would actually get any premium screens after the early access screening. Once they opened up additional IMAX showings, it just worked out better for me to see it tomorrow night.

 

[Jake Lipson]

I saw The Boy and the Heron tonight with an excited and energetic full house. Even the Studio Gibli logo at the beginning of the film got applause.

The movie is ambitious and weird and beautifully made. I don't want to say anything else because I didn't know very much going in, and I was happy to discover most of it organically through the movie. But I would definitely recommend it.

 

[jayembee]

The IMAX trailer for this played ahead of Godzilla Minus One (IMAX showing, obvs). I'm going to aim for seeing it this weekend. I'd probably be satisfied with waiting until a disc release -- it's been a long time since I've seen a Miyazaki film in a theater -- but the opportunity to see a Miyazaki film in IMAX is too good to pass up.

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

The IMAX trailer for this played ahead of Godzilla Minus One (IMAX showing, obvs). I'm going to aim for seeing it this weekend. I'd probably be satisfied with waiting until a disc release -- it's been a long time since I've seen a Miyazaki film in a theater -- but the opportunity to see a Miyazaki film in IMAX is too good to pass up.

I got tix for a Monday matinee in "LieMAX" and debating about trying to see it at the giant Lincoln Square IMAX another time instead...

I wonder about how it'll actually look in a true IMAX venue though... The IMAX trailer I saw seems a bit confusing re: the AR (and how it was actually composed, etc and whether it's actually a properly ideal format for it instead of something a bit gimmicky)...

_Man_

 

[Jake Lipson]

I saw The Boy and the Heron a second time today. I still choose to mask up whenever I am in a theater and I have been very selective about theatrical repeat viewing in the Covid era. This is only the third movie this year that I have seen in theaters more than once. (Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse are the other two.)

On Thursday, for my first viewing, I watched it in in Japanese with subtitles as that is the original language. Today, I went back again specifically to see the English dub.

The movie is set in Japan in the context of World War II. This is made clear from the very beginning of the film. So it is much more specific to Japan in time and space than, say, Howl's Moving Castle or Kiki's Delivery Service. So watching it in Japanese makes sense.

But if you're going to watch a dub, this dub is very well-made and respectful. The actors chosen for the English version are well-suited to their roles and everyone does a good job. It feels like it is the same movie and that care was taken with the process. Dubbing can be done poorly, but this is one of the good ones.

The cast is also pretty stacked with big Hollywood names, including not one but two different Batmen (Christian Bale as the boy's father and Robert Pattinson as the heron) and a Joker (Mark Hamill.) Florence Pugh, Gemma Chan, Dave Bautista and Willem Dafoe are also here. I'm sure part of the motivation for stacking the cast like this was so that Gkids could put their names in the English trailer, which they did. But they also fit, and nobody feels like they shouldn't be there and got in on their name alone. It was enjoyable to listen to them.

If you only want to see the movie once and you are willing to read subtitles, I would recommend the Japanese version simply because it is the original. But the dub is well done, too, and I think it is a valid way to watch this. If some of the famous stars will help bring in audiences who wouldn't be interested in reading subtitles, that's a good thing. The movie is great and deserves to reach the widest audience that it can. I would not hesitate to recommend the dub too.

There are a small number of scenes with Japanese writing in the film itself, such as on street signs and banners or a in book. Those visuals remain as they are even in the English audio version, so there are still subtitles on screen to tell the English-speaking audience what those words mean. This is the right thing to do because the animation itself would have had to be altered to put that stuff in English. So people choosing the dub won't completely avoid subtitles but will get rid of about 99% of them. All of the spoken dialogue is in English.

The original song that plays over the end credits was recorded in Japanese and remains in Japanese rather than being recorded again by another artist in English. So you get subtitles during the credits for the song lyrics in both versions. However, I'm probably the only person who was paying attention to the subtitles for the song anyway; both times I saw it, everyone else seemed to jump up out of their seats and head for the exit as soon as the credits started to roll.

I'm also happy to say that it holds up really well to repeat viewing both for the story and for another opportunity to soak in the stunning animation on display here. There is so much imagination and invention at play here. Even though I knew where it was going this time, it was no less absorbing. Joe Hisaishi composed another beautiful score here, and it was great to hear that in 7.1 surround sound too.

I don't think it is my favorite Miyazaki film, but that's more about how highly I regard some of his others than it is about this one being deficient in any way at all. It is another solid entry into Miyazaki's filmography, and we are very lucky that he decided to make it. The Wind Rises was a great way to exit while that lasted, but I'm glad he made this. I would not hesitate in saying that it is among a handful of this year's very best films. I look forward to adding it to my Blu-ray collection in due course.

 

[dpippel]

Hayao Miyazaki Announces Return To Filmmaking After Big Time Fuckup At New HVAC Installation Job

TOKYO—Despite his hopes to retire permanently after the release of this year’s The Boy And The Heron, beloved Studio Ghibli director Hayao Miyazaki announced his return to filmmaking Wednesday, citing a big-time fuckup at his new heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning installation job...

www.theonion.com

 

[Jake Lipson]

How a Birthday Gift to Hayao Miyazaki Became ‘The Boy and the Heron’ Musical Theme

Joe Hisaishi explains his minimalist approach to 'The Boy and the Heron' score and how a birthday gift to Miyazaki became the main musical theme.

variety.com

 

[Jake Lipson]

 

[Jake Lipson]

 

[Konstantinos]

Watched the film the other day.
I simply adore Ghibli films (my favorites are Whisper of the Heart and Only Yesterday), but I found this mediocre both script wise and visually.
I expected more for all these years we were waiting for a new Ghibli film.

 

[Jake Lipson]

 

[Jake Lipson]

Gkids is re-releasing The Boy and the Heron beginning March 22 following its Oscar win. Per their social media channels:

ayao Miyazaki’s THE BOY AND THE HERON is coming back to North American theatres starting March 22!

Screenings will include an introduction from Golden Globe-nominated composer Joe Hisaishi and a featurette with supervising animator Takeshi Honda.

They've also cut a new trailer for the re-release:

 

[Desslar]

Watched the film the other day.
I simply adore Ghibli films (my favorites are Whisper of the Heart and Only Yesterday), but I found this mediocre both script wise and visually.
I expected more for all these years we were waiting for a new Ghibli film.

I haven't seen it yet, but I prefer Miyazaki's earlier adventure stories like Laputa or human dramas like Only Yesterday. This one looks like another magical fantasy like Spirited Away, so probably not my cup of tea. But will check it out for sure.

 

[JoeStemme]

Hayao Miyazaki's return to filmmaking after a 'retirement' revisits some of the same themes and visual trademarks from his legendary animation career. It's a work that longtime fans might appreciate a bit more than casual ones.

The semi-autobiographical tale about a young boy, Mahito, who travels from Tokyo with his father to meet his new mother at their ancestral home in the countryside during WWII. A gray heron guides the child into an elaborate maze that lays within the estate taking him to alternate worlds and adventures.

Miyazki's screenplay gets a bit complex, and the storytelling is sometimes muddled with the symbolism not always clear. As always, the master's artistry shines in the design and rendering of the animation with plentiful opportunities to show off his fantastical side. Joe Hisaishi's musical score is truly exceptional - one of the year's finest in any medium.

If this is truly to be Miyazaki's swan song it's a fitting one, even if it doesn't rank with his very finest work.